Retail Watchers

The last time Fred Meyer closed a store I don't think it did a closing sale either. QFC has done closing sales in its more recent store closures...

Every division closes stores differently...

The store is now totally closed and boarded up. With it boarded up, I don't think they'll even be an auction of store fixtures.

pseudo3d wrote:The store is now totally closed and boarded up. With it boarded up, I don't think they'll even be an auction of store fixtures.

There was a small Greenhouse in East Houston along I-10 that closed in much the same way. Not only did they board up the windows hastily, they also completely removed the gas pumps and canopy, as if it never existed.

wnetmacman wrote:

pseudo3d wrote:The store is now totally closed and boarded up. With it boarded up, I don't think they'll even be an auction of store fixtures.

There was a small Greenhouse in East Houston along I-10 that closed in much the same way. Not only did they board up the windows hastily, they also completely removed the gas pumps and canopy, as if it never existed.

I didn't even notice the gas pumps or canopy on my drive-by today. It's possible that it too has been dismantled.

They were not that quick to remove gas pumps when they shut down the Ralphs in Bakersfield some number of years ago. But they did remove them.

Yeah there most likely going to open a new one around 2018. Apparently the property owners wanted longer leases instead of the shorter standard ones. So guess that was one factor that played part. Also with kroger continuing to open new stores throughout the Houston areas, to meet the offset, which opening a store that hasn't paid for itself yet, they cut the drains elsewhere. If the southwest parkway had been a signature store like the others then maybe it could have held its own. Ambiance and variety always plays a factor, well along with freshness of course. Just too small of a space there really. This area is growing indeed, so might be other retailers to come along with it. Like Costco might be one and someone else can't think right now but I'll post when I hear.

Megaman10 wrote:Yeah there most likely going to open a new one around 2018. Apparently the property owners wanted longer leases instead of the shorter standard ones. So guess that was one factor that played part. Also with kroger continuing to open new stores throughout the Houston areas, to meet the offset, which opening a store that hasn't paid for itself yet, they cut the drains elsewhere. If the southwest parkway had been a signature store like the others then maybe it could have held its own. Ambiance and variety always plays a factor, well along with freshness of course. Just too small of a space there really. This area is growing indeed, so might be other retailers to come along with it. Like Costco might be one and someone else can't think right now but I'll post when I hear.

Interestingly, I saw some plans in a vacant storefront that were dated 2015 but had the architectural features of the Kroger overlaid on a "dotted line" Greenhouse design, and in the plan, it was supposed to be a Kroger Signature. Not that it would mean anything, as by that time, they were slapping on the Signature name on just about everything at that point.

The Southwest Parkway store had a lot going against it. Their demographics were declining and were too far away from campus to enjoy the benefits it brought (I think that those "benefits" kept the University Drive East Albertsons open as long as it did, though it was still low-volume for its size), and because of those weaker demographics, it started to lose out when the Walmart Supercenter opened (the other Kroger was slightly farther away, much nicer, and had better demographics).

The store size was smaller than its competition but it didn't feel especially cramped (probably at the expense of the perishable departments). Although I ended up not liking that store (it was, after all, the one that poisoned Kroger for me), the area really needs a grocery store. Years ago, there was not only that Kroger but also a Winn-Dixie Marketplace catty-corner...

I had actually found a plan in a vacant store nearby that showed how the facade was to be renovated back in 2001 (the center was undergoing renovations). Apparently, the renovation was supposed to add a "Signature" under the Kroger back when it renovated.

Anyway, I drove by and found that the fuel center had been demolished within the last few days.