Five new businesses will replace the old Big Bear store in Billings

Billings, Montana – The arrival of numerous well-known franchises in the Magic City is wonderful news for Billings consumers.

The ancient Big Bear building will reopen in the spring of 2023 after several months of construction, but it will have a new appearance. Petco, HomeGoods, and Sierra Trading Post are moving in, and two more new businesses will eventually open nearby.

The new business will be fantastic for the city of Billings, according to project superintendent Ken Chouinard, and construction will be completed by the end of December.

“I think it’ll be great especially for this neighborhood,” Chouinard said at the site. “The more people that are living here the more amenities you’re going to need the more stores you’re going to need.”

Chouinard stated that although the renovation of a historic structure has been ongoing for months, there have been obstacles.

“Every time you’re dealing with the structural steel it has to be engineered and brought back up to code,” Chouinard said.

The new Chick-fil-construction A’s is also nearly finished on 24th Street, just around the block. Although the contractor claims that work on the store would be finished by December 3rd, it is corporate policy to close between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve. The store is situated in the same parking lot as Planet Fitness.

The well-known shoe company Skechers is also setting up an outlet store across the street in the former Pier 1 building. Both Skechers and Chick-fil-A are considering mid-January as their possible debut date.

For the small shops in Billings, the inclusion of well-known companies is really exciting since it will hopefully attract more consumers for them as well.

A restaurant called Cajun Phatty’s is situated in the same parking lot as the former Big Bear structure. One of the servers there, Meadoe Beaulieu, stated that they hope the new enterprises will boost their sales as well.

“We’re super excited,” Beaulieu said. “All the business is good business, so we’re pumped to have new stores.”

Beaulieu has spent 22 years calling Billings home. She is anticipating some of the big-name retailers moving into her hometown as a resident.

“It’s kind of cool just to have it accessible to everyone, and the more stores the better,” Beaulieu said. “Growing up in Billings, I’ve always wanted to have some of these stores here.”