Randalls to close three Houston-area stores -- UPDATE

The Randalls at 2075 Westheimer was remodeled in 2007. Now it's scheduled to close. The Randalls at 2075 Westheimer was remodeled in 2007. Now it's scheduled to close. Photo: Gary Fountain, For The Chronicle Photo: Gary Fountain, For The Chronicle Image 1 of / 77 Caption Close Randalls to close three Houston-area stores -- UPDATE 1 / 77 Back to Gallery

The Randalls grocery chain is closing its store at Westheimer and Shepherd along with two others, a spokeswoman for the company said Tuesday morning.

In addition to the Montrose-area location at 2075 Westheimer, the company said it will close a Sugar Land store at 5800 New Territory Boulevard and one in The Woodlands at 9420 College Park Drive.

"Closing an underperforming store is always a tough decision, but sometimes a necessary step to position the company for greater success and growth. We are working toward providing opportunities for the employees of these stores at other Randalls locations," spokeswoman Connie Yates said in an email. "Randalls has proudly served Houston since 1966, and we remain committed to all the markets we serve."

RELATED: What Randalls store closures mean for Houston

The Albertsons subsidiary, which has struggled in Houston's hyper-competitive grocery market, has closed four stores this year and 25 since 2005.

Randalls has less than 4 percent of the local grocery market share, while H-E-B, Kroger and Walmart each have about 25 percent.

The stores will close around Dec. 1, Yates said.

Craig Hlavaty and Paul Takahashi contributed to this report.