# Why are there so many damaged products at Kmart? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 3, 2015, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677 "2015-04-03T02:24:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![boffking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/858c86/32.png) [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/1 "2015-04-03T02:24:03Z")
Every time I go into a Kmart, I see a lot more products in damaged boxes than I see anywhere else. Have they turned into a salvage store? Or is this just a sign that Kmart customers and employees have given up on each other? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/2 "2015-04-03T02:27:29Z")
Customers will often open a box to look at the product more closely then purchase an unopened box, leaving the opened one on the shelf. Next customer does the same thing with another unopened box, (who wants an open box, it might be damaged or parts missing) then purchases an unopened box. Now you have two opened boxes and so on. ---
**Author:** ![boffking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/858c86/32.png) [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/3 "2015-04-03T14:26:55Z")
But does that only happen at Kmart? They must have 10 times more damaged products on their shelves than any other retailer. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/4 "2015-04-03T14:50:59Z")
Could be that KMart is more sparsely employed than Target, Wal Mart and Kohl’s and it’s just easier to get away with opening boxes there. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/5 "2015-04-03T16:07:02Z")
And is it a general problem or just your local KMart? ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/6 "2015-04-03T16:30:18Z")
Walk down the toy aisle at the local Kmart and you’ll navigate a floor full of played with toys. Looks like a 4-year-olds room. ---
**Author:** ![No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ea5d25/32.png) [@No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_umlaut_for_U)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/7 "2015-04-03T17:07:39Z")
Don’t know if it’s still true, but KMart will not sell damaged goods at an employee discount like someplace like Macy’s will. The philosophy is that the stock people will be more careful that way. Therefore, damaged goods sit out until disposed of. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/8 "2015-04-03T18:10:45Z")
I happened to be at a Kmart last night, and yes, there was no shortage of boxes that looked like they’d been opened and rummaged through, as well as boxes that were still taped (or re-taped?) but looked like they’d been tumbled around for a long time. “Shopworn” is one thing, but this was beyond that into crushed, bent and impaled. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/9 "2015-04-04T01:31:11Z")
Replacing damaged goods costs money. Kmart is famous for no longer having that. ---
**Author:** ![race\_to\_the\_bottom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c4cdca/32.png) [@race\_to\_the\_bottom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/race_to_the_bottom)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2015, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/10 "2015-04-04T21:05:08Z")
Generally speaking, I avoid K-Mart. It’s stores are run down and there are much better places to shop. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2015, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/11 "2015-04-05T13:48:53Z")
Way back when, the original Kmart corporation went thru 2 separate cycles to “upgrade” their stores to make them more “modern” looking. Cost a lot of money. After each one, when I went in to check it out it was basically the same store. Merchandise in disarray, a funny smell, and of course, the damaged boxes. Complete waste of money. Money that they borrowed. That lead to bankruptcy and the major creditor owning the company. Stockholders got nothing. The CEO of Kmart was really friendly with the creditors and got paid really well by them during the switchover. A cynic might think that the remodeling was just a scam to drive the company into bankruptcy so the old CEO could cleanup. But, of course, no respectable executive would do such a thing. The new Kmart holding company then took over Sears, took on the Sears name. Kmart (and Sears) had valuable real estate holdings which financed a lot of stuff. But that’s all about to end. Who cares about big anchor stores in dying malls? All thru this, the employee mentality never changed. Stuff got torn into? Thrown into the aisles? Spilled? Mixed up on the shelves? Not their problem. You can spend all the money you want on new paint and lighting. But employees are the heart of a company. And if the company doesn’t care about them, they won’t care about the company. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2015, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/12 "2015-04-05T16:24:52Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > And is it a general problem or just your local KMart? It varies from store to store but its a general enough trend to pop up on different message boards fairly regular. Second place for the catagory is usually WalMart. I don’t know if there is a single factual answer for it but the two culprits usually blamed are the quality of the work force in both stores and the quality of the shoppers. How efficient/effective security is also gets named. Try pulling the same stunts in Nordstroms that you often see in KMart and you may find yourself at least seriously questioned. ---
**Author:** ![sweat209](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@sweat209](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweat209)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2015, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/13 "2015-04-06T04:40:10Z")
> [@boffking](#): > > Every time I go into a Kmart, I see a lot more products in damaged boxes than I see anywhere else. Have they turned into a salvage store? Or is this just a sign that Kmart customers and employees have given up on each other? It more likely customers are damaging the products. Go to more upper scale Kmart. ---
**Author:** ![Mrdeals](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ea666f/32.png) [@Mrdeals](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrdeals)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2015, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/14 "2015-04-06T07:01:52Z")
Not really an answer per say, But in my business I buy trucks of damaged merchandise for resale, it is from a 3rd party warehouse that deals with several other stores. Besides Wal-Mart, almost all trucks are K-Mart trucks…hard to say whether it is warehouse damage or not, but my point is…being 1/4 of Walmart’s size and generating more damages than the next 10 chains combined…something strange is happening at K-Mart/Sears ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2015, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/15 "2015-04-06T15:03:14Z")
It’s hard to have a good work ethic when the company you work for is circling the drain. If you were paying me minimum wage to stock shelves, and I was 99% certain I’d be unemployed within a year no matter how good a job I did, I’d probably let the stupid boxes sit there too, unless my boss specifically asked me to clean them up. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2015, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/16 "2015-04-06T16:03:03Z")
> [@sweat209](#): > > Go to more upper scale Kmart. Heh. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/17 "2015-04-07T17:37:38Z")
> [@sweat209](#): > > It more likely customers are damaging the products. > Go to more upper scale Kmart. This. Don’t shop in the hood. Drive to the rich part of town and shop there. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/18 "2015-04-07T18:55:33Z")
> [@Drunky\_Smurf](#): > > This. Don’t shop in the hood. Drive to the rich part of town and shop there. I doubt there would _be_ a Kmart in the rich part of town. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/19 "2015-04-07T19:28:51Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > It’s hard to have a good work ethic when the company you work for is circling the drain. I swear KMart has been like this at least since the 60’s when I was a kid and we shopped there. ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677/20 "2015-04-07T22:36:28Z")
I’ve noticed a similar problem at the local Lowes (a home improvement store). I assume a lot of it is theft. When I am searching for something, I almost always find a box (or plastic bag) that has been opened. Sometimes, it is helpful to have access to a product to make sure what you are buying is the right size, etc. But more often than not, I have seen items that are missing a part or two… Dremel power tool kits seem to get opened quite a bit at the store I frequent, but it is literally everything. I went to buy everything needed to replace an in-sink-erator this weekend, and two of the boxes were opened on the shelf. I looked inside one of the open boxes, and the unit was there, but there were some hardware parts missing. I also picked up a new plastic drain outlet hose, to go from my dishwasher to the in-sink-erator, and it came in a kit, which included the hardware needed to hook the hose up to both ends (clamps and such). Someone dipped into one of the bags and pulled out one of the two clamps, and one of the two rubber endpieces, that slide snugly onto the outlet (and then are clamped in place). I don’t think it compares to the OP’s description of K-Mart, but it’s something I have noticed more and more of. I would guess that theft is a big part of the open packages at the K-Mart too. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-there-so-many-damaged-products-at-kmart/716677.md?page=2)