Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

I've probably seen this place one time or another, but since I get down this part of Whaley approximately never, I could not have told you it was there. It looks to have been a pretty generic place for college kids to get snacks, beer & gas or pick up an Amazon order. Unfortunately now, it is overrun with feral cats which someone is feeding.

I'm going with August for a date here since that's when I heard about it, but looking inside the place, it could have been closed earlier based on the state of cables in the roof etc. It also appears to me that the power is totally off here, including to the Amazon Lockboxes.

(Hat tip to commenter Midnight Rambler)

UPDATE 29 August 2026: Commenter Badger says this was originally Caper House, so I have added that to the post title. Not sure if that was a chain or a one-off.

Getting down to Melbourne this summer, I found a number of places gone, but the Barnes & Noble surprised me. I had been to this store numerous times over the years, and it always reminded me strongly of the old Harbison store in its feel and layout. As it turns out, not to worry, much. Googling once I got home establishes that the store has moved up the road a little ways to take over an old Party City. Reaction from locals on Reddit is a little mixed with some dislike for the new, shared, parking lot compared to this store's dedicated lot, and a layout which makes the cafe less central.

The new store opened on 11 March 2026 as you can read here and in a press release here.

As is mandatory for such cases, the old building is becoming a Spirit Halloween.

Dollar Tree moved in here sometime in 2011, a year or two after Eckerd's closed shop.

It's a decent enough location, with stop-light access to Saint Andrews Road & Broad River Road, but the area has struggled in recent years, and the catty-cornered CVS closed last year.

It's a good sized building and still looks to be in reasonable shape, but I don't have high hopes for a new tenant. Perhaps a gym?

(Hat tip to commenter Gypsie)

I believe this Harbison building first featured here as a Toys-R-Us, but now it's another Value City Furniture closing due to the chain's bankruptcy. As of last week, they were down to 50% off.

I don't recommend going anywhere this weekend, but there may be some deals left next week.

(Hat tip to commenter Andrew)

I probably have enough furniture to last me out, so I don't know much about Sugar Creek, but they seem to have been well reviewed, and you can see their archived web site here.

This storefront featured here before as a Jewelry Warehouse location.

(Hat tip to commenter Andrew)

I have been in this store, in the Two Notch Walmart plaza, several times buying computer equipment. As I recall, I got a complete desktop system here once, and the last time I was in got some cables for my KVM setup. In the event, I ended up buying the wrong ones, and they gave me a no-hassle return experience.

The chain was recently bought and taken private, and just got a new CEO. I get the impression they have had some troubles, but are not on the ropes, despite closing this store. We will see. In the meantime, there is still a location at Dutch Square.

Value City Furniture is a brand of American Signature. In trouble for a while, the chain filed for Chapter 11 in November of 2025, hoping to find a buyer to continue operating the stores. When none materialized, the company decided it had no choice but to liquidate and cease operations.

You can read about it here, and here as well as the Wikipedia link above.

The Sandhill location is interesting, in that it featured here as Sofa Express in a closing from the site's first couple of month's existence. Ironicaly, Sofa Express also went Chapter 11 and ceased to exist. That bankruptcy, along with the closing of the original Ashley Furniture Homestore incarnation were big blows to the fledgling Village At Sandhill along with the general crash of 2008, and the development never really recovered.

(Hat tip to commenter Larry)

Apparently SAS means San Antonio Shoemakers, and they are headquarted, logically, in San Antonio.

I was not really aware of their Forest Acres store until commenter Larry mentioned it, but it is in the little retail center abuting the former Richland Mall. I took these pictures in mid-December, so the logical time for the final closing would probably have been the end of the year, but I have not driven by again to see if in fact they are now closed.

(Hat tip to commenter Larry)

Pink Sorbet, , a Lilly Pulitzer Signature Store closed on 4 November, and you can read their farewell on Instagram or Facebook. I am not in the demographic, but the comments on Facebook show a well liked spot that will be missed.

(Hat tip to commenter Gypsie)

I noticed last weekend that the Shell convenience store in Five Points is closed. According to StreetView, it was open as recently as September of 2025, so I'm guessing it probably closed at the end of October. It hasn't been long anyway.

Never pay full price!