Kmart to close Hixson store

Last remaining Big Kmart in Chattanooga closes in December

The Kmart store on Highway 153 will close by the end of the year.
The Kmart store on Highway 153 will close by the end of the year.

Kmart is closing its last remaining store in Chattanooga.

The discount retailer, which once operated nearly a dozen stores across Southeast Tennessee, will shut down its Hixson store on Highway 153 later this year. The closing is among 64 stores being closed across 28 states by the end of the year as Kmart continues to streamline its operations.

Kmart closed its 25-year-old Kmart store in Cleveland, Tenn., in March and shut down other outlets in Athens, Sweetwater and Maryville, Tenn. in July.

Employees said the affected stores that are closing will shut down by the end of the year.

Kmart is also closing other Tennessee stores in Nashville, Memphis, Oak Ridge, Clarksville and Smyrna in Tennessee, but Kmart will contine to operate 16 stores in Tennessee and 19 stores in Georgia.

In Northwest Georgia, Kmart continues to operate its three stores in Dalton, Ga., and its other locations in Fort Oglethorpe and Rome, Ga. Kmart also continues to operate stores in Tullahoma and Crossville, Tenn.

Moody's analysts who downgraded their rating for Sears Holdings company last week warned that Kmart may not have enough cash to stay in business over the long haul. Kmart has about 870 stores today, down from about 1,300 in 2012.

"The ratings reflect our view on the uncertainty of the viability of the Kmart franchise in particular given its meaningful market share erosion," the Moodys analysts wrote.

Sears reported last month a second quarter loss of $395 million compared to net income of $208 million for the second quarter of 2015.

"We continue to face a challenging competitive environment andwe continue to focus on our overall profitability, including managing expenses," Sears CEO Edward Lampert said in the company's latest quarterly report.

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