L. S. Ayres Indianapolis on October 13, 1961. This subsidiary was one of the first discount store divisions launched by a traditional department store. The Indianapolis Ayr-Way store opened prior to the first Kmart, which opened in Garden City, Michigan, in March 1962, and the first Target store, which opened in May 1962. Ayres also opened Ayr-Way stores in other cities. Ayres encountered several challenges in establishing and operating the new discount store concept. First, Ayres needed to define a clear brand identity for the new subsidiary and its relationship to the L. S. Ayres store brand. Second, errors in selection of store
Kresge College S. S. Kresge department store at the entrance to the college, but this idea met too much resistance. Kresge College is currently home to several co-ops (Music Co-Op, Natural Foods Co-op, Photo Co-op, Garden Co-op) as well as the social justice organization, Common Grounds. Residential housing themes include the Writer's House and the Eco-Village. One of the alumni of Kresge, Marti Noxon, went on to produce "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", and managed to sneak in-joke references to Kresge as well as Santa Cruz into many of the scripts, most recently in the "Angel" spin-off where a supporting character (Eve) is