It's Z End

Haute home decor brand pulls the rug out from under Clearfork store

Mirrors: get 'em while you can.

Photo courtesy of Z Gallerie

Calling all fans of faux fur and mirrored furniture: now is the time to stock up. Home decor brand Z Gallerie is closing 24 of its 76 stores. Seven of those are in Texas, and they include the only Fort Worth location.

The mecca of all things mirrored filed for bankruptcy in March and in May was sold to DirectBuy Home Improvement, a subsidiary of Indiana-based, e-commerce business CSC Generation.

Included in the underperforming stores set to close are three in Dallas-Fort Worth, three in Houston, and what was the only location in Austin.

You have until the end of July to shop in-person at The Shops at Clearfork in Fort Worth, Watters Creek in Allen, the Dallas Galleria, The Arboretum location in Austin, Houston's Highland Village, Market Street in The Woodlands, and Sugar Land Town Square.

Only five other Texas stores remain: in Southlake, on Knox Street in Dallas, at The Shops at Willow Bend in Plano, in Houston's CityCentre, and at The Shops at La Cantera in San Antonio.

The Clearfork store only opened in 2017. It was one of the first retailers to enter the luxury mixed-use development on the former Edwards Ranch. Z Gallerie opened its doors about the same time as two other high-end home furnishings retailers, Arhaus and Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams, both of which are still in business.

Z Gallerie confirms that online orders are still being fulfilled as normal through its website.

This is the second bankruptcy filing for Z Gallerie, which was founded in Sherman Oaks, California, in 1979. It previously filed for Chapter 11 and closed 25 stores in April 2009.

Discount Shopping News

Fort Worth loses one Big Lots store in chain's bankruptcy sale

Big Lots

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Ohio-based national discount chain Big Lots is undergoing Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and is closing down locations — including one store in Fort Worth.

How many total it will be, they do not yet know. But they've already earmarked approximately 344 store closures, and Fort Worth is among the cities getting hit.

A list released by the chain reveals only one store closing in Fort Worth:

8400 E. Freeway

There is also a store closing in Stephenville, 70 miles southwest of Fort Worth, plus an additional four stores in the Dallas area:

3610 Forest Ln. Dallas
825 W. Centerville Rd. Garland
1322 W. Plano Rd. Richardson
3333 Preston Rd. #700 Frisco

According to a spokesperson, these locations will begin a "20 percent off" everything in the store starting September 13, above and beyond their usual discount prices, and the majority of the stores will close at the end of September.

These are five out of a total of 16 stores slated to close across Texas, including locations in Austin, Houston, and San Antonio. Big Lots has 1,389 locations across 48 states, none in Alaska or Hawaii.

If you haven't shopped at a Big Lots, well you're crazy, but you're missing good-quality furniture, household goods, awesome seasonal items, and gourmet foodstuffs, as well as basics like cleaning products and cereal. It's not where you do your regular food shopping, but it is totally where you get limited-edition Cheezit jalapeno-cheese Snap'd crackers.

In a statement, Big Lots' president and CEO Bruce Thorn said that the majority of their stores were profitable, but that they were creating a "more focused footprint."

In a letter to employees, Thorn said the chain could return to profitability in 2025, but would likely be closing more stores as part of the bankruptcy process; and that closures were based on factors such as proximity to other stores, location quality, volume potential, rent/lease obligations, and other operational and financial metrics.

"Our core purpose of helping [our customers] 'Live BIG and Save LOTS' has never been stronger," Thorn said. "As we move through this process, we remain committed to offering extreme bargains, enabling easy shopping in our stores and online, and providing an outstanding customer experience."

Big Lots is currently up for auction, and is working with Nexus Capital Management LP, which has placed a bid to acquire the company.