In 1897 Sebastian Spering Kresge opened five-and-dime stores in Memphis and Detroit with John McCrorey as a partner. Two years later the company broke up and each kept a city. Mr. Kresge kept the Detroit store and began to expand from there. In 1912 the company was incorporated as S.S. Kresge and was the second largest dime store chain with 85 stores and annual sales of more than $10 million. In 1918 SS Kresge was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Over the decades, Kresge rapidly expanded until opening the first Kmart store in 1962 in Garden City, Michigan. By 1966 there were more than 160 Kmart stores in the United States and Canada. In 1968 Kmart began airing television commercials. In the 1970s Kmart continued to expand, opening 270 stores in 1976 alone. In 1977, SS Kresge changed its name to Kmart because 95% of its sales came from that branch. In the 1980s and early 1990s, Kmart diversified by adding other retailers such as Walden Book Company, which was the number one bookstore chain in the United States. The Sports Authority in 1990, 90% stake in OfficeMax and Borders Bookstore in 1992. Also in 1990 Kmart opened its first Kmart Super Center in Medina, Ohio. What remained of Kresge's U.S. locations were sold to the McCrory's retail chain, a former partner of SS Kresge. Between 1994 and 1995 earnings began to decline for Kmart, forcing it to sell its other businesses, OfficeMax, The Sports Authority, PACE, Borders and its US auto service centers. More than 200 stores in the United States were closed during the same period. Fast forward to the future, Kmart launched www.bluelight.com which is now known as www.kmart.com in 1999. In 2002 Kmart filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which was the largest retail bankruptcy in ...... middle of paper ......Our strategic question for SHC is: “How can Sears Holdings Corporation strengthen Kmart's position and regain its competitive advantage? Our recommendations are as follows: 1. Differentiation strategy: appeal to low and middle income families with children, Quality clothing and decoration store 2. Stable and effective management: conservation, value chain analysis: supply chain, inventory control (product selection) , technology (backup), overall consistency, continued value addition strategic alliances, similar to Joe Boxer 3 alliance 4. Continue to evaluate store portfolio, focus on owning more Premium space 4. Meet customer expectations, the customer service and continuous research and development.