Kmart employee gives emotional announcement before the store closed permanently

The once-beloved American retailer Sears Holdings filed for bankruptcy earlier this month, and while many consumers were disappointed, thousands of Sears employees were devastated. One heartbroken Kmart store manager in McMurray, Pennsylvania fought back tears to make his final announcement before the location permanently closed last week -- and the video capturing the emotional moment has since gone viral.

"Attention Kmart shoppers, attention Kmart shoppers," Joshua Englert began the last announcement he would make.

"I wanted to take this opportunity not to sell you 40 cent plaid skirts or 5 cent panties, but instead to thank you for supporting a lifetime of memories," he continued. "A sincere thank-you to the people who have made this store their second home. I’m the man I am today because of the people I’ve met here at Kmart."

Englert, who has worked at Kmart for 18 years, used the opportunity to share some memories and concluded to a round of applause.

"I started when I was 16 as a cashier and worked my way up to store manager by the time I was 23," he told Yahoo Lifestyle.

Englert posted the video to his Facebook page and has since been viewed over 277,000 times and has been shared over 2,250 times.

RELATED: 46 Sears and Kmart locations closing