That One Time When H-E-B Opened a Store That Wasn’t in Texas
Texas is Home to Many Famous Brands and Businesses
- Fritos
- Shiner Beer
- Whataburger
- Dell Technologies
- Dr Pepper
- Buc-ee's
- Blue Bell Ice Cream
- Southwest Airlines
There are many more that are not featured above. One of those is H-E-B.
How Many of H-E-B's 335 U.S. Stores are in Texas?
If you answered 'all of them', then you are correct.
While many of the Texas brands/businesses featured above distribute their products outside our borders or have multiple locations beyond the Lone Star State, the massive grocery chain that is H-E-B operates all its stores inside the Texas borders. In fact, most of its stores are located in the southern half of the state.
What About Mexico?
Yes, H-E-B has dozens of stores south of the border, as well. In 1997, Monterrey became the first Mexican city to feature an H-E-B location, but for this article, we are focusing on H-E-B grocery stores in the United States.
As mentioned earlier, 335 out of the 335 H-E-B locations are in Texas...but, there was that one time...
H-E-B in Louisiana
In the 1990s, H-E-B introduced numerous 'Pantry' stores throughout Houston. These no-frills stores offered the basics and boasted lower prices than its competitors.
The business model flourished; so much so, that an H-E-B Pantry location was opened outside of Texas.
In 1996, for the first and only time in its history, H-E-B opened a store about 30 miles across the Texas state line. Lake Charles, Louisiana became home to an H-E-B Pantry located on Nelson Drive.
A Change of Plans
The pantry store concept served H-E-B well for a while, but as we entered into the 2000s, more and more grocery stores opted for the 'everything under one roof' concept.
H-E-B recognized the shift and altered its business model with bigger stores and the all-new H-E-B Plus stores. Their pantry stores were phased out including the one in Lake Charles.
In 2003, H-E-B shut down its 24,000-square-foot pantry store in Lake Charles. It is now a Market Basket, and H-E-B hasn't opened a store outside of Texas since.
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