WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Arizona, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. No non-grocery posts.
architect
Assistant Store Manager
Assistant Store Manager
Posts: 843
Joined: December 8th, 2015, 3:41 pm
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 7 times
Status: Offline

WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by architect »

I'm shocked. This is downright embarrassing for a store to flop so badly that it closes in less than a year. My guess is that a lack of walkable residential development in the area killed it.

Article: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/local ... 59037.html

Also, could this be a sign that the Southern division is clearing out slacking stores? This is the third store closure announced within the division in the past three weeks.
storewanderer
Posts: 14379
Joined: February 23rd, 2009, 3:54 pm
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 298 times
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by storewanderer »

This is what happens when your strategy is to take whatever vacant real estate you can find and open stores to try and paint a picture of success and expansion. When your stores have lousy pricing, questionable private label programs, questionable service levels, and very inconsistent quality... what do they expect?
pseudo3d
Posts: 3851
Joined: November 12th, 2015, 7:01 pm
Has thanked: 5 times
Been thanked: 77 times
Status: Offline

Re: WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by pseudo3d »

I think the newspaper is mixing up stores, this is the WestBend store and a former Fresh Market (not the fancy Left Bank one). I can tell you most assuredly the store closing is not 50k square feet.

Edit: They fixed their error.
SamSpade
Store Manager
Store Manager
Posts: 1568
Joined: September 13th, 2015, 4:39 pm
Has thanked: 374 times
Been thanked: 57 times
Status: Offline

Re: WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by SamSpade »

I think it's too bad they didn't use the standard the New York Times (and even OregonLive.com) uses to note the story was originally posted with incorrect information that was updated. :-|
klkla
Posts: 1614
Joined: February 24th, 2009, 3:26 pm
Been thanked: 2 times
Status: Offline

Re: WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by klkla »

In retail it's all about 'location, location, location'. As the article says the store is 'barely visible' from the main street. I remember thinking to myself that this seemed like a strange location when it opened.

I wouldn't read too much into this. They just made a bad real estate decision and they were quick to recognize their error.
rwsandiego
Store Manager
Store Manager
Posts: 1242
Joined: April 3rd, 2016, 10:57 pm
Has thanked: 23 times
Been thanked: 55 times
Status: Offline

Re: WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by rwsandiego »

klkla wrote:In retail it's all about 'location, location, location'. As the article says the store is 'barely visible' from the main street. I remember thinking to myself that this seemed like a strange location when it opened.

I wouldn't read too much into this. They just made a bad real estate decision and they were quick to recognize their error.
Was thinking the same thing. Businesses, particularly grocers and banks, get flack for not investing in city locations. Prior to the merger, both companies opened successful apartment/condo building locations and they probably thought the numbers were there to support the store. Good for Safebertson's for taking a risk.
klkla
Posts: 1614
Joined: February 24th, 2009, 3:26 pm
Been thanked: 2 times
Status: Offline

Re: WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by klkla »

rwsandiego wrote:Good for Safebertson's for taking a risk.
Don't give them any branding ideas lol.
storewanderer
Posts: 14379
Joined: February 23rd, 2009, 3:54 pm
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 298 times
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by storewanderer »

I prefer Albway.

Fewer letters to light up too.

Not sure how to merge the Safeway S with the Albertsons clover though...
pseudo3d
Posts: 3851
Joined: November 12th, 2015, 7:01 pm
Has thanked: 5 times
Been thanked: 77 times
Status: Offline

Re: WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by pseudo3d »

Let's be clear, unless it's a very specialized, successful grocer with skill in small stores, any retailer would have a tough time making a full-line sub-30k square foot store work, because once you start cramming perishables in (I'm not sure how accurate the newspaper is what with the Starbucks and all), the merchandise mix has to become highly abbreviated. The Fresh Market failed in Texas partly because of this. Remember, Tom Thumb bought two others as well and they haven't closed yet.

EDIT: I should also note that Tom Thumb's problems were compounded by it being below an office tower, not a residential tower.
wnetmacman
Forum Moderator
Forum Moderator
Posts: 994
Joined: January 17th, 2010, 2:36 pm
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 44 times
Status: Offline

Re: WestBend (Fort Worth) Tom Thumb closing after less than a year

Post by wnetmacman »

pseudo3d wrote:Let's be clear, unless it's a very specialized, successful grocer with skill in small stores, any retailer would have a tough time making a full-line sub-30k square foot store work, because once you start cramming perishables in (I'm not sure how accurate the newspaper is what with the Starbucks and all), the merchandise mix has to become highly abbreviated. The Fresh Market failed in Texas partly because of this. Remember, Tom Thumb bought two others as well and they haven't closed yet.

EDIT: I should also note that Tom Thumb's problems were compounded by it being below an office tower, not a residential tower.
I disagree. I have seen plenty of retailers do well with smaller stores. Food Lion doesn't necessarily do well, but they have been around far longer than many of their competitors and managed to survive. Safeway has plenty of 25-30K stores on the West coast that have run successfully for years, so if anybody could have pulled it off, Tom Thumb should have been them. A location in an office tower with a large Deli should have been the ideal store, as it would attract a lunch crowd and a late afternoon crowd. The Starbucks should have attracted a morning crowd for coffee. Something else wasn't right for it not to work, but I also know that Albertsons isn't a flexible company when it comes to offerings, and that could have come to haunt them.

Has anyone else heard of other closings beyond this, Denham Springs and Bossier City? I'm wondering if it isn't part of a larger group of closings.
Post Reply