Kmart was originally owned by the "Kmart Holdings Company". Sears was owned by "Sears, Roebuck, and Company", which was in turn owned by Hoffman Estates. In 2005, the Kmart Holdings Company bought the Sears, Roebuck, and Company (and with it, the Sears stores). So in that respect, you could say that "Kmart" now owns "Sears". But the story doesn't quite end there. After the merger, the Kmart Holdings Company, which now owned both Kmart and Sears, changed its name to the "Sears Holding Company". So now the Sears Holdings Company owns both Kmart and Sears. So in that respect, it's more correct to say that Sears owns Kmart. The only true statement you can make along these lines is that "The company that always owned Kmart now also owns Sears", but it's really not 100% correct to say that either "Sears owns Kmart" or "Kmart owns Sears". (two failing companies just merged together is all)