HOUSTON – (Realty News Report) – The holiday shopping season is over. The rough spots in the economy have been identified and retailers are making adjustments and implementing new strategies and tactics.
A number of retail outlets have shuttered stores in 2026 for a variety of reasons. Many of the closures create opportunities for other retailers and restaurants to move in.
“We still have more store openings happening across the country than store closings, which is a great sign obviously from a retail standpoint,” said Danny Rice, president of Colliers Houston, speaking at the company’s Trends outlook event in February. He noted that H-E-B has been a leader in expanding, along with Sprouts, Trader Joe’s, Chick-fil-A, and Chipotle.
Tens of thousands of square feet of retail space will soon be vacated across the Houston region – and more than 2 million SF nationally – as chains adjust their portfolios.
Francesca’s Fall
Francesca’s, a Houston-based specialty retailer founded in 1999, is in the process of shutting down all of its boutiques as part of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in February.
Francesca’s is vacating hundreds of small stores – in the ballpark of about 1,500 SF each – across the country.
Several Houston stores have already closed, while about a dozen are still holding going out of business sales.
The remaining Francesca’s stores occupy malls and lifestyle centers, including Baybrook, Pearland Town Center, The Galleria, Memorial City, First Colony, and Deerbrook malls, Town & Country Village, LaCenterra at Cinco Ranch, Vintage Park, Market Street The Woodlands, Kingwood Commons, and Houston Premium Outlets.
All Digital Again for Allbirds
Allbirds, an online retailer of sustainably made shoes, announced plans to close its remaining full-price stores in the U.S. by the end of February in order “to build a simpler and more profitable lifestyle footwear business.” The only Houston store, in Rice Village, had already closed in 2024 after two years in business.
“This is an important step for Allbirds, as we drive toward profitable growth under our turnaround strategy,” CEO Joe Vernachio said in the January announcement. “We have been opportunistically reducing our brick-and-mortar portfolio over the past two years. By exiting these remaining unprofitable doors, we are taking actions to reduce costs and support the long-term health of the business.”
In 2023, Allbirds had 45 stores in the U.S.
Restaurant Realignment
Austin-based Torchy’s Tacos closed a handful of locations, including its Stafford restaurant at The Grid in February. It was one of seven Torchy’s to close in February, along with others in Florida, Ohio, Georgia, and Arizona.
Founded in a food trailer 20 years ago, Torchy’s has nearly 120 locations nationwide, including 22 in the Houston area.
Beck’s Prime closed its Wilcrest location in February after a 35-year run when its lease expired. The restaurant, which announced the closing on social media, offered employees jobs at other locations.
The Houston-based institution, which has been serving burgers, sandwiches, steaks, chicken, and salads for more than 40 years, has eight locations in Houston and one in Dallas.
And a popular Inner Loop restaurant, Raven Grill, after 28 years on Bissonnet, recently announced it will serve its last meal in March 29.
Salad and Go, a drive-thru salad chain, exited Texas entirely in January after pulling out of the Houston market last year. The Phoenix-based company closed 14 Houston locations in September.
On a national level, fast-food chains have adjusted to the pinch on their customer’s wallets. Ohio-based Wendy’s, which has 6,000 restaurants recently announced it would close as many as 600 outlets in the first half of 2026. Jack in the Box, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut and Papa John’s all announced plans to trim restaurant counts around the nation in 2026
Supermarkets Shutter
Houston will lose a few grocery stores this spring.
Kroger, which has been remodeling stores, plans to close locations in the Heights at 239 W. 20th St. and Klein Crossing at 6060 FM 2920 in Spring. The Cincinnati-based chain in a June earnings report announced plans to close 60 locations over 18 months. Five underperforming stores in the Houston market closed last year.
Randalls is closing its San Felipe location in the Tanglewood area after a 30-year run. A division of Albertsons, Randalls has 13 stores in greater Houston. Its Meyer Park store in southwest Houston closed last year.
Chapter 11 for Saks Global
The most high-profile closure of the new year touched off shock waves in luxury retailing.
New York-based Saks Global Enterprises, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January, will close all three of its Houston area Saks Off 5th stores as the retailer turns its focus to full-price luxury selling. Clearance sales are underway at Katy Mills, Houston Premium Outlets in Cypress, and the Market at Town Center in Sugar Land. The local stores range from about 25,000 SF to 29,000 SF each.
The closings are part of Saks Global’s broader plan to shutter all five of its Last Call stores and the majority of its Saks Off 5th off-price stores. The Grapevine Mills Saks Off 5th store in Texas is among about a dozen stores that will remain open, according to the company.
A&G Real Estate Partners is marketing 54 Saks Off 5th and five Last Call store leases across 19 states on behalf of Saks Global.
“The 59 Saks OFF 5TH stores average 28,000 square feet, making 1.7 million square feet of space available for lease in a tight market for retail space,” A&G Co-President Emilio Amendola said in a February announcement. The stores are in premium outlets, open-air lifestyle centers, traditional malls and mixed-use properties.
“These larger spaces are a strong fit for expanding brands in categories like footwear, sporting goods and off-price fashion and accessories,” Amendola said. “Landlords also are showing strong interest in taking back and repurposing these boxes.”
Saks Global recently expanded the closure list to include 24 full-line luxury stores as it homes in on the best-performing locations with the highest growth potential.
Four Neiman Marcus stores and 20 Saks 5th Avenue stores are slated for closure, including one in Texas, according to the company. The Saks 5th Avenue at North Star Mall in San Antonio will close.
March 19, 2026, Realty News Report Copyright 2026
Feature image: Clearance sales are underway at Saks Off 5th in Katy Mills.
Photo credit: Realty News Report Copyright 2026
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File: Retail Rough Spots Emerge in First Quarter