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Kmart customers rage over modern checkouts after spotting detail in 27-year-old photo

A Sydney teenager has sent shoppers on a trip down memory lane after sharing a picture of a Kmart store in 1995.

Jimmy Borg told Yahoo News Australia he downloaded the image from an old annual report in the Coles Myer national archives as part of some personal research.

"I'm passionate about history and seeing how things were in the past," he explained.

A photo of Kmart in 1995
A photo of Kmart in 1995 from the Coles Myer archives. Source: Facebook/Old Shops Australia/Jimmy Borg

The image shows the entrance of a Kmart, revealing the new layout at the time, with text underneath detailing the opening of three new stores across Australia.

"New stores opened in Indooroopilly (Queensland), Parramatta (New South Wales) and Chadstone (Victoria), together with an additional 15 refurbished stores," reads the caption.

The 19-year-old posted the picture in the popular Facebook group Old Shops Australia.

"The Kmart we all remember, the Kmart we'll never see again," he wrote alongside the image.

Mr Borg told Yahoo that he preferred Kmart before the retailer made changes to its product offering.

"This was the Kmart I grew up with and the one I remember where you could buy garden plants and parts for my bike and scooters," he reminisced.

"I remember the cool Kmart where you could buy consoles, DVDs, CDs, TVs before they changed."

Shoppers roast Kmart's 'new format'

Mr Borg said he wasn't a fan of the "new format", which includes the registers being relocated to the centre of stores, and the launch of discount chain's own brand Anko.

"I've noticed my frustration is shared with many other Australians who dislike the new layout," he said.

He added the nostalgia from the old Kmart is "strong" among viewers of his post, who agree the store used to be "better".

Many shoppers fired up about the new placement of checkouts.

"I still can not get over the ridiculous centre store payment hub... baffles me every time I shop there! What genius thought of that?” questioned one person.

"Worst thing Kmart has is checkout in middle of store. It's soooo off putting," another said.

Another added: "The new store is horrible".

Close up of someone paying with their phone at a self-serve checkout
Some Kmart shoppers slammed the retail giant over its self-serve checkouts. Source: Getty

One person described the new stores as "ghostlands".

"You can't find any help," the Facebook user wrote, promoting others to take aim at self-serve checkouts.

One person slammed the position of the checkouts for creating uncomfortable interactions with staff.

"People pay, get their things and themselves organised to leave and are then stopped by security for proof of purchase. I've never been back since they started this and their discrimination!"

One woman complained about customers doing the job of employees. "It is so distressing, sometimes there is a big line up. I just put my purchases down & walk out," she wrote.

Post sparks Kmart nostalgia

Others shared what they loved most about shopping at Kmart in years gone by.

"Back in the 1970s they had everything including a restaurant," one person wrote.

"I loved the cafeteria in our local Kmart, kids loved it in school holidays as we went often for lunch, good times that will never be seen again, so sad," added someone else.

One man reminisced about the gardening department being full on a Saturday morning while others pointed out the surprising products the chain used to sell, such as guns and cigarettes.

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