Was or is having a Sears or Kmart store a crown jewel for a town?? I live in Northern California and lived in a rural place 10 miles from a small economic hub, which often doesn't have everything I am looking for. So often times, our family had to drive 30 miles to the city with the Trader Joe's, Target, Costco, Sam's Club, Best Buy, etc. But one thing that the town 10 miles from us had was a Kmart, which the town 30 miles from us didn't have. Sure, there are better stores in town that the other town has, a Walmart, TJ Maxx, Home Depot, GameStop, and it has a fun, historic main street with several mom and pop stores, including the oldest hardware store west of the Mississippi River. But the Kmart in the town stayed open even as the ones in the big urban area closed. That location has since closed, actually in 2018, and has since been replaced by Target, which is a much nicer store for the community.
What do you think?? Is having the nicer and more common stores that have a better selection better for the community?? Or is it a thing of pride to have one of the last or only locations of a store chain in the area or a type of business not in many other places, feeling like you live in a winner?? Is it the thing you believe keeps your community or your mall together even as other communities and malls are experiencing rapid change elsewhere?? What do you think??
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@1gqj+1lUUBpIa Underrated comment. Kmart and Sears were places to buy things, not your first born child. When they closed, now there are other places to buy things. Who cares? Yawn, next.
Going along with the "move along dear" crowd, I will say it's just widgets whether it's a local general store, a Kmart, or a Target selling them. Maybe you get a more personal experience at a local store, but they're not the ones making the widgets unless they're Amish. I would be more focused on preserving truly iconic local establishments like a restaurant that serves unique or tasty food--keep those recipe served for future generations, or a local museum that reminds the current generation of the people and culture that came before them, and a museum is surely where the name Kmart belongs at this point.
Crown jewel??? It was a department store, not one of the 7th wonders of the ancient world.
More like a thorn in the flesh
Not a crown jewel but was a pearl necklace
And we're supposed to care because.....? It was a company that sold things, and there are still companies that sell things. I bought from Woodworth's, I bought from Montgomery Wards, I bought from Radio Shack. I now buy from Target, I buy from Kohl's, I buy online. I spent money and I continue to spend money. Sorry you bought your first whatever there........you can still purchase whatever you need elsewhere. Move on dear.
Sears...yes, but not anytime in the past 30 years. KMart ...no, never. Sears used to be a legit store, even into the 90s. In the 90s I can remember buying our first computer at Sears and a number of appliances too. If you wanted to make a serious purchase, you went to Sears. Shorty thereafter, it went downhill and the past 20 years it been a complete joke.
No
Well that read was a 60 second waste of my life......