Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

I was not really familiar with this small Asian grocery storefront, though I have done closings on this wing of the plaza before. Commenter Gypsie says it has probably been closed since late last year based on review dates.

I believe there is still another Asian grocery on Saint Andrews Road down near Quail Valley.

(Hat tip to commenter Gypsie)

This closing was first mooted back in 2020, I think, with Lidl speculated to be the next tenant. In the event, the owners of this Piggly Wiggly had time remaining on their lease and elected not to go anywhere.

Now the lease has ended, and apparently the property owners did not want to renew. This store, often called The Social Pig because Shandon neighbors often ran into each other here closed on 28 March.

This location is not particularly close to me, so I did not stop in that often over the years, but the few times I did, it was fine, and I got what I needed.

It's unclear to me whether Lidl is in fact moving in, but for now probably the Food Lion at Devine & Fort Jackon Boulevard is probably the closest non-specialty grocery.

You can read about the closing here & here, and the store's farewell message is on their Facebook along with the note that store fixtures are to be sold off on 15 April.

(Hat tip to commenter Larry & co)

UPDATE 28 April 2025 -- Thanks to commenter Jack Roberts for these shots!

I never visited Royal India Bazaar, though I always assumed it was connected to the adjacent Village Of India, which I have eaten at and enjoyed.

Commenter Brandon says that it was there for at least 20 years (which would predate the restaurant) and was very nice to shop at.

I have always thought of this shopping center as the "Big Lots" plaza, but I guess I will have to change that mnemonic going forward.

(Hat tip to commenter Brandon)

This store closed as a Bi-Lo in January of 2020, and opened as a Pig not too long thereafter. Now that run, too, has come to an end. (You can actually see more pictures of it as a Pig in the linked post, as I did not get over there while the Bi-Lo was still open).

Given there are multiple groceries in the area (probably a big factor here), I doubt the next tenant will be one, but we'll have to see.

(Hat tip to commenter James R)

This building first featured here when it closed as a Pig in 2013. In late 2015 it re-opened as a KJ's IGA, lasting about seven years (which is longer than I had thought actually. WHere does the time go?).

I associate the IGA brand with smaller towns, but KJ's has brought several of them to the Columbia market, and as far as I know, the others are doing OK.

Now that two groceries have closed in this space, I would expect the next tenant to be something different.

(Hat tip to commenter Heath).

UPDATE 30 September 2022 -- Signage is down:

Anyone know what is going on with Lowes Foods at Sandhill? They are apparently having a two day closure this week for some reason. The store has only been open a few months, it seems kind of early for a remodel.

Here's another consequence of the Bi-Lo/Food Lion deal: The Food Lion on Platt Springs road has vacated its original location and has moved into the old Bi-Lo site on Emanuel Church Road. As of yet, there is nothing in the building.

UPDATE 10 May 2021 -- Here is the relocated store in its new location at 2916 Emanuel Church Road:

I was out driving US-1 through Batesburg-Leesville the other day, something I have not done in years, possibly not since I started this blog. Anyway, I noticed this old Winn-Dixe location, which is now a Roses Express, which I suppose designates a smaller Roses, though I don't believe I have seen one before.

Winn-Dixie left the state in 2005 after a bankruptcy, so I will use that as the closing date here.

I thought I was done with Bi-Lo closings, but as commenter Andrew reminded me, I had missed this one in West Columbia just East of I-26. I can only recall stopping at this store once when it was Bi-Lo. I was driving through late at night and for some reason got a hankering for cinnamon rolls, the kind that come in the little aluminum trays with the white frosting on top. I don't think I've bought any since then, but they did hit the spot.

I get the impression that KJ's is using the IGA infrastructure to build their own brand. This one, unlike the one near the flea market, doesn't even have the IGA logo on the front, though I did see IGA products on the shelves. I didn't buy anything, but it looked fine inside, probably a notch above Food Lion.

The plaza where this store is located is unusual in that it doesn't seem to have a name.

Well, this may be the final Bi-Lo closing, unless I go farther afield. This store on US-378 started out as a Piggly Wiggly more than twenty years ago, and now with the sale of Bi-Lo has come full circle. It's nice to see a new Pig open, as that chain has been having its own problems. It seems that the crew who wanted to stay on were able to, which is nice. ColaDaily has the story.

(Hat tip to commenter Andrew)