Kmart

Kmart is the anchor of the strip shopping center, occupying 96,000 square feet of space. The retailer's departure will leave only a handful of small merchants in the center, including a barber shop and a Chinese restaurant.The store's 71 employees will be notified of openings at nearby Kmart and Sears stores, said Kimberly Freely, spokeswoman for Sears Holding Co., the parent of both retailers. "We will encourage them to apply for those jobs,' she said.

She said Kmart management decided to close the store rather than renew the lease on the property. The company would not disclose whether the location was profitable. Sebastian S. Kresge, founder of the S.S. Kresge dime store chain, opened the first Kmart in Garden City, Mich. in 1962. The Kmart store here has been offering Blue Light specials since 1974. Freely said customers soon will not be able to layaway purchases at the store, although other Kmarts will continue to offer the service. Kmart has made arrangements to transfer prescriptions to the Acme on Route 541 after the store closes.

Unlike some other retailers that buy off the rack, Kmart home fashions and apparel are organically designed with the customer in mind. Both the apparel and home fashions collections are created collaboratively among all their top designers rather than being the result of a single influence. Clothing is created according to Kmart’s exacting specifications for style, tailoring details, flattering fit and quality. Although the Kmart Design Team looks to the high-end brands for inspiration, they eschew producing high-end “knock offs” and instead bring the runway to real life by carefully considering the customer’s personal style and lifestyle and applying Kmart sensibility, quality and affordability.