Does a Lubbock Closure Signal Bigger Trouble for Restaurant Chains?

This past week, every single remaining company-owned On the Border location closed. Lubbock's location closed early last year. Was it a harbinger of what was to come for the brand?

Is Lubbock "A Canary In The Coal Mine" For Chains?

If corporate chains aren't looking at Lubbock, I think it's to their peril. We have a unique set of conditions that provide a lot of valuable market information: relative isolation, robust competition, and the enthusiasm to try new places.

Read More: Lubbock's Oldest, Still Serving Restaurants

Lubbock, An "Island" Onto Herself

Many cities our size are a couple of hours (or less) away from a major metropolitan area, and may house folks from larger cities. Not so in Lubbock, as we are several hours from Dallas, Austin, Albuquerque, etc. Meaning that anything that happens here isn't affected by those major markets. We are an excellent sample set of mid-sized America.

Read More: The Chilling Murder-for-Hire Plot At Lubbock's First McDonald's

ROBUST Competition, Major Enthusiasm

If your chain is going to make it past the "shiny new" phase anywhere, it'll have to here in Lubbock, too. We have about a 4-month-long attention span for something new before it has to stand on its own in terms of quality, value, and taste. If a place cannot deliver (or begins to decline after years), we move on. However, we generally give anything new a "day in court" so long as there's a modicum of advertisement to generate that initial buzz.

Other Chains That Couldn't Cut It

In the last few years, Lubbock has also lost Hooters (which saw many locations shutter), Pei Wei (which is down by about 50ish locations from its high-water mark), and we've also lost Big Chicken, Jack In The Box, and, to my annoyance, the Wendy's that was closest to my house. Jack In The Box and Wendy's have both culled several locations across the U.S. this year.