Upon visiting the Galleria last week, I was surprised to learn of two recent closings. One of them I saw coming from a mile away which was of course Best Buy Mobile. The stores, which were more similar in fashion to a cell phone retailer, than a real Best Buy. I had tried shopping here a few times, and never had an exceedingly pleasant experience. Best Buy announced the closure of all BB Mobile locations back in May of 2018. I did not see the store have a clearance or going out of business sale. The exterior has been left …
Keep readingAuthor: Mike
My name is Mike and I am the founder of the Houston Historic Retail! I have been running this site since 2015. For more information check out the About page!
Visiting Almeda Mall for the first time
In light of the recent publicity of my website thanks to a Chron.com Article I decided to visit the literal twin of Northwest Mall, Almeda Mall. The following may come as a surprise to my readers, prior to yesterday I had never set foot in Almeda Mall. I had of course driven by it many times, knew where it was, and knew its shared lineage with Northwest. Both malls opened in October of 1968, they also shared developers and shared many tenants. There were 70 stores in each mall, with a total of 6 unique stores per mall by 1976. …
Keep readingNorthwest Mall July 2018 Update
Well, we’re coming to the end of July, which means it’s finally time for another biannual trip to Northwest Mall, before you read any further not much has happened. However, everything is still there, at present there are no plans for demolition. The last stated plans were to remodel and redevelop the inside with a possible grocer taking the space of a former anchor. I have since been contacted by the group wishing to purchase and redevelop the land, my update is at the end of this post. Nothing much has changed with Palais Royal. They are using the former …
Keep readingLaredo Taco Company Greensburg, PA
Laredo Taco Company, is a fast food concept owned by Stripes Convenience Stores. In 2015, Stripes was acquired by Sunoco. Some experimentation was undertaken by Sunoco to help improve their convenience store operations. Outside of Stripes switching to Sunoco brand gasoline there was little change for the Texas based Stripes customer to notice. However, outside of Texas Sunoco chose to build a new store concept, including co-located Laredo Taco Company locations. Three stores were built throughout the Nashville, TN area. Another was also built in Greensburg, PA which is outside of Pittsburgh. This is the location I was able to …
Keep readingThe last of Houston’s Toys “R” Us
Prior to Toys ‘R Us closing I took a day to drive to the locations closest to me and grab a few pictures.
Keep readingKaty Mills Renovation
Katy Mills which has been previously covered in this blog, is undergoing a renovation. Simon who purchased the malls original developer (The Mills Corporation) had not invested much in Katy Mills in terms of upgrades. Individual stores had updated their store fronts, but nothing in common areas. One of the first things to go was the “Star Family” a common mascot among the Mills malls. My understanding is that the idea was that you and your family were members of the star family, because at Katy Mills you’re the star? Regardless the star family slowly disappeared. They sank into obscurity …
Keep readingThe Pig Stand
The Pig Stand was supposedly the first chain to ever offer, drive-in service. Fort Worth was home to the original location, eventually expanding to Houston by location number 7.
Keep readingExploring the Abandoned KFC in River Oaks
Exploring an Abandoned Dairy Queen
I recently had the chance to take some video of an abandoned Dairy Queen in Nacogdoches. I uploaded the results to YouTube!
Keep readingNorthwest Mall December 2017 Update
As it had been nearly 6 months since my last visit to Northwest Mall, I figured it was time for me to stop by. From the outside it looks like not too much is going on, and the views from the inside support that as well. All the stores with exterior entrances are still open, including Thompson’s Antique Center, Palais Royal, The College of Health Care Professionals, The Post Oak Club, and Chapa. Upon speaking to an employee at Palais Royal it appears that the mall may be up for sale, and as a result the renovation is on hold. …
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