# It's Kmart, not K mart **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [August 4, 2005, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611 "2005-08-04T19:56:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/1 "2005-08-04T19:56:29Z")
> [@Cecil](#): > > It’s K mart, Ron, not K-Mart. You know what these details mean to me. On their site, they spell it [Kmart](http://www.kmartcorp.com/corp/story/general/corporate_history.stm). No space. [http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2\_348b.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_348b.html) ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/2 "2005-08-04T20:13:28Z")
I know, but that’s well-nigh unpronounceable unless you say the “Km” as in Czech, making it a one-syllable word that rhymes with “smart.” ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/3 "2005-08-04T20:23:44Z")
It’s only unpronouncable if you’re one of the 23 people on the planet who haven’t heard of Kmart. It’s listed that way in the phone book, too, after two dentists named Kluth. With a space, it would have been between K & K Janitorial Services and K 's Flowers. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/4 "2005-08-04T20:35:08Z")
> [@Beware of Doug](#): > > I know, but that’s well-nigh unpronounceable unless you say the “Km” as in Czech, making it a one-syllable word that rhymes with “smart.” Cecil indicated that the details were important, as you can see by the quote in the OP. And I agree with him. ---
**Author:** ![askeptic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb9ed0/32.png) [@askeptic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/askeptic)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/5 "2005-08-04T21:21:21Z")
I thought a certain someone was going to work on being less of a nit picker. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/6 "2005-08-05T00:50:31Z")
> [@Liberal](#): > > On their site, they spell it [Kmart](http://www.kmartcorp.com/corp/story/general/corporate_history.stm). No space. > > [http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2\_348b.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_348b.html) Well, let’s see. Cecil wrote that column in 1987. K Mart spelled their name at that time and previously as “K Mart.” Go to the trademark and patent office website [http://www.uspto.gov/main/trademarks.htm](http://www.uspto.gov/main/trademarks.htm) and do a search. K Mart trademarked 116 different logos/etc. since the 1960’s. Most of those were for the stylized [KMart](http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.deca.org/nab/Kmart.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.deca.org/nab/kmart.htm&h=150&w=187&sz=6&tbnid=w1GlPdcBSMQJ:&tbnh=77&tbnw=97&hl=en&start=18&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dkmart%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26c2coff%3D1%26safe%3Doff%26rls%3DGGLD,GGLD:2004-49,GGLD:en%26sa%3DN) image. But when push came to shove, they said they were “K Mart.” At that time. Why does everyone always think in current time frames? ---
**Author:** ![rfgdxm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/7 "2005-08-05T02:08:53Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > Why does everyone always think in current time frames? It still is KMart in some places: [http://www.kmart.com.au/](http://www.kmart.com.au/) ---
**Author:** ![rfgdxm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/8 "2005-08-05T02:18:58Z")
> [@rfgdxm](#): > > It still is KMart in some places: > > [http://www.kmart.com.au/](http://www.kmart.com.au/) ACK! Strike the above post. I misread above. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 10:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/9 "2005-08-05T10:00:10Z")
> [@askeptic](#): > > I thought a certain someone was going to work on being less of a nit picker. Nitpicking is one word. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/10 "2005-08-05T10:05:50Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > Why does everyone always think in current time frames? That’s what I asked the Post Office. Bastards wouldn’t mail my letter for thirteen cents. ---
**Author:** ![chique](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@chique](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chique)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2005, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-kmart-not-k-mart/315611/11 "2005-08-07T01:23:03Z")
Oh, horseshit. Everyone knows (or should) that it’s correctly spelled Kameapart.