Howdy, folks, and welcome back to HHR. Today, we’re visiting a former Finger Furniture showroom, which has been serving as what is likely the largest Value Village in the Houston area for a good 20 or so years now. This store at 9500 Jensen Road opened as a Finger showroom in 1962. At the time, it was out in the suburbs of Northern Houston, a rapidly growing area. While homes had already been constructed further …
Read moreCategory: Random Retail
Anything related to retail that doesn’t fit anywhere else.
Retail News: The Rumors of Greenspoint Mall’s Death are Slightly Exaggerated
Greenspoint Mall closed last month, according to major news outlets. I was contacted multiple times about my lack of coverage and was even accused of being “asleep at the wheel.” The reality is that I had heard through the pipeline that Greenspoint Mall had at least another few weeks left. However, my source, who asked to remain anonymous, also asked me to withhold the information, as they weren’t 100% sure this would occur. My own …
Read moreThe Grocery Heart of Kings Crossing
Editor’s Note: Today’s post is a guest submission from Pseduo3d of Carbon-izer.com. It examines the grocery stores in the heart of Kingwood, specifically the three supermarkets at West Lake Houston Parkway and Kingwood Drive. Holiday Foods / Albertsons / H-E-B v1 The first grocery store built at this intersection was Holiday Foods (4303 Kingwood), which anchored the Kings Crossing shopping center. It opened in April 1985 as a 45,000-square-foot store. Less than a year prior, …
Read moreRetail News: Conn’s HomePlus store closing expands to all locations
Last week, Conn’s HomePlus announced that it was closing about 100 locations as part of an impending bankruptcy filing. The locations included both Conn’s stores and Badcock Home Furniture, a chain that Conn’s picked up at the end of 2023. However, between the release of the initial closing list and the publication of court documents, the tide apparently turned, with Conn’s choosing to completely wind down operations instead. There are around 45 Conn’s locations in …
Read moreNo More Time to Dine at the 59
Eight years ago, 59 Diner shut down after a 29-year run; now, the building sits waiting for a return to use. During the very end, I sat tableside and watched Rome burn. The diner’s start occurred in 1987 when a group of restaurants from Dallas took over a building from the 50s that was most recently known as Phil’s Restaurant. Phil’s had been a perennial favorite since the 50s, moving West as the town grew, …
Read moreDollar General Market to open second Houston grocery store
Special shoutout to HHR reader Ty J. who let me know about the new signs going up. Dollar General Market signs surprised Houstonians this week, as they were recently hung on a closed Walgreens on the west side. The former drug store, located at 1838 S Kirkwood Rd, Houston, TX 77077, permanently closed late last year as part of Walgreens’ broader cuts. Dollar General quietly filed plans to open a store here earlier this year, …
Read more25 & Still Alive: The Silver Jubilee of Safeway’s Buyout of Randalls
Editor’s Note: Today’s post is a guest submission from HHR’s good friend Anonymous in Houston. I am not a communications or marketing person, but I’ve heard it said before that organizations try to announce news which might be viewed as being unpopular on Fridays since the public is more concerned with their weekend plans and will be less likely to ruminate over the unpopular news. Well, July 23, 1999 was a Friday. It was the …
Read moreRetail News: The Impact of the Two Randalls on the Kroger-Albertsons Merger List
The internet has been abuzz the past week with the release of the proposed sell-off by Kroger and Albertsons in preparation for their planned merger. I won’t bury the lead, but this is all contingent on the merger occurring, and we’ll expand on that in a bit. Houston makes out like a bandit compared to other cities. Of the 28 divested locations in Texas, only two in the Houston area will be separated from the …
Read moreIngredients for Survival: Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of Safeway’s Lifestyle Concept
Editor’s Note: Today’s post is a guest submission from HHR’s good friend Anonymous in Houston. Many thanks go to Northwest Retail of the Northwest Retail Blog and to Mike from HHR for supplying the photos for this post. Last year, during The Year of Kroger series here at Houston Historic Retail, we celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Kroger Signature format. The Kroger Signature format dramatically improved Kroger’s position in the Houston market. In this …
Read moreRetail News: Tears for the Demolition of Garden Oaks Sears
Drone Photos Courtesy of David (hindesky) The former Garden Oaks Sears on North Shepherd is being demolished to redevelop the approximately 12-acre plot where the former store sat. The massive chunk of land was part of an expansion technique in which Sears would pick up oversized parcels, build a store, and sell off the rest of the land to other retailers. While portions of this Sears property were sold off over the years, the remaining …
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