Saturday, November 14 | 12:11 a.m.
BY CAMI JONER
COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER
Vancouver's Big Kmart store will close in February, as recessionary pressures continue to hammer area retailers.
Corporate officials Friday confirmed the store, which employs 68 people, will close Feb. 14. Kim Freely, a spokeswoman for Sears Holdings Corp. in Illinois, which owns Kmart, said the tough economy played a role in the decision.
The Kmart at 2711 N.E. Andresen Road was among the first national discount retailers to bring a store to Clark county when it opened in 1975. Hordes of shoppers crowded its aisles looking for "Blue Light Specials." Since then, new retail developments have siphoned away business.
"There are many factors that go into these decisions as a normal course of business," Freely said.
After 35 years of operation, "it's always a loss to the community when you lose a national retailer like Kmart," said Pam Lindloff, a retail real estate specialist and associate vice president of NAI Norris Beggs & Simpson's Vancouver office.
A recent list of local store closures includes Joe's outdoor store, Steve & Barry's apparel, the Fisher's Land Albertsons store, Best Buy and Koplan's Home Furnishings in Vancouver, along with Linens 'N Things and Circuit City at Jantzen Beach SuperCenter.
Lindloff linked Kmart's closure to competition from Walmart Stores Inc., which now operates three stores in Vancouver and plans others in Salmon Creek, Woodland and elsewhere.
"I'm sure Walmart stores have been fortunate enough to draw some Kmart customers," she said.
However, Lindloff said certain shoppers continue to rely on Kmart as a retail destination.
"It's sad. I think there is a place in the market for them," Lindloff said.
A liquidation sale is set to start Dec. 17 at Vancouver's 84,184-square-foot Big Kmart, Freely said.
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