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Tour one of the last Kmart stores in the U.S.

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There are only four Kmart stores left in the entire country, and New Jersey leads the nation with two of them, including this one on St. George's Avenue in Avenel, Middlesex County.
There are only four Kmart stores left in the entire country, and New Jersey leads the nation with two of them, including this one on St. George's Avenue in Avenel, Middlesex County.Read moreTOM GRALISH / Staff Photographer


A yellow sign says the fitting rooms are closed “until further notice.” So is the garden center – closed.

The Avenel Kmart, one of the Kmart chain’s last still open in the United States, was once busy with bargain shoppers. Now it’s mostly vacant even with clearance deals.

“It’s amazing to remember that [Kmart] started out the same year as Walmart and Target in 1962. Kmart had its day but wasn’t able to define its market as clearly as the other two discounters,” said Vicki Howard, author of From Main Street to Mall: The Rise and Fall of the American Department Store.

Bob Fernandez

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