Harry Cunningham to design a discount store. Walton added that Cunningham should be remembered as one of the leading retailers of all time. Cunningham and Walton both visited, and were impressed by, the early and innovative discounter Ann & Hope in Cumberland, Rhode Island. Harry Cunningham Harry B. Cunningham (1907 in Pennsylvania – November 11, 1992 in North Palm Beach, Florida) was an American businessman and retailer who founded Kmart in 1962, along with S. S. Kresge. Cunningham had a vision to convert the retail chain into a discounter. At the time, Cunningham was sharply criticized by some, including Kresge shareholders, as
Kresge-Newark in turn leased the top two floors of its flagship store to the Western Electric Company for use as office space. Kresge-Newark also took a lead in many civic improvements and was active in the early planning of the Gateway Center (which opened long after the store's demise). The store also formed an alliance with Asbury Park-based Steinbach. In 1964 with it clear that his heirs had no desire to take over the department store business, the Kresge Foundation sold the stores to David Chase, and they were rebranded Chase-Newark. In 1967 Chase-Newark announced it was closing, and four selling