When you think about it, 62 years is a pretty good run for a store that at one time had over 2,400 locations scattered across the United States, and had made the phrase “blue light special” synonymous with bargains and things you could pick up cheaply.
Although the company itself can trace its origins back to 1899 with the opening of the very first S.S. Kresge store, the first opening of the stores that would feature a large red consonant proudly displayed above the entrance didn’t happen until 1962 in Detroit.
Within four short years, the number of these discount stores had risen to 162, and corporate sales were at the $1 billion mark. At their peak, you could find almost 2,400 of the stores across the country…