Not so fast: H&M removes Baybrook Mall from list of new stores

Big chains are notoriously secretive about new locations. Apple usually doesn't confirm a store will open until, in fact, the store has opened, which makes the debut of its new Highland Village location up in the air. (The latest estimates for the opening of the gleaming glass box building is March, but we're not holding our breath.)

But the cheap chic retailer H&M has taken its super secret ways to new heights — or should we say depths? Maybe the CIA should put the Swedish company on retainer for its zealous efforts to keep things secret.

 The cheap chic retailer H&M has taken its super secret ways to new heights — or should we say depths? Maybe the CIA should put the Swedish retailer on retainer for safeguarding secrets.

 We know that H&M has a rabid Houston following because every time we post a story, commenters go crazy in anticipation. We know that a store is open in Dallas' NorthPark Center with plans for a second location in the Dallas Galleria. We know Houston is on the radar, since just a few days ago, the retailer listed Baybrook Mall as a new location on its website. That struck a lot of CultureMap readers as an odd spot for the first Houston store, although many inside-the-loopers expressed a desire to trek down the Gulf Freeway if it comes to that.

But now, Baybrook has mysteriously disappeared from the H&M site and no Houston location has replaced it.

Sources insist CultureMap Willowbrook Mall remains in H&M's plans, although a reader pointed out that we cited a tenant list from the Willowbrook Mall in New Jersey. Mall owner General Growth Properties owns Willowbrook Malls in New Jersey and Texas — you'd think they could be more creative in coming up with mall names. Even so, we're still betting on the Houston Willowbrook as an H&M location.

H&M did immediately return a request to clear up the confusion. But we'll keep investigating.