Montgomery Mall toy store's final days mean discounts of 70-90% off

These appear to be the final days of Alex Baby & Toys at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. Discounts at the short-lived toy store are now 70-90% off on everything in the store. Everything that's left, I should add, as shelves are growing bare - and when they do, the shelves themselves disappear from the sales floor, as you can see in the pictures below. Not surprisingly, there were plenty of Black Adam toys left. Look for Alex Baby & Toys on Level 1 of the mall in the Old Navy wing.

Big Lots closing in Germantown, Montgomery Village store to stay open for now

Big Lots is closing at 20926 Frederick Road at the Milestone Shopping Center in Germantown. This is one of 46 additional Big Lots store closures found on a list posted by Columbus Business First. Fortunately, the Big Lots in Montgomery Village is not on the list. Big Lots filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on September 9, 2024, the latest victim of America's vanishing middle class. 

Best Buy Gaithersburg store closing

Best Buy is closing at 15750 Shady Grove Road at the 270 Center, on the border of Gaithersburg and Rockville. The home electronics and entertainment chain has set a closing date of October 26, 2024. Their space has been marketed for lease for several months, but the store's lease does not end until February 1, 2025. 

Best Buy announced on a corporate earnings call that it planned to close 10 to 15 stores in 2025. Gaithersburg Best Buy customers are being redirected after October 26 to the big box chain's stores located at 1200 Rockville Pike in Rockville, and at 20914 Frederick Road in Germantown. The latter store is open, but is currently undergoing renovations.

Is Best Buy planning an exit on Shady Grove Road?

Is Best Buy's future at 15750 Shady Grove Road at the 270 Center in doubt? It sure looks like it from an online listing for the 270 Center. The big box store's "big box" is available for lease, according to the KLNB listing. Whoever the lucky next tenant is will be able to move into the 46,155-square-foot space on February 1, 2025. 

Best Buy announced on a corporate earnings call that it planned to close 10 to 15 stores in 2025. This one on the border of Rockville and Gaithersburg now appears to be one of them. Rockville has a venerable Best Buy store located at 1200 Rockville Pike. Living in the 90s!

The final week of Express at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

If you're seeking those closing sale savings at Express, hurry to Westfield Montgomery Mall in the coming days, as this is the final week for Express and Express Men at the mall. Signs at the store are counting down the final days. Express is closing around 100 stores nationwide after filing for bankruptcy. Their exit hasn't lived up to their brand name, though, with the closing sale having lasted all summer.

Free People closing at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

Free People is closing at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. The store's final day of operation will be Friday, July 26, 2024. A bohemian brand of Urban Outfitters, Free People opened this location in May of 2013. Despite that solid track record of success, the store has ultimately succumbed to the moribund Montgomery County economy, along with MoCo's high taxes and ever-shrinking business profit margins. Not only do I find no reports of Free People stores closing elsewhere in recent times, but Urban Outfitters is actually expanding the brand by opening additional Free People locations this year.

Wild Custom Apparel closing at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

It looks like Wild Custom Apparel was a little too wild for shoppers at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. The custom printing shop is closing after 15 months in business at the mall. A closing sale is now underway. Look for Wild Custom Apparel on Level 1 of the mall, next to Mind Games.

Express, Express Men to close at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

Express and Express Men are closing at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. The brand announced it would close nearly 100 stores after it declared bankruptcy this spring. But Bethesda wasn't on that April list. Alas, just as Express was acquired by a new owner, the axe has fallen. Everything must go!

Dawson's Market closing at Rockville Town Square

Dawson's Market is closing at 225 N. Washington Street at Rockville Town Square. The grocery store, which threatened to shutter before until the City of Rockville (a.k.a. you, the taxpayer) stepped in to provide a financial subsidy, will close at the end of June, owner Bart Yablonsky told The MoCo Show in a statement yesterday. I noticed the store was selling off a lot of kitchen equipment and cafe seating back in February (in fact, the auction listing remains online). When I messaged Dawson's Market on February 7 about the reason for liquidating so many items, the store declined to respond. The auction went forward on February 12, and the store remained open. No closure announcement has been posted on the Dawson's Market website or social media accounts as of this writing.

The departure of Dawson's is yet another blow to the struggling Rockville Town Square and Town Center, though the grocery store part of the development was troubled from the beginning. Major supermarket chains balked at the space that the original developer had built on spec with a grocery tenant in mind, finding it too small and hidden at the back of the property. Perhaps now that chains like Aldi, Lidl and Trader Joe's are in major expansion mode, and utilize smaller store footprints than Giant or Safeway, a bigger-drawing brand name will be willing to take another look at this opportunity. The typical Aldi is 22,000-square-feet, while a Trader Joe's can be only 10,000-15,000 SF.

Despite the fact that Dawson's wasn't what the original developer had in mind for this space, the unique selection of products and prepared foods, and events like wine tastings, helped it build a loyal-if-not-financially-sustainable customer base. Morguard, the new property owner of Rockville Town Square, now has the grocery store space and the long-vacant and large former American Tap Room, CVS Pharmacy, and Gordon Biersch spaces to fill. The company having its base in Canada probably isn't doing a Maryland property any favors, but Morguard doesn't even list the vacant RTS storefronts on its Leasing page.

Emergent BioSolutions to lay off employees, shutter Rockville facility

Emergent BioSolutions of Gaithersburg will lay off 154 workers, and shutter its Rockville manufacturing facility, the company announced as part of a restructuring. It will also eliminate some vacant positions, in an attempt to save $80 million. The biotech firm will scale back its goals to focus on its core businesses: medical countermeasures and NARCAN Nasal Spray. 

"Decisions like these are never easy as they have real impact on many of our dedicated colleagues," Emergent CEO Joe Papa said in a statement. "We are committed to providing resources to those affected as they transition to new opportunities." Emergent will concentrate its operations at sites in Winnipeg, Canada, and Lansing, Michigan.

Talbots closing at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

Talbots is closing at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. Large signs announcing the pending closure were posted in the now-empty display windows of the store Thursday evening. Talbots opened here in June 2014, a refugee from White Flint Mall. The women's apparel chain's Village of Cross Keys location near Baltimore closed January 6, 2024. That store was much older than the Bethesda Talbots, opening there in 1996, and had existed even before then at a previous location.

Contents of Rockville restaurant to be auctioned off

A Rockville Chinese buffet restaurant "is shutting its doors and making a complete liquidation," according to Capital Online Auctions. The contents of Bamboo Buffet at 2010 Veirs Mill Road in the Twinbrook Center will be auctioned off online beginning Thursday, March 28, 2024. If you are a current or aspiring restaurateur, just about everything you would need will be available to the highest bidder, from kitchen equipment to buffet tables and seating. Some items, like chairs and tables, are being auctioned off in lots of 2 to 12 pieces, for example. There's even some impressive decor for display in your home or office.

Contents of Rockville restaurant to be auctioned off

Freshii, a fast-casual restaurant at 9613 Medical Center Drive in Rockville, is closing, according to an online auction listing. The contents of the restaurant will be auctioned off beginning February 21, 2024. Among the items available is a still-in-sealed-package soup warmer. 

The Freshii chain was acquired by Canadian firm Foodtastic in 2022. Freshii was already based in Canada, where the majority of its restaurants are located. It hasn't fared as well in the United States, where many locations have shuttered since 2017. QSR Magazine has a good analysis of the financial pressures Freshii franchisees in the U.S. have been struggling under.

7-Eleven reportedly to close at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

A source tells me that the 7-Eleven at Westfield Montgomery Mall is closing. They report that the lottery machine had already been removed from the store Monday. An employee told them the convenience store would close tomorrow, Wednesday, January 31, 2024. Employees will reportedly be offered jobs at other local 7-Eleven stores. 7-Eleven opened at the mall in July 2020, after a 19-month construction process. 

Eko House to close in Rockville

Eko House, the African restaurant and lounge at 150 Gibbs Street at Rockville Town Square, will cease operations "effective Sunday, January 14th, 2024." The business is citing "misalignment with our landlord" as the reason for closing. Owners Yomi Ajao and Francis Odiase say they are actively seeking a new location for Eko House, and hope to reopen soon in that new space. Eko House opened two years ago at the struggling Rockville Town Square, which has a number of vacant storefronts.

Furniture & Rug Depot closing in Rockville

Furniture & Rug Depot is closing at 5230 Randolph Road at Loehmann's Plaza in Rockville. A "wall-to-wall" closing sale is underway. "All must go. Nothing held back!" reads a sign in the window. But the showroom still appears to be loaded with merchandise as of last evening. Furniture & Rug Depot has been in business for 25 years.

PacSun closing at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

One of the longest-tenured tenants at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda will soon close its doors forever. PacSun is now winding down operations. Everything in the store is on sale, and many shelves are already bare as a result.

The California-inspired casualwear store is also offering a Buy One, Get One Free promotion. We probably can't blame this particular closure on Montgomery County's moribund economy, or on the County Council. PacSun has been struggling as a chain for most of this century. Despite filing for, and successfully emerging from, bankruptcy nearly a decade ago, PacSun is repositioning itself in the market with a new women's activewear store concept.

Last 4 days of Bed Bath & Beyond, Buy Buy Baby in Rockville

The final countdown to closure is on at Bed Bath & Beyond at 1519 Rockville Pike and Buy Buy Baby at 1683 Rockville Pike. Both stores will close forever in just 4 days. As you can see from the signs in these photos, the savings are at the maximum now, with both stores touting 70-90% off the entire store. Just don't expect fully-stocked shelves overflowing with merchandise at this point.

Both brands may still have a future ahead: Overstock.com bought the Bed Bath & Beyond brand, and will rename itself...Bed Bath & Beyond. New Jersey company Dream on Me won the auction for the Buy Buy Baby IP - and then proceeded to acquire the leases of 11 Buy Buy Baby stores. But no word yet if we'll finally learn what the "Beyond" is.

Buy Buy Baby, Bed Bath & Beyond closing in Rockville

Buy Buy Baby is closing its Rockville store at 1683 Rockville Pike, in the Congressional Plaza shopping center. A store-closing sale is underway. Savings are currently listed as being 20-40%-off storewide. All 122 Buy Buy Baby stores are closing as a result of parent company Bed Bath & Beyond's bankruptcy filing. 

Bed Bath & Beyond just happens to be a neighbor of Buy Buy Baby at 1519 Rockville Pike at the Congressional North shopping center. It's having its own closing sale. The savings are - surprise! - 20-40%-off storewide, as well.

Altar'd State closing today at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

Altar'd State is closing permanently at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda, at the close of business today, May 21, 2023. The Christian women's apparel boutique opened here in April 2018. This closure we can blame on Montgomery County's hostile business climate and County Council, as the brand is neither going bankrupt, nor closing stores elsewhere in the country. In fact, a company press release exactly one month ago described Altar'd State as "a rapidly growing women's fashion brand with 123 Altar'd State stores, 25 Arula boutiques, six Vow'd boutiques and two Tullabee boutiques in 38 states."