In a suburban Miami shopping center, Kmart's last 'Blue Light Specials' flicker

MIAMI -- The past Kmart connected nan U.S. mainland sits astatine nan westbound extremity of a engaged suburban Miami shopping center, quiet and mostly ignored.

All astir it are thriving concatenation stores attracting dependable streams of customers successful sectors wherever nan erstwhile box-store concatenation was erstwhile a awesome player: Marshalls, Hobby Lobby, PetSmart and Dollar Tree.

But astatine this all-but-last outpost of a institution erstwhile famed for its “Blue Light Specials," only an occasional shopper pops in, mostly retired of curiosity aliases nostalgia, past leaves aft buying small aliases nothing.

"I hadn’t seen Kmart successful truthful long,” said Juan de la Madriz, who came to nan shopping halfway connected a caller weekday to bargain canine nutrient astatine PetSmart. The designer spotted nan Kmart and wondered if he could find a gift for his newborn grandson. He exited 10 minutes later having spent $23 connected a stuffed canine and a woody artifact workbench.

“It will beryllium sad if it closes,” he said astir nan store, “but everything now is connected computers.”

The past full-size Kmart successful nan 50 states closed Sunday successful Long Island, New York, making nan Miami shop — now a fraction of its erstwhile size — nan past operating successful nan continental U.S. At its highest 30 years ago, Kmart operated astir 2,500 locations. Today, 4 others remain: 3 successful nan U.S. Virgin Islands and 1 successful Guam. There is besides a website.

Transformco, nan Illinois-based holding institution that owns Kmart and what’s near of different erstwhile unit behemoth, Sears, did not respond to email requests for remark aliases let nan shop head to speak. The company's plans for nan Miami location are chartless — but location is nary denotation it will adjacent soon.

If nan Miami Kmart were a marque caller mom-and-pop retailer, a shopper mightiness deliberation it could yet thrive pinch advertizing and a small luck. Kmarts agelong had a estimation for clutter and mess, but this shop is immaculate and nan merchandise is precisely stacked and displayed.

The size of a CVS aliases Walgreens supplier store, nan branch occupies what was its plot conception during its big-box days. A mates years ago, an At Home section shop took complete nan remainder of nan space.

“Get it all! Must Haves. Wish Fors. Friendly Faces,” nan motion adjacent to nan doorway reads.

Halloween and Christmas decorations statement nan entryway, adjacent to nan 30 shopping carts that nary 1 is using. A robotic sound says “Welcome,” arsenic does a cheery employee, 1 of 3 spotted successful nan store. A lone customer checks retired nan Halloween candy.

Straight up are a fewer dishwashers, refrigerators, washing machines and dryers: nan appliance department. In nan store’s main room, location is simply a ample conception of toiletries and diapers, a fewer hardware essentials and immoderate cleaning and pet supplies. The artifact section comprises a mates rows of dolls, action figures, games and squirt guns. Sun dresses, summertime tops and sweatshirts dress up nan mini clothing section. Oh, and location are snacks.

Also still present: a recorded sound intoning a once-familiar connection complete a loudspeaker.

“Attention Kmart shoppers,” it says, announcing that almost each items are connected sale.

If location were only customers to perceive it, for illustration location utilized to be.

Kmart was founded by nan retailer S.S. Kresge Co. successful Michigan successful 1962 and grew quickly, reaching 2,000 stores successful 20 years. The institution sold almost everything, from clothing to jewelry, TVs to canine food, appliances to toys to sporting goods. By nan mid-1980s, it was nan nation's second-largest retailer down Sears, and location were stores successful Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The roots of Kmart's diminution were laid during that decade erstwhile guidance bought Waldenbooks, Borders Books, Builders Square, The Sports Authority and a liking successful OfficeMax, reasoning nan institution needed diversification. They were wrong. By nan precocious 1990s, nan institution had sold those retailers yet still needed $5 cardinal successful refinancing — nan balanced of $9 cardinal today.

In 2002, Kmart declared bankruptcy arsenic Walmart and Target devoured its marketplace share. Its website ne'er took off, allowing Amazon to hit it successful nan e-commerce space. There were executive salary scandals, a acquisition by a hedge money head who stripped it bare and a disastrous 2005 acquisition of Sears.

Mark Cohen, a erstwhile Sears Canada CEO and erstwhile head of unit studies astatine Columbia University’s postgraduate schoolhouse of business, said Kmart would person thrived if not for nan apical executives who ran it into nan ground. It could person been Walmart.

“It sold successful its heyday things that group proceed to bargain successful ample quantities today,” Cohen said. “Kmart went down nan drain because it was led by incompetent managers.”

Transformco bought Kmart and Sears retired of different bankruptcy successful 2019 for $5 cardinal — its critics opportunity mostly for nan stores' existent estate. There were 202 Kmarts remaining.

Over nan past 5 years, the patient has kept closing Kmarts until each that's near successful nan states is Miami Store #3074.

On nan time that de la Madriz dropped successful to bargain his grandson's gift, only a fewer customers trickled successful and retired of nan shop each hour.

College students Joey Fernandez and Wilfredo Huayhua spent 5 minutes wrong earlier leaving empty-handed. They knew astir nan chain’s near-demise, spotted nan shop while successful nan shopping halfway and went successful to reminisce. It seemed small, they said, compared to nan Kmarts they remembered.

“We were bummed retired — I spent a batch of my puerility astatine Kmart,” said Fernandez, 18. Still, he mightiness beryllium backmost — nan shop has bully prices connected nan facial cleanser he uses.

Teacher Oliver Sequin had been entering Marshalls erstwhile he spotted nan Kmart. That excessively triggered nostalgia, but besides reminded him he needed Band-Aids for his 5-year-old son. That was each he purchased.

“I retrieve erstwhile Kmarts were bigger,” Sequin said. “But, to beryllium honest, I for illustration this 1 better. It is cleanable and organized, not for illustration they were.”