Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

As I remarked to my sister, they have been closing this store for years. You could say it started when they did away with the roasted nuts counter, part of the classic heritage that had followed them from Harden Street, but that half-joking aside, it was really apparent in recent years that the store was being hollowed out: there was less and less stock, and more and more empty space. It never got as bad as Belk at Dutch Square with a whole floor abandoned, but it was impossible not to notice. Then, several years ago, they decided it wasn't worth keeping the store open for all the hours that the mall was, and you'd find the mall doors drawn during normal business hours. This year, Sears as a whole finally put Going Concern language in their financial report, and when the latest list of store closings came out, I can't imagine anyone was surprised to see this store on it.

The closing of Sears will leave Columbia Mall with only one anchor store, and Macy's isn't looking that robust either lately.

As the store on Saint Andrews Road did earlier, the new-ish Aldi in Lexington has closed for a complete remodel. The signs say that they are slated to be back on 29 June 2017. That may be pusing it: That's less than 15 days away, and the store appears completely gutted now.

Looking back, the old Bike To Nature building was still here in August of 2013, and construction of this store still had not started in February of 2014, so they are doing a complete upfit after being open less than three years..

(Hat tip to commenter Beth)

Also in Friarsgate Plaza across from the currently closing Bi-Lo was this Dollar General.

They list in the February 2017 phonebook, and have a Yelp review from 15 April 2017, so I'm going to say they probably moved around May of 2017. The new, freestanding, location is 7812 Broad River Road which is a bit closer to I-26 exit 101 and on the other side of the road.

(Hat tip to commenter Andrew)

UPDATE 20 June 2017: Changing the closing date from May 2017 to "2016" based on the comments. The phonebook is apparently wrong.

I'll admit that when this came up in Have Your Say, I couldn't even remember that there was a Save a Lot on Saint Andrews Road. In point of fact it hasn't been there that long, replacing the Kroger some time in 2015. That seems curious to me, as though they badly misread the market or something changed. The KJ's down the road might be direct competition, but that was planned before this store went in, and despite the Bi-Lo to Harvey's change at the top of the hill, I still don't see that location as direct competition to a discounter like Sav a Lot. Commenter Andrew references the new Wal Mart Neighboorhood Market, but that seems a good way from here..

At any rate, it appears the store will close on 22 June.

(Hat tip to commenter Sidney).

Commenter Justin noted a while back this this River Drive conenience store has closed. I was not aware of the place, but it is actually fairly well placed as I cannot think of another one nearby. The next closest would be the one at the top of the hill on the other side of the river I believe.

(Hat tip to commenter Justin)

Well this has been pretty ventilated in Have Your Say for a while now, but the Bi-Lo at Friarsgate Plaza will be closing soon. Unlike some of the other local Bi-Lo's, this one will apparently not be becoming a Harvey's.

Googling around, I see that a lot of other Bi-Los have closed recently as the chain continues to fare poorly, though I have always been happy enough with the stores whenever I happened to stop in at one.

In this particular case, the venue does not help as Friarsgate Plaza does not seem to be thriving. You can see one indication of such by looking at the plaza marquee, which continues to tout Monterrey, which featured in a closing here six years ago.

(Hat tip to commenter ED)

UPDATE 12 June 2017 -- Still open. Pretty picked over, but still some good staples. Mostly 40%off:

I did not realize it, but Banana Republic is a sub-brand of The Gap and apparently both are in trouble. Though I have not found any news of a bankruptcy for the firm, they pulled out of the U.K. and have struggled with badly declining sales, leading to a number of store closures:

As consumer shopping habits have moved increasingly online, Banana Republic has struggled to carve out its niche to drive customers through the door. The biggest problem for the brand is its lack of clear, unique identity -- coupled with the rise of fast-fashion competitors like H&M, Zara, and Forever 21, said New York-based retail consultant, Bob Phibbs, CEO of Retail Doctor.

“The reality is no one has figured out who they are,” he said. “Gap is [a] forgettable brand, and that spills over to Banana Republic...they need to cut the number of SKUs, cut the number of employees, and justify why I should pay $90 for a shirt with something compelling and interesting.”

As an added tidbit, while I was googling around for Banana Republic, I came on the news that Gymboree may go Chapter 11 and close 350 stores. Brutal times in retail indeed.

(Hat tip to commenter Em)

Based on news from commenter Jason, I went out to Columbiana Centre to get some pictures of Bebe. By the time I got there, I found it already closed and with a mall promotional display in the windows.

Bebe is the latest retail casualty in a year that has been pretty brutal. Their original plan was to close only 28 stores, but in the event, they ended up deciding to close all 168 by the end of May 2017. According to this list, the Columbiana store was the only one in South Carolina.

So I guess the old question, "Bebe or not tobe?" is now answered..

Well, this is Columbia's other H. H. Gregg, closing as part of the same liquidation as the Sandhill store. Goody's is the most prominent former holder of this spot -- I'm not sure who could take on this much floor space now.

I took these pictures a few weeks ago -- I'm working on the assumption that this place is now closed.

At any rate, this closing is part and parcel of the bankruptcy described in this post.

I wonder what "Acorn" is..