I was on my way home the other night and needed to stop for a few toiletries. K-Mart happened to be on the way, and although I'm not a fan of the store, it was the most convenient place to stop at the time. I immediately regretted my decision and wished I'd gone out of my way to hit Target instead. The store smelled like a combination of moth balls and mildew. There was a thin layer of dust on nearly every piece of merchandise, almost as though no one had shopped there in months. I grabbed what I needed and headed to the checkout, only to find two lanes open. I chose the shorter line, naturally, but despite the fact that there was only one customer in front of me, I stood there for twenty minutes before it was my turn. The other checkout lane was similarly slow. I assumed the cashier was new, but when I got to the front, I saw that he was wearing a manager name tag. He kept getting distracted while ringing up my four items. I've had similarly bad experiences at other K-Mart stores which is why I don't shop there unless it's absolutely necessary. Is this just how things are in all K-Marts? How are they still in business?
This actually happens in every store, not just K-Mart. K-Mart is going downhill ever so fast as they are very dirty and can't keep the employees to get the stores back in shape. I've also found everything to be much more expensive then in other stores. I rarely shop K-Mart but when I do, I score tons and tons of good deals.
I don't shop in KMart the way I used to. I have noticed a smell in the store too, but I didn't think anything of it until now. KMart's prices are very expensive. I try not to get too much there because I will end up spending too much money. Don't even get me started on cds. They charge almost $20 for cds depending on which one you get. I can buy a cd much cheaper somewhere else.
It's been so long since I've been to a K-mart to tell you the truth and the last time I was in there which must have been about at least 5 years ago, the place seemed relatively ok. But the interesting thing is, the reason why I haven't been in a K-mart is not because of things you described but because they don't have many in my area. And I've just moved to a new state and they don't seem to have many here either. I wonder if your experience is part of the reason why. That sounded really ridiculous.
There is only one K-Mart left near my geographical location so I don't get to experience it much, but I have never recieved that sort of lack of customer care. The store has completely changed and does look worn and antiquated. The products sold are not the same quality as many years ago but there are actually still lots of deals to be found throughout if you look hard enough. I don't bother wasting my time with K-Mart anymore, however.
It's funny that we were talking about KMart because I wound up there yesterday after I got off work. I wanted to kill some time so I went to KMart. I checked the prices and was surprised at how expensive they were. I wanted to get some cds, but they were too much. I did manage to get a $5 cd, which was right in my price range. I wasn't going to pay $13.99 or more for a cd when I could get it much cheaper somewhere else.
It does seem to be the K-mart experience across the board, I don't have any near where I live now, so I haven't been to one in over a year. But what you described could have been talking about my last experience as well. Despite never having very much business, they don't have enough lines open and they're never very quick or efficient. And the dust / general dirty feeling, too. I don't know how they're hanging on by a thread for so long.
KMart is store that I do not go into often. The few times I have gone into the store I all most always leave without making a purchase. I find that there is nothing I want to purchase or the prices are too high.
I hardly ever go to K-mart because, as you already mentioned, there is definitely something about the smell. Also, often the stores are located on the ground level of shopping malls, where there is little light and ventilation. Even the staff seemed overwhelmed working in this twilight zone. I don't really know if the quality is better or worse compared to Target or Woolworth stores. I have moved away from these corporate centres and now mainly shop in small, local shops.
Kmart used to be decent years ago, but now they are pathetic and have really gone downhill. My local Kmart is dimly lit, dirty ,has a limited selection of items and all the employees look depressed. The walls are painted a burnt orange color that looks out of date. There are clothes and other merchandise on the floor. I think Kmart is on its last legs because in the debate over whether Walmart or Target is better, no one even sees Kmart as competition because they are inferior to the other two stores.
K-Mart is hit and miss these days. The company has been struggling for a long time, so that should be expected. I'm sure most stores are understaffed and underfunded by corporate, so the experience everyone is having shouldn't come as a surprise. I'm surprised the company is still around after it went through all that financial trouble years ago.
I wonder if it is that K Mart has gone downhill or if they just have not kept up with the times? Every time I go into one, I am reminded of the 80s or 90s. In my marketing class, one of the lectures was about color choices. Apparently, K Mart's dingy gray floor color choice is legendary as a bad decision in presentation. It always looks dirty even if it is clean.
I didn't even know K-Mart was still in business since I am abroad right now. I know the company is struggling hugely and the OP's experience could be one of the reasons why. There were two locations near me on Long Island that closed down and was replaced by a Rite Aid and a Dominos. I personally prefer Target over any other, even Costco. There prices are second to none and they even though they don't have huge bulk items, they have family sized products where you don't need to worry about buying more for a month or more.
My parents were like K-Mart fanatics in the 70's and 80's - we went there all the time back then, and I definitely remember the store being much more busy and the shelves being stocked with new merchandise. Ours even had a family style sit down restaurant in the back of the store, as well as a deli and ice cream counter in the front, and a video game arcade in the back of the store too. Granted, their clothing and shoes were knock off brands, but the toys and other products throughout the stores were all name brand stuff. I can see how places like Best Buy though destroyed them with a much bigger selection of music, games, and electronics. Wal-mart did the same as well. K-Mart had a little bit of everything, but they didn't have a great selection of any one thing. They also seemed to be way behind when new products came out, such as a new CD release or a new video game release. Their selection of clothing was abysmal too, and looked more like it was geared toward senior citizens and Amish people. The only thing they had going for them for a period of time was the Martha Stewart line of products. Regardless, I was shopping at my local K-Mart regularly still, because ours turned into a Super K-Mart and they put a full grocery section in it, which I liked. Plus it was open 24 hours. It was nothing spectacular, but the thing was, it was less crowded than all the other dedicated grocery stores in my area, so I could get in and out of there quickly. Plus if I needed other stuff like razors or shampoo, their prices were better, than what you would be stuck with in the cosmetic section of a grocery store. However, I've since been to some of the smaller traditional K-Marts that I used to shop at when I was younger and they truly have gone downhill big time. I swear they only have like three or four employees running the whole store at any given time. It's like a ghost town, and I suspect they aren't running the air conditioning or vents to cut costs, hence the odors. I don't even hear music playing in some of them anymore either.
K-Mart was the first of their kind of store to open up. That being said, they fell way behind when Walmart opened it's doors. K-mart got so wound up with name brand clothes, signature colognes, and it's near partnership with Winn-Dixie they lost the grand picture of what they were all about to begin with.
To be honest I don't even know what K-Mart is like anymore. There just aren't a lot of them around anymore. Wal-Mart has pretty much completely wiped them out. They haven't competed seriously against them in a long time. There may be like one or two K-Mart within a 200 mile radius where I live. That's how irrelevant they are. I haven't bothered to go inside one in years. I typically shop at Target.
K-Mart I remember having a K-Mart down the street from me growing up. It always seemed to be kind of dirty and smelly. There were never that many people there and the prices definitely couldn't compare to Walmart. It is sad that that store near me closed down, as well as a number of other ones I knew about. Times are tough and if you can't lower your prices, you are going to lose business. Walmart seems to know what they are doing.
