MANASSAS, Va. — A Kmart store in Manassas will close its doors after its lease was not renewed.
More in a statement from K-Mart spokesman Howard Riefs:
The Kmart store in Manassas will close to the public in mid-September. Until then, the store will remain open for customers. The store began its liquidation sale on June 30.
As a part of the ordinary course of business we close stores for a variety of reasons. This store is being closed because the lease was not renewed.
The store closures are part of a series of actions we’re taking to reduce on-going expenses, adjust our asset base, and accelerate the transformation of our business model.
These actions will better enable us to focus our investments on serving our customers and members through integrated retail – at the store, online and in the home.
The store in Manassas has 71 employees. They will have an opportunity to apply for positions at other Kmart and Sears stores.
Kmart has had its ups and downs since its found in the early 1960s. In 2002, it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from its creditors and later emerged from bankruptcy. In 2005, the company bought the Sears retail chain and formed Sears Holding Corporation.
The store in recent years has been eclipsed by retailers Walmart and Target, but it was apart of the American lexicon with its “blue light specials” and “attention Kmart shoppers.”
There are nearly 1,300 Kmart stores in the U.S. Locally, a Kmart store remains open in Dale City.
