Today as I was sitting at the light at Rouse Parkway (MD 175) and Dobbin Road I noticed that at three out of the corners of the intersection there were guys holding “going out of business” signs.Each of them was holding a sign for a different business. One was for Champion Billiards and Bar Stools, another for Expo Design Center and the third for a store called International Furniture.
A pessimist might say it is another startling reminder of just how bad things are even here in Howard County.
I’m no pessimist. Each of these businesses failed for different reasons. The current economy may have hastened their demise but these stores had other issues too. Home Depot stopped opening new Expo Design stores over five years ago because the concept wasn’t meeting expectations. International Furniture popped up overnight in the vacated Scan store. A closer look at their sign reveals that they are actually “going out FOR business" so that one doesn’t count. As for Champion Billiards and Bar Stools, Mama Wordbones and I went in there looking for bar stools once. We were unimpressed. We purchased our bar stools elsewhere.
