Tag: Grocery Stores

Quicklink, Retail

No Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: FULLY QUALIFIED TO BRING YOU BEER BY TRICYCLE WHILE YOU SHOP Whole Foods Market Tricycle “I submitted my rÃ©sumÃ© for the position. As an expedition touring cyclist I think Iâ€™m qualified to make a few rounds within 55k sq. ft. toting clanging bottles of beer. Instead of wearing weather resistant gear I think Iâ€™ll gladly don tweed knickers and a driving cap to look the part. Hereâ€™s to 1mph in the meat section. Wish me luck Houston. I ride with the wind.” [Rider of Rohan., commenting on Galleria Whole Foods Market Opening November 6, Will Include Austin-Import Beer-on-a-Trike] Illustration: Lulu

Comments, Grocery Stores, Retail, Transportation, Whole Foods

09/15/14 1:00pm

Galleria Whole Foods Market Opening November 6, Will Include Austin-Import Beer-on-a-Trike

Galleria, Openings and Closings, Quicklink, Retail

28 Comments

GALLERIA WHOLE FOODS MARKET OPENING NOVEMBER 6, WILL INCLUDE AUSTIN-IMPORT BEER-ON-A-TRIKE BLVD Place Whole Foods Market Under Construction, 1700 Post Oak Blvd., Galleria, Houston The long-awaited BLVD Place Whole Foods Market will finally open on November 6, reports the HBJ‘sÂ Jenny Agee-Aldridge. And the grocery juggernaut has fed her another notable market-marketing nugget: Shoppers at the new 55,000-sq.-ft. store at 1700 Post Oak Blvd. will be able to make beer ordersÂ and receive deliveries while shopping —Â from a beer-toting store employee riding a tricycle around the market. The non-motorized alcohol delivery setup, Agee-Aldridge notes, is an Austin import. But the beer source is a Houston first: The store will be the first Whole Foods’ anywhere to have its own brewery on the premises, and will feature beer-themed breads and desserts as well. [Houston Business Journal; previously on Swamplot] Photo: Russell Hancock

77056, BLVD Place, Galleria, Grocery Stores, Openings and Closings, Retail, Uptown, Whole Foods

07/31/14 11:00am

A Mystery Grocery Store Is Coming to the Corner of Highland Knolls and Westgreen in Katy. Is It a Walmart?

Katy, Proposed Developments, Retail

10 Comments

highland-knolls-westgreen-site

Corner of Highland Knolls Blvd. and Westgreen, Katy, Texas From the Swamplot tip jar comes this little cookie: A site plan for an unnamed grocery store and 3 fast-food drive-thru or bank-style pad sites on Highland Knolls Dr., across Westgreen Blvd. from Memorial Parkway Junior High School in Katy. And with it comes only a “rumor”: that the grocery would be a Walmart Neighborhood Market like the one the company is now constructing in nearby Cinco Ranch. The average size of a Walmart Neighborhood Market is 38,000 sq. ft., about one-fifth the size of a typical Supercenters.

The former Spring Branch Church of the Nazarene (now known as the Living Word Church of the Nazarene) purchased the 9.75-acre corner property in 2004. According to a report in Covering Katy back in February, the church had already requested the property be designated commercial.

Next to Apartment Site

77450, Grocery Stores, Katy, Proposed Developments, Retail

East End

07/14/14 2:00pm

Updated: H-E-B Isn’t Planning Any Grocery Store on the Harrisburg Blvd. Rail Line

Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Retail, Shopping Centers

28 Comments

Harrisburg Crossing, 4300-4500 Harrisburg Blvd. at Lockwood, East End, Houston

Former Historic Houston Salvage Warehouse, 4300 Harrisburg Blvd., East End, Houston Update, 3:30 pm: A spokesperson for H-E-B informs Swamplot that the company has no plans for a Joe V’s Smart Shop in this area. Separately, a rep from Lovett Commercial indicates that the plans and declaration posted on its website that a Joe V’s Smart Shop is coming to the center are “outdated,”Â and that no grocery store is currently planned for that site. We’ve updated the story below accordingly.

This row of metal warehouse buildings at 4300 Harrisburg Blvd. was used for a time recently as a temporary home for the Historic Houston salvage warehouse and more recently as a spraypaint-covered tribute to the deceased graffiti artist known as Nekst (see video below) ~~— will be torn down to make way for a new grocery store from H-E-B, according to site plans posted online by the property’s developer.~~ The 5.34-acre site, which stretches between Oakhurst St. and Eastwood St., sits just east of the Maximus Coffee plant east of Downtown, and just north of Eastwood. This should be the first new grocery store built on a light rail line, but it won’t be a conventional H-E-B. Instead, the plans show it’ll be a Joe V’s Smart Shop, the Texas grocery chain’s low-cost, low-selection, high-volume, low-touch warehouse-style market.

No Ice

77011, East End, Eastwood, Grocery Stores, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Retail, Shopping Centers

07/03/14 2:00pm

A Bird’s Eye View of the New Whole Foods, Apartments, Restaurants, Hotel, and Office Buildings Going in at Hughes Landing in The Woodlands

Mixed Use, New Construction, Proposed Developments, The Woodlands, The Woodlands Hughes Landing

14 Comments

Aerial View of Hughes Landing Under Construction, The Woodlands, Texas

Real Estate Bisnow reporter Catie Dixon shows off this helicopter shot taken last week over Hughes Landing, the new mega-development overlooking Lake Woodlands where a whirlwind of construction is taking out a little more of those woods and putting in a whole lot more of those Â . . . uh, concretes. And she’s been thoughtful enough to stick some big red numbers on it, so we can make out what’s what and where, and how it’s coming along:

By the Numbers

77380, Apartments, Grocery Stores, Hotels, Hughes Landing, Mixed Use, New Construction, Office Buildings, Proposed Developments, Restaurants, The Woodlands

Audubon Place

03/28/14 12:15pm

Montrose Mercantile Works a Little Strip Center Redo Magic

Montrose, Openings and Closings, Retail

6 Comments

Montrose Mercantile, 3321 Stanford St., Audubon Place, Montrose, Houston

Montrose Mercantile, 3321 Stanford St., Audubon Place, Montrose, Houston The sign has been changed and the green hues have been removed from the mansard-roofed exterior of the former First Stop Food Store at the corner of Stanford and Hawthorne in Audubon Place. That’s where the Montrose Mercantile is set to hold its grand opening this weekend — though the combo espresso bar and mini-mart at 3321 Stanford St. ~~created by the owner of Washington Ave’s Catalina Coffee~~ has already been open for a couple of weeks. The original Mercantile opened in the Rice Village last fall.

Previously on Swamplot: The Mercantile Is Coming to Montrose, for Your Coffee Convenience

Photos: Montrose Mercantile

Drive Up, Sit Down

77006, Audubon Place, Cafes, Grocery Stores, Leasing, Montrose, Openings and Closings, Retail

03/07/14 12:30pm

Stale After 7 Months, Fresh Market at Westheimer and Weslayan Is Shutting Down

Highland Village, Openings and Closings, Retail

21 Comments

The Fresh Market, 3745 Westheimer Rd., Highland Village, Houston The Fresh Market grocery store that opened across Weslayan from Central Market at 3745 Westheimer Rd.Â last August will be shut down within a week or 2. The national chain galloped into the Houston area last year by moving into 4 former locations of Rice Epicurean. The company cited “meaningful profitability hurdles” in announcing the single-store closure, along with the closure of 3 additional locations in California. Still alive, apparently: plans to open a store atÂ 1519 West Bay Area Blvd. in Webster this year.

Fresh Market to close Houston location [Houston Business Journal]
Previously on Swamplot:Â The West University Fresh Market, Stacking Up,Â Rice Epicurean Giving Up the Groceries, Leasing 4 Locations to Fresh Market

Photo:Â John W.

Central Market Wins Again

77027, Grocery Stores, Highland Village, Openings and Closings, Retail

Apartments

02/07/14 11:00am

New Apartments Facing Washington Ave Roundabout Will Have Retail on the Ground Floor and Maybe a Trader Joe’s

Crestwood, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Retail, Rice Military, Washington Corridor

32 Comments

Proposed Elan Memorial Park Apartments, 904 Westcott St., Rice Military, Houston

Architect Meeks + Partners has posted a rendering of the steel-framed apartment complex Greystar is planning to replace the Memorial Club Apartments lining the southern boundary of the Washington on Westcott roundabout. Swamplot reported Greystar’s plans for the apartments last year — along with a tip that the planned redevelopment would include a new Trader Joe’s. The rendering shows no sign of a Trader Joe’s, but it does show the base of the apartment structure filled with retail spaces and outdoor dining areas facing the roundabout. The view appears to be taken southeast from the roundabout; the existing stone Rice Military placard is in the foreground.

Elan Memorial Park

77007, Apartments, Crestwood, Grocery Stores, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Retail, Rice Military, Washington Corridor

Audubon Place

01/10/14 10:15am

The Mercantile Is Coming to Montrose, for Your Coffee Convenience

Montrose, Openings and Closings, Retail

21 Comments

First Stop Food Mart, 3321 Stanford St., Audubon Place, Houston

A northern branch ofÂ Mercantile, the combo espresso bar and mini-mart that opened a few months ago in the Rice Village, will be opening up in the vacant First Stop Food Store spot shown above at the corner of Stanford St. and Hawthorne in Audubon Place, its owner confirmed this week. Mercantile could be described as the upscale version of Washington Ave’s Catalina Coffee (they’re run by the same owner). And that’s exactly what Houstonia‘s Katharine Shilcutt felt free to do: “Catalina Coffee is the brooding, sensitive, bookish older sister, while Mercantile is the peppy younger sister who wears Ralph Lauren and daydreams about horses and joins a sorority in college yet is no less intelligent or passionate than her sibling.” The perky youngster also carries more baked goods, groceries, and gift items on her dainty shelves.

First Look at Mercantile in Rice Village [Houstonia]

Photo of First Stop Food Mart at 3321 Stanford St.: Swamplot inbox

Groceries in Small Packages

77006, Audubon Place, Cafes, Grocery Stores, Leasing, Montrose, Openings and Closings, Retail

Comments

12/12/13 12:15pm

Comment of the Day: Safeway’s Plans for a Leaner Randalls Operation

Quicklink, Retail

3 Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: SAFEWAY’S PLANS FOR A LEANER RANDALLS OPERATION Randalls Slims Down “Iâ€™m not buying the ‘pulling out of Houston’ claim. Other chains are debasing themselves to get into the Houston/DFW/Austin markets. Why would an incumbent, distressed or not, just completely pull out? Doesnâ€™t pass logical test, IMO. Reducing cost by eliminating regional management and failing to renew a lease arenâ€™t the same thing as a wholesale abandonment of Houston.” [Tom Opposable Thumb, commenting on Yet Another Sign of a Coming Randalls Houston Pullout] Illustration: Lulu

Comments, Grocery Stores, Retail

12/11/13 2:00pm

Yet Another Sign of a Coming Randalls Houston Pullout

Quicklink, Retail

20 Comments

YET ANOTHER SIGN OF A COMING RANDALLS HOUSTON PULLOUT Just in: this market-fresh, unconfirmed grocery-store tip. “Randalls just laid off their entire Houston corporate office. Houston stores will be managed from Dallas.” [Swamplot inbox; previously on Swamplot] Photo of Randalls Woodlake Square, 9660 Westheimer Rd.: AmREIT

Grocery Stores, Retail

Leasing

11/25/13 11:30am

The End in Sight for Randalls

Quicklink, Retail, Westchase

21 Comments

THE END IN SIGHT FOR RANDALLS Randalls Grocery Store, 11041 Westheimer Rd., Westchase Shopping Center, Westchase, Houston The Randalls grocery store on the southeast corner of Westheimer and Wilcrest is a goner, reports Catie Dixon. And she tags the chain itself as the likely next casualty in the region’s ongoing grocery wars. Landlord Weingarten Realty, which also manages the Whole Foods Market across the street, sent out notice earlier this month that the space occupied by the former top-performing Randalls in the Westchase Shopping Center is now available for lease. But other new grocery stores are coming to the area: another 60 in the next 18 months, keeping up the recent pace, says broker Jason Baker — who also notes Trader Joe’s is experiencing “challenges” with its new store on S. Voss near Woodway. [Real Estate Bisnow; previously on Swamplot] Photo of Randalls at 11041 Westheimer Rd.: Weingarten Realty

77042, Grocery Stores, Leasing, Openings and Closings, Retail, Westchase

Proposed Developments

11/07/13 11:27am

Where Whole Foods Market Will Be Opening in The Woodlands

Retail, The Woodlands Hughes Landing

4 Comments

Woodlands organic shoppers: Do not let the parking garage that appears to be enveloping the new Whole Foods Market in this rendering scare you off. The press release announcing the grocery chain’s first Woodlands store declares there’ll be “ample surface parking” adjacent to the market. Whew! Construction will start on the 40,000-sq.-ft. store soon, the Woodlands Development Company announced this morning. It’ll be part of Hughes Landing, the new 66-acre office, hotel, retail, and apartment complex going in on the northeast bank of Lake Woodlands. The store will be near the intersection of Lake Front Circle and Lake Woodlands Dr., with the main entrance shown above coming off Lake Front. That likely places it in the spot marked “Grocery” in this rotated plan of the development’s southern half:

Master-Planned Communities

77380, Grocery Stores, Hughes Landing, Proposed Developments, Retail, The Woodlands, Whole Foods

10/21/13 11:10am

The Big New Kroger in Northwest Houston

by Allyn West

New Construction, Retail

12 Comments

These elevations show the Kroger Marketplace that’s under construction inside the Towne Lake master-planned community in Northwest Houston. The new 120,000-sq.-ft. grocery store, which will sell home goods, jewelry, and clothes, too, will be located in the so-called “commons area” of Towne Lake at the intersection of Barker Cypress and Tuckerton. Says Fred Caldwell, the developer of Towne Lake, about the new store: “[It] will have an architectural design similar to a Texas Hill Country look. It will be a lot different than the traditional grocery store people see.”