 |
| Location |
| 4325 Broadway Street |
| Phone |
| (707) 444-9605 |
| Hours |
| 8am-10pm |
| Website |
| www.kmart.com |
Kmart (sometimes stylized as K-Mart) is an American chain of discount department stores headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States. The chain purchased Sears for $11 billion in 2005, forming a new corporation under the name Sears Holdings Corporation.[3] The company was founded in 1962 and is the third largest discount store chain in the world, behind Walmart andTarget,[4] with stores in the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam (which houses the world's largest Kmart).[5]It also used to operate stores in Canada, Mexico, and Eastern Europe. As of October 20, 2014, the company operated a total of 1,077 Kmart stores.[6] In 2013 it had operated 1,221 in 49 states, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, including 1,196 discount stores, averaging 94,000 sq ft (8,700 m2), and 25 Super Centers, averaging 168,000 sq ft (15,600 m2).[7]
Kmart became known for its "Blue Light Specials." They occurred at surprise moments when a store worker would light up a mobile police light and offer a discount in a specific department of the store. At the height of Kmart's popularity, the phrase "attention Kmart shoppers" also entered into the American pop psyche, appearing in films and other media such as Troop Beverly Hills, Six Days Seven Nights, Rain Man, Beetlejuice, Madea Goes to Jail and Dawn of the Dead.
Kmart's world headquarters was located in Troy, Michigan, in Greater Detroit, but since the purchase of Sears, it has been relocated to Hoffman Estates in Greater Chicago, Illinois. Kmart also exists in Australia and New Zealand (see Kmart Australia), although it now has no relation to the American stores except in name, after U.S. equity in the Australian business was purchased in the late 1970s.
