Last call
Huge liquor store taps out of once-hot Fort Worth location
It's closing time for Goody Goody Liquor, which will shut down its southwest Fort Worth location. The huge, decade-old shop at 4740 SW Loop 820 is turning off the lights for good on March 31.
A company spokesman says the Overton Park Plaza store's sales had slowed in recent years as surrounding areas shifted from "dry" to "wet" zones. No longer do residents in historically dry towns like Granbury and Weatherford need to travel to the Hulen area of Fort Worth to buy alcohol.
"When we opened 10 years ago, it was quite the destination for the entire region with its huge, 40,000-square-foot footprint, beautiful decor, and huge selection," says Armando Gonzalez, marketing manager for Dallas-based Goody Goody. "All of North Texas is going wet. Frankly, this has resulted in a dramatic drop in sales."
There's been some competition from nearby Spec's and Total Wine & More, he says, but it's the changes in wet-dry lines that "make for a very dynamic industry and business for all of us in North Texas."
The company now is focusing on stores about half the size of Overton Park, but has no plans to open another one in Fort Worth. A Goody Goody about five miles away, on Camp Bowie Boulevard, and a location in Colleyville are significantly smaller and more successful than the Overton Park one, Gonzalez says. Employees will be transferred to those stores.
What's left of the store's inventory also will be moved to those locations, and to a wholesale division in Tarrant County.
But first, sales. For several days, wine, beer, and non-alcoholic beverages, such as mixers, have been marked down to reduce inventory. Beginning March 28, all wine and non-alcoholic products will be 30 percent off, and liquor, 10 percent off. Customers should check the store for specials on the limited selection of beer.
Liquor shelves are still well stocked, and extra cases are on display for purchase. Fans of creamy liqueurs, especially, have many choices. Most of the store's wine rooms, which are organized by country, have racks and racks of bottles. They're even selling full-sized empty wine barrels. Everything must go.
The store will continue its normal business hours, 10 am-9 pm, through Saturday, giving customers plenty of time to stock up on wine and martini fixings for Easter dinner.
Casey Thompson at a DIFFA event in 2016.
Photo by Shana Anderson
