There's an Australian department store called Kmart that has nothing to do with the American store — here's what it's like to shop there

Carrigan English/Business Insider

• There is a popular retail chain in Australia called Kmart, and it's unrelated to the American company of the same name.
• Despite having the same name and similar branding, the two stores have nothing to do with each other.
• I'm an American living in Sydney, Australia, and I recently visited an Australian Kmart to see what it was like inside.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. 

In the United States, Kmart is on its last legs.

Its parent company, Sears Holdings Corporation, declared bankruptcy in 2018, and since then, approximately 141 locations have closed. Fewer than 100 remain open for business.

However, 10,000 miles away, in Australia, another store called Kmart is thriving.

The only problem? The two department stores have nothing to do with each other.

Few Americans are likely aware that Kmart has a doppelganger in the land Down Under. As it turns out, an Australian chain called Kmart sports the same name and practically the same "red K" branding as the once beloved American retailer, yet the two companies are completely unrelated.

This Australian Kmart, owned by the conglomerate Wesfarmers Limited, operates 231 department stores across the continent. The chain once had a licensing agreement with the Sears Holdings Corporation allowing it to use the store's name, but in 2017, the Australian company acquired the brand name in the region for $100 million, according to its annual report.

Interestingly, Wesfarmers is the same company behind Target — the Australian retailer that, just like Kmart, has nothing to do with the American store bearing the same name and nearly identical branding. 

Read more: There's an Australian store called Target that has nothing to do with the American one — and the Australian one is way better

As an American college student studying abroad in Sydney, Australia, I wanted to see what this Australian Kmart had to offer. 

Here's what it was like inside Australia's version of a Kmart.

The Kmart I visited in Sydney was located on the first floor of the Broadway Shopping Centre — or what Americans would call the second floor.

As you can see, Kmart's branding is quite similar to that of Kmart in the United States. I stepped inside to see what the store had to offer.

Although it was only the third week of September, this giant orange-and-black Halloween display was basically the first thing I saw.

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SEE ALSO: I went to a Costco in Australia to see how it compared to Costcos in the US — here's what it was like inside

DON'T MISS: There's an Australian store called Target that has nothing to do with the American one — and the Australian one is way better