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IKEA to close San Marcos mini-store after 16 months

IKEA is saying goodbye to San Marcos.

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Less than two years after opening, IKEA is packing up its San Marcos store. In an online statement, the retail giant said it has decided not to renew its lease at Sar Mar Plaza (929 SH-80 N.). The last day of business will be November 1.

The Swedish retailer called the location a "small city store," designed around "local living solutions." The approximately 35,000-square-foot store, opened in July 2025, is about the 10th the size of IKEA's biggest boxes, which often offer 300,000 square feet of argument-starting home goods.

Although the outpost doesn’t have an encyclopedic assortment of Kallax bookcases, it stocks around 2,000 products for immediate purchase — along with a curated selection of Swedish Food Market goodies. There's no word whether the store will have a going-out-of-business sale.

The smaller IKEAs were part of a strategy to bring the brand’s offerings to more urban areas, where the company's warehouse-style outlets may not find available real estate. The chain also opened a smaller format store in Dallas' University Park neighborhood in March, although it was almost twice the size of the San Marcos location.

"The opening of IKEA San Marcos exemplifies our strategy of developing smaller, more accessible urban store formats in this journey towards a more connected and accessible IKEA experience for the many," said Javier Quiñones, CEO & Chief Sustainability Officer of IKEA U.S., in an earlier statement.

The brand did not give a reason for the closure, but hinted that the mini-IKEAs are no longer a priority.

“We continue to test, explore, and develop new ways for customers to meet IKEA, while investing in home delivery, pick-up services and our online experience,” it wrote in the announcement.

San Marcos shoppers can continue to make impulse buys by making a drive down (or up) Interstate 35. The two closest stores are outside Austin in Round Rock and north of San Antonio in Live Oak.

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home design trends

Natural materials and warm tones are top home design trends this fall

2026 Houzz Fall Design Trends Report, warmth is the new baseline

Photo courtesy of Reid Smith Architects

This living room showcases an inviting look with warm stone walls, wood details, and earthy furnishings.

Trends come and go, but a new Houzz report has unveiled all the ways current home design trends are evolving with the seasons rather than fading into obscurity or becoming dated.

Houzz interviewed nearly 50 home design professionals to determine emerging home design ideas for its 2026 U.S. Fall Design Trends Report. One common goal unites every trend this fall: creating rooms that celebrate the personalities of those who live in them.

These are Houzz's top design trends for fall 2026.

Warmth has become the new standard
One thing that's for certain: homeowners have officially done away with stark white and grey interiors. Warm color palettes first emerged as a design trend in late 2023, and now these inviting tones have transcended trendiness to become the "new baseline."

Homeowners and decorators aren't just making simple swaps, either. They're taking a holistic approach by "layering warm wood tones, earthy colors, multiple textures, and natural materials" throughout the home. This gives rooms "more depth and personality" than the previously in-style monotone interiors, Houzz said.

Bringing back personalization
Houzz predicted minimalist spaces would be on the way out in 2025, and they were correct. The golden era of minimalism has come to an end. Homeowners are instead creating true lived-in looks that blend "character, history, and personal storytelling" over spaces that look like they were plucked straight out of a magazine.

Examples include introducing vintage pieces into a modern space and mixing bold colors, patterns, and textures. Even the simplest accent choices can transform a room into something that feels "thoughtfully assembled over time," the report said.

2026 Houzz Fall Design Trends Report, character and personality matter more than perfection Home design enthusiasts are now prioritizing character and personality over perfection.Photo courtesy of Lavish

Photo courtesy of Reid Smith Architects

This living room showcases an inviting look with warm stone walls, wood details, and earthy furnishings.

Other than vintage items, homeowners can add a sense of authenticity to their homes through "materials and details that carry a sense of history" like handmade tile, natural stone, aged metals, and original architectural elements.

This also means letting go of the idea of a home's "resale value" in favor of a personal sanctuary, according to the report.

"Pros describe clients asking for homes that feel deeply personal, whether it’s the layouts and materials they choose or the objects they display," Houzz said. "That shift is also giving homeowners more confidence to make individual choices, including unusual tile patterns, expressive wallpaper, distinctive furnishings and colors they love."

Embracing natural materials
Wood cabinets or stone countertops might be the first things that spring to mind under this umbrella, but we're diving deeper than that. Stone furniture pieces, like marble end tables, river stone sinks, and travertine coffee tables, are rising in popularity, as are wood light fixtures and wood paneling.

"Pros are seeing more appreciation for the variation, texture, and imperfections that make natural materials feel authentic," the report said. "Handmade and high-variation tile, honed and leathered stone, plaster, and warm wood all contribute to a more tactile look."

Preparing for long-term livability
A separate Houzz report found two-thirds of homeowners are planning to stay in their homes for more than a decade, if not longer, and less than half say they are currently living in their "forever home." As the cost of homeownership in San Antonio changes, more residents are choosing to live in their current spaces longer, which means eventually renovating.

Besides adapting a home for aging in place, design professionals are seeing an uptick in popularity for other amenities to "make a home comfortable to navigate at any stage of life."

"ADUs and secondary suites are being designed to accommodate multigenerational living, extended guest stays, rental income, and future family needs," the report said. "Meanwhile, dedicated wellness amenities like saunas, cold plunges, and meditation spaces offer new ways for a home to support evolving well-being routines."

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