Attention Kmart shoppers: There's another list of possible store closures floating around, and this time, the numbers are getting serious. Up to a third of Troy, Mich.-based Kmart's 1,800 stores -- 565 stores to be more precise -- are itemized on a new closure list that was making the rounds of last week's ICSC Southeast Conference in Atlanta.
The list is national in scope, with closings expected to come early next year after the holiday shopping season. Kmart spokesperson Susan Dennis said no list of definitive closures exists, but admits the company could file papers to request more store closures in February as part of its reorganization plan to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The list also comes eight months after the company announced in early March that it was closing 284 underperforming stores in 40 states. The move was expected to save Kmart some $550 million.
Kmart filed for bankruptcy protection on Jan. 8, 2002. In late-October, the company said it hopes to emerge from Chapter 11 in a "fast track" manner, by July 2003.