Category: Random Retail

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

The last flight of PDQ in Houston

Howdy folks, welcome back to HHR, and Happy New Year! Today, we’re looking at the best-preserved example of a chicken chain that flew the coop in Houston just about four years ago. PDQ landed in Houston in 2015 as part of an aggressive expansion campaign for the still-new chicken restaurant. This location at 9440 Katy Fwy, Houston, TX 77055, was the first to open in the area of many planned. The concept was born in …

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Brookshire Brothers is still quietly operating in New Caney

Howdy folks, and welcome back to HHR. Today, we’re going to take a look at the Brookshire Brothers in New Caney. For those of you already asking, “Didn’t that store close?” Yes, it did, but there is a successor! While it has a Tobacco Barn sign-up, this location is quite more than just that; it also has a fascinating history. Brookshire Brothers started in New Caney in 1982, with the construction of a new store …

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The final “old” Fiesta from 2015

Howdy, folks, and welcome back to HHR. Today, we’re taking a look at an interesting Fiesta. This location at 20331 FM 529, Cypress, TX 77433, was the final location to open with any direct input from much of the original staff. This store opened in January 2015 and was one of the last moves from Grocers Supply Co. before Fiesta was sold to an investment firm later that year. This location was an odd duck …

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The Randalls in Galveston was one of two on the divestiture list for the now canceled Kroger-Albertsons merger.

Retail News: Kroger-Albertsons merger called off leaving two Randalls up in the air

The Kroger-Albertsons merger ended in a somewhat surprising development last week when Albertsons, seemingly unhappy with a lack of progress, terminated the merger from their end and, shortly after, announced plans to sue their proposed partner. As part of the merger, Kroger and Albertsons had to create a list of stores to divest to present to the FTC. This list included 26 stores in Texas. A mix of Tom Thumb, Albertsons, United, and Randalls locations, …

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The failed Wal-Mart experiment on the Northside

Howdy folks, and welcome back to Houston Historic Retail. Today, we’re looking at something that seems a bit mundane but is actually quite special. Located at 9669 FM 1960 W, Humble, TX 77338, this is technically Houston’s newest Big Lots, but the history of this building interests me. As keen-eyed readers have likely already noticed, this Big Lots juts right up to a Sam’s Club in an unusual setup. While this isn’t the only Sam’s …

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Retail News: Six Houston area Advance Auto Parts to soon close

About a month ago, Advance Auto Parts announced they intended to close 523 locations in response to poor earnings. While the plan is not set to be complete until 2027, HHR has identified six locations soon to close within the Houston area. These stores were part of 16 locations across Texas, which had WARN notices issued last month. The ten other stores are spread across the DFW area. All locations visited by HHR were confirmed …

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Trying to shop at DG Market

Howdy folks, and welcome back to HHR. Today, we will try to shop at Dollar General Market, a relatively new competitor to the Houston grocer scene. We’ll be visiting one of the newest locations: 1838 S Kirkwood Rd, Houston, TX 77077. When Dollar General developed its Market concept, the idea was not too far off from Walmart’s Neighborhood Market concept. This was how I first experienced shopping at a DG Market location in Ohio. The …

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Retail News: Bojangles to potentially open before the end of 2024

North Carolina’s homegrown chicken chain is finally spreading its wings in Houston. After nearly two years of empty promises to return, Bojangles seems to be making good. A location in Spring is finally finishing its buildout and is listed as “coming soon” on the Bojangles website. A second location in Richmond is also coming along nicely and has a grand opening date on December 17th. While this date is not yet set in stone, at …

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Here Everything’s Tiny – Austin’s smallest HEB

Howdy folks, and welcome back to HHR. Today, we’re driving out to Austin to experience something I’ve been trying to get photos of for quite a while now: a tiny HEB. First, let me start by stating the obvious: this store is not in Houston; it’s in Austin, specifically at 2301 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704. So why is this being covered on HHR? Well, it’s still historic, it’s still retail, and most importantly …

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Lowe’s Outlet 1-year Houston anniversary

Just over a year ago, Lowe’s Outlet announced plans to come to Houston. The store, like other large chain outlets, offers scratch and dent, return, and overstock items at deep discounts compared to their parent retailer. This location is the second Lowe’s Outlet in Texas to be beaten out by a location in Irving, which opened in 2021. Unlike the Iriving store, which  takes up a small portion of a former full-line store that closed …

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