New Jersey’s last Kmart store set to close this fall

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After Kmart closes its last location in New Jersey this fall, the once-prominent department store chain will be left with just two stores nationwide.

Located in Westwood, the 41-year-old store has reportedly begun its liquidation sale in anticipation of permanently shuttering sometime in September or October.

As a result of the closure, Kmart plans to lay off 27 employees by Oct. 29, according to a notice with the New Jersey Department of Labor & Workforce Development.

At its peak in the mid-1990s, Kmart operated more than 2,000 stores in the U.S. and was the 15th largest corporation in the world. However, after the rise of online shopping, as well as competition from big box retailers Walmart and Target, Kmart began a slow decline.

In 2002, Kmart filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which enabled the chain to restructure its operations and reduce its debt. Then, two years later, Kmart announced plans to acquire Sears, Roebuck and Co., another struggling retailer, for $11 billion and the companies merged to create Sears Holdings Corp.

Sears Holdings continued to face financial difficulties and declining sales, prompting a series of closures of both Kmart and Sears stores.

By 2018, the company filed for Chapter 11 and even more stores went dark as part of a restructuring effort. The following year, integrated retailer Transformco Holdco purchased the assets and began wiping out additional locations.

Since then, the number of Kmart locations in New Jersey has dwindled from 11 stores to just one, with the most recent closures in Avenel, Kearny and Belleville.

After Westwood shuts down, the remaining Kmart stores will be in Bridgehampton, N.Y. and Miami.

A representative for Kmart’s parent company, Transformco, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.