Big Kmart #4390
1801 S Semoran Blvd
Orlando, FL 32822
This 122,473 sq ft standalone Big Kmart store is fairly typical for a store probably built in the 1970's or late 1980's, my guess. The real estate is pretty good, on the very busy SR436 (currently managed by Auburndale Properties), and as Kmart no longer needs a large parking lot, numerous outparcels for banks and fast food restaurants have been developed. This Big Kmart seems to have been last remodeled in the late 1990's or early 2000's, but at our last visit was fairly clean and organized - nothing fancy like Wal-Mart or Target, but decent by SHLD standards. It still has an Olan Mills portraits, Little Caesar, and garden center and pharmacy, but has lost the Kmart Restaurant (not sure what brand it was) and Penske Auto Center. A Wal-Mart Supercenter opened down the street on Semoran, and another one more recently opened a couple miles away on Goldenrod, and the dollar stores are continuing their sucking off of customers, but this Kmart still seems to survive with a decent (for Kmart levels) shopping crowd. I think Kmart could target the Hispanic population better with more Spanish-language signage, as that is a quite important demographic around this area.
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| Standard Big Kmart store - a couple more fast food or bank outparcels may be built in this parking lot area |
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| Little Caesar's Pizza! |
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| Olan Mills portrait studio! |
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| Hm, I can't figure out why this photo refuses to be in order... |
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| standard Kmart soft-lines (clothing) section |
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| Nice wide aisles... this is a fairly large store for a Kmart at over 120 thousand square feet |
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| An older-looking jewelry center |
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| I think this corner may use to have had a photo center or something else. |
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| Again, not sure why these photos refuse to be in the order I want them to be in! Sorry for jumping around sections of the store. |
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| 8 registers now + customer service desk, but possibly this store used to have more in its golden years |
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| An ancient directory, dating back at least to the 1990's. Note the restaurant still there in the right corner, and the Penske Auto Center in the left. |
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| Fairly old blood pressure monitor |
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| There's so many different Kmart pharmacy styles... this one looks like a little paint job was added |
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| Again, the pathetic grocery section. Even some dollar store chains are getting to be better than Kmart at this... |
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| Seasonal area leads to the garden center |
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| Pretty nice for being almost in the winter when these photos were shot... the benefits of Florida |
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| Can't exit the garden center at least not during the winter |
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| The indoors part of the garden center |
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| this is fine with me, but probably not a sight you'll find at Target |
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| a rather odd store corner... the corners of Kmart stores typically seem rather unproductive |
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| The former auto center area is beyond those gates, now a wasteland for storage. |
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| Layaway - something that Kmart seems to do well with, from news reports at least |
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| Again, I'm fine with boxes, but Target probably would be more trendy than this... |
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| I'm not sure if Kmart Restaurants all became Little Caesars corporate-owned or Kmart-owned locations, or just subletting to outside franchisees, but in any case, not that many of restaurants, K-Cafes, or Little |
that's all folks! The Super Kmart Center posting has been long delayed, but hopefully it's next! I've got the photos and most of the stats, just need to write the superficial analysis.
haha I will be very sad if that were my bussnies haha seriously I guess that's not funny.
ReplyDeleteSo...what do you think about having a posting with all the past and current super kmarts listed?
ReplyDeleteOr...maybe just a breakdown by state.
This store is is being closed . The last day of business is Nov 14
ReplyDeleteThe best place in my opinion to find Super Kmarts is in Northeastern ohio. we have three stores still open (Lorain, Brooklyn, and Mentor) locations converted to Big Kmart (Fremont and Medina) and closed locations (Elyria and Euclid). The only Super Kmart I have been in recently is the store in Lorain. This store lacks in Curb Appeal, but is very nice on the inside despite the fact it is about 20 years old. I am almost positive this store is a franchise because it is listed as Duns Super K online. This store was remodled on the inside with updates to the grocery section, replacing the Floral department with a Little Caesars, and The Restrooms were completely renovated after a Walmart opened close by last year. I think if Sears owned this store they would not have made the updates nessesary for competition with Walmart. The Brooklyn store is always very busy. The Elyria Super Kmart Was only open a year before closing in 2003. This store was split in two stores, but in the Bargain Warehouse side you can easily tell this was the grocery side before. All Three remaining stores are older locations (likely they are part of the first five ever opened).
ReplyDeleteWhile I don't have a list for Super Kmart locations, I have a recent list of all KCafe's, Little Caesrs,etc. http://www.shopyourwayrewards.com/sywrcontent/promo/pdf/KM_REST.PDF
ReplyDeleteP.S. Look at the openings at the bottom of the page. Maybe there is hope for Kmart after all.
That is a very recent list, a little caesars just opened in the lorain Ohio Super Kmart. This location is on the list.
ReplyDeleteIsnt the restaurant Little Caesars? I doubt they had a restaurant and a Little Caesars!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/markets/markets-blog/a-harsh-prediction-for-sears-holdings/article2147582/
ReplyDeleteBAD NEWS; Walmart is attacking Kmart again by adding layaway back to their stores. The layaways will be open in all locations by November.Also, I noticed the new Walmart logo looks like a combination of Kmart's Target's, Sear's, and Zyare's logos. The Walmart text is in the same font as Kmart's logo, the Kmart logo was designed years before Walmart's. The text is the same color as Sear's logo. The asterix is similar in size and location(left of text) as Target's bullseye logo. The asterix is similar to the one used on Zyare stores(when they were in business).That is just one example of Walmart copying sucessful elements of other stores, especially Kmart, Target, and Meijer. Walmart then drives these out by building new stores next door and drastically lowering prices.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.marketwatch.com/story/sears-sacks-staffers-who-sold-appliances-at-kmarts-2011-06-17/comments
ReplyDeleteI hate Walmart. I do not see anything about the store in Winter Haven, Florida, across the street from the new Legoland....?
ReplyDeleteI've been looking at dozens of photos from Kmarts around the nation (on Flickr and elsewhere) and along with the pictures above, there is one universal theme: the stores are deader than fried chicken. I've been to Wal-Marts at 2 am that are busier. It's really sad to watch another relic die a slow death. I suspect Kmart will be long gone in another couple of years.
ReplyDeleteWhen is the Super Kmart post coming. someone put up list of all Super Kmarts still in operation here-http://www.mykmart.com/discussion_boards/MyKmart-Community/topics/Re-add-a-Kmart-Supercenter-locator-to-the-Kmart-website/posts
ReplyDeleteI started a Dead and Dying retail blog at http://deadanddyingretail.blogspot.com/ that focuses on Super Kmart.
ReplyDeleteI love k-mart (thus i found this page) but these are very poor quality photos. I got depressed after looking at them
ReplyDeleteThis K-Mart is closed.......
ReplyDeleteThis Kmart has been closed since 11/13/11, and the building is not looking too well. All the doors and windows are boarded up, the paint is peeling, the parking lot has grass growing in it. Then again, the building wasn't in the best of shape when the store was open.
ReplyDeleteIt's sad that it closed, but, it had been failing for years, and there are still a few Kmart's left that are bigger, cleaner and newer.
it was built in 1971
ReplyDeleteThis is definitely the wave of the future!
ReplyDeletematchmaker Chicago Illinois
matchmaker Chicago