SHOPPERS have been scrambling to Kmart’s very last store in a key state after the chain suddenly announced its closure.
The outlet is going out of business and offering steep discounts to clear the aisles.
One of the last remaining Kmart stores is located in Began County, New Jersey.
News 12 reported that the parking lot at Westwood Plaza was packed with shoppers vying for last-minute sales.
The last Kmart in Bergen County has already announced that it's going out-of-business and offering huge bargains to empty shelves.
"It's sad - but we love a good deal," News 12 reported.
READ MORE ON SHOPS
The outlet is the latest in a string of stores that are going out of business after a boom in online shopping.
But some supporters described the sell-off as the end of an era.
"SHOPS DYING"
Manny Santos, a customer from Bergen County, said that people are seeing a "true generational shift - especially in shopping.
"All of these big malls are just dying."
Most read in Money
Although the store profits have plummeted there is still value to be found for customers who remember stores like Kmart in their heyday.
Santos said visits to the store before its permanent closure had been "pretty nostalgic."
Younger customers also spoke of their sentimental link to the branch.
Alexander Heiden, a local shopper, told News 12 that he had even spent $100 on a Kmart relic he found at the back of the store: an iconic flashing blue light which for decades signalled store-wide fire sales.
He said: "This is the blue light special from Kmart."
"GO CRAZY"
Heiden recalled seeing it flash and drive everyone to the center of the store: "Everyone would go crazy".
The broadcaster reported that many customers were seen departing the store with overflowing carts, after taking advantage of the deals one last time.
Kmart hasn't indicated the exact closing date, but News 12 said: "We do know it will be this fall.
"There will then be only three Kmarts left in the country."
Once the location on 700 Broadway closes for good, the shuttering will mark the last Kmart in New Jersey.
Over the past few years, Kmart locations have closed in Belleville, Somers Point, Kearny, Wayne, and Trenton.
Kmart sites that remain open include its Florida store in Kendale Lakes and an outlet in Bridgehampton, New York.
BANKRUPT PARENT
For those who aren't aware, Sears served as the parent of Kmart.
However, Sears filed for bankruptcy protection in 2018 after facing a steep decline in sales.
Since then, the electronics retailer has closed more than 100 locations nationwide.
Sears and Kmart are now both owned by private retail company, Transform Holdco LLC.
Transformco has been contacted for comment.
