Purdy-Kresge Library with a five and ten cent store that opened in 1899 in Downtown Detroit and now there are thousands of K-mart stores in the U.S. and in other countries. Also being a successful business man Kresge was a philanthropist. When The Kresge Foundation was founded in 1924, he thought his gains would be able to better mankind. The Kresge Foundation has donated millions of dollars to many colleges and organizations but the foundation is also known as a “bricks and mortar” foundation because it helped institutions and non-profit organizations. In 1949, the trustees of The Kresge Foundation offered Wayne State
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