Photo by Dannie Oliveaux
Sour Lake and South Jasper County residents will have to travel further for a Blizzard.
Last month, Dairy Queen (DQ) announced the sudden closure of 25 of its locations, including Sour Lake and Buna.
The manager of the Sour Lake location left a note saying: “Thank you Sour Lake! It has been our honor and pleasure to serve the neighborhood for the past several years, but unfortunately, we are closing. Thank you so much for all the wonderful memories and for helping us spread joy through food.”
The closing also included stores in Dayton and Cleveland, while other DQ stores in Southeast Texas (Beaumont, Vidor, Lumberton, Kountze, Silsbee, Nederland, Port Neches, Orange, Mauriceville, Port Arthur and Groves) remain open.
DQ, owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, auctioned off the contents of two dozen locations in Texas.
The restaurant was founded in 1940 and has approximately 4,500 locations across the U.S., more than 500 in Texas. Some DQs have operated for more than 50 years.
All 25 of the closed locations were owned by the same franchisee, who continues to own and operate other restaurants in the state, a DQ spokesperson said in a statement.
DQ items available for sale vary by location but include the likes of fryers, grills, tables, chairs, cutlery and refrigerators.
Buyers bid for the complete contents of each location. Bidding closed at midnight Feb. 20. Business Liquidations ran the auctions.
Other closings
Last month, Joann Fabrics announced it ise going out of business and closing all of its stores nationwide.
“Following a comprehensive sale process and auction, GA Group together with the Prepetition Term Loan Agent, was selected as having the winning bid to acquire substantially all of Joann’s assets. Subject to court approval of the transaction, the winning bidders plan to wind down ongoing operations and conduct going-out-of-business sales at all Joann locations,” according to JoannRestructuring.com.
Originally, Joann announced stores are closing roughly 500 of its nearly 850 locations in the United States. The company filed for bankruptcy for a second time in less than a year in January. In March 2024, the company first filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy, securing $132 million in financing, expected to lower its $1 billion debt by $500 million. The company filed in January due to stated financial and inventory issues.
Most Joann stores will reportedly stay open until the end of May and all products will be discounted for going-out-of-business sales. Joann has locations in Beaumont, Humble and Spring.
In December 2024, Party City announced the closure of its 700 stores by Feb. 28, including stores in Beaumont and Port Arthur. The company, founded in 1986, blamed inflation and changes in customer spending for its demise.
Also, in September 2024, Columbus, Ohio-based Big Lots filed for bankruptcy protection, then announced in late December 2024 that it was being sold to Gordon Brothers Retail Partners, which put up for sale the leases of hundreds of locations around the country, indicating those stores may likely be closing for good.
Big Lots and Gordon Brothers reported Variety Wholesalers Inc. planned to acquire between 200 and 400 remaining Big Lots stores and continue to operate them under the Big Lots brand.
Stores in Beaumont and Groves closed, but the Orange location remains open.
In July 2024, Conn’s HomePlus, a home goods retailer, filed for bankruptcy and closed all stores, more than 70 stores in Texas, including two locations in Beaumont.
Also in July 2024, Walgreens announced it would close approximately 1,200 underperforming stores across the U.S. over the next three years, with 500 to be closed in the company’s fiscal year 2025, which ends in August.
The location at 3900 East Lucas Dr. in Beaumont was closed in 2024
— Dannie Oliveaux
