K-Mart Timeline

K-mart Timeline:

1899 - S.S. Kresge Company founded by Sebastian S. Kresge.

1912 - S.S. Kresge Company incorporated in Delaware with 85 stores and sales of $10,325,000.

1916 - S.S. Kresge Company reincorporated in Michigan.

1918 - S.S. Kresge Company became a publicly traded company and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

1929 - Canadian subsidiary S.S. Kresge Company, Ltd. was founded. By year end, 19 stores were operating in Canada.

1952 - S.S. Kresge Company was one of the first retailers to convert stores to checkout operations and to open stores in shopping centers.

1962 - With Harry B. Cunningham as president, the company opened the first Kmart discount department store in a suburb of Detroit. Seventeen other Kmart stores opened the same year.

1966 - Founder Sebastian S. Kresge died at age 99.

1966 - Sales topped the $1 billion mark for the first time. Number of stores climbed to 915, including 162 Kmart stores.

1968 - S.S. Kresge Company and G. J. Coles & Coy Limited of Australia organized Kmart (Australia) Limited to develop Kmart stores in Australia. Kresge owned 51 percent of the common stock.

1972 - S.S. Kresge Company moved from Detroit to its new headquarters in Troy, Michigan.

1972 - Harry B. Cunningham relinquished his post as chairman of the board and chief executive officer to Robert E. Dewar, former Kresge president.

1976 - S.S. Kresge opened a record 271 Kmart stores, the first time a retailer launched 17 million square