Category: Random Retail

Anything related to retail that doesn’t fit anywhere else.

Retail News: River Oaks Ex-KFC to house another fried chicken joint

According to permits filed recently, Layne’s Chicken Fingers appears to be headed to River Oaks. The new restaurant will rehab a former KFC located at 2359 S Shepherd Dr, Houston, TX 77019. The KFC, which closed in 2016, long enough ago that Swamplot covered it, has sat continuously vacant for nearly seven years. College Station-based Layne’s Chicken Fingers (LFC) is being franchised locally by the Houston franchisee of Halal Guys and has collocated their two …

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Arlan’s attempt in The Woodlands, a history of “Food Basket”

Editor’s Note: The photos in this post were submitted by a reader who found them during a liquidation sale of the closing Arlan’s. The original listing has since been deleted. If anyone knows who took these photos, credit will be provided. Howdy folks, and welcome back to Houston Historic Retail. Today we’re taking a look at a now-closed grocery store with an interesting history. The building at 26824 I-45, Oak Ridge North, TX 77386, which …

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Grocery Update: GFS Braeswood Square Opens

Gordon Food Stores, Houston’s newest grocery chain, opened another store this week—the new location at 5300 N Braeswood Blvd, Houston, TX 77096, is located in Braeswood Square. The company opened its first four area locations back in March. GFS is a mix between a traditional grocer and a food service distributor. While they may not carry every grocery item an individual wants, larger households and small businesses can shop GFS quite easily. I visited the …

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HEB Clear Lake, sitting closed and empty!

Editor’s Note: Today is this blog’s eighth birthday and the week of my own birthday! If you like HHR you can easily help keep me going in one of two ways. First, please consider following, liking, and sharing my content on Facebook. Social media is not something I use excessively, but it helps bring new readers, especially those interested in local history. Second, please consider donating to HHR. I don’t run ads, have a corporate …

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Retail News: Houston’s first Shoppers World opens June 8th

Shoppers World will open its first Houston location on June 8th, according to the Houston Business Journal.  The store at 10701 Jones Rd, Houston, TX 77065, will complete the reconfiguration of the former Target in Steeplechase Plaza. The building was vacated in 2006 when Target, which built the structure, moved to a larger location along FM 1960. The first portion to be redeveloped was the right third of the building, which was renovated as a …

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Baby Buc-ee’s Another Taxonomy for Texas finest C-Stores

Howdy folks, and welcome to Houston Historic Retail! Today we’re looking at a “Baby Beaver Buc-ee’s.” The Buc-ee’s Taxonomy splits the classification of stores by size and actually doesn’t originate on HHR. Most people who know Buc-ee’s know them for their massive travel center stores, which have gone nationwide in the past few years. However, this isn’t how Buc-ee’s got their start. Readers closer to the Gulf Coast, may remember the earliest incarnations of Buc-ee’s …

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Why Fuddruckers days may be numbered

Howdy folks, and welcome back to Houston Historic Retail. Today, we’re taking time for a sad topic: the slow and agonizing death of Fuddruckers. The downfall of Fudds is not new content here on HHR. My first hint that something was seriously wrong at the chain goes all the way back to 2018 and the failure of the chain to re-franchise a popular West Houston location before shutting it down. My naivety of the conditions …

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A rendering of the proposed mixed used tower. Source: PropertyCommerce.com

Retail News: Target proposed for Heights area residential tower

A block in the Heights at W. 26th between Durham and N. Shepherd is currently undergoing the planning stages of redevelopment. At the end of 2022, WGS Retail Investments announced plans to redevelop the existing business on this land. Their plan involves demolishing the industrial sheds and former homes that had all turned to retail use by the 21st century. The plan as it stands now is to construct a low-rise 8-story residential tower, with …

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Slim Pickens at this former Carl’s Jr.

Howdy folks, and welcome back to Houston Historic Retail. Today we’re taking a look at a Carl’s Jr. turned Slim Chickens and discussing some shared problems. Starting off with some history, the restaurant building currently standing at 9599 S Main St, Houston, TX 77025, was constructed in 2015, replacing an older structure on the same site. The building was initially constructed as Tinsley’s Chicken ‘n Rolls in 1983. In 1985 Church’s Chicken purchased Tinsley’s, and …

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This image shows how much natural light makes it into the store through the Greenhouse. These are certainly much brighter stores via natural light than most modern supermarkets. This view also provides another look at the vending machine area. We can also see the customer service desk at the front of the store. We’ll get a closer look at the customer service desk later in the tour.

4000 Polk, Houston’s 90+ year old Henke & Pillot Kroger location

Editor’s Note: Today’s post is a guest submission from HHR’s good friend Anonymous in Houston with the photos taken by Mike Welcome to the latest installment of The Year of Kroger here at Houston Historic Retail! After three consecutive months of looking at early examples of Kroger Signature stores, this month’s The Year of Kroger post will take us to a Kroger that is the opposite of a Signature store. Those who have read the …

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