Energy
June 9, 2021
Griddy Argues It Was, in Fact, a Champion of Consumers
The much-maligned—now bankrupt and outlawed—electricity provider offered just the sort of experiment Texas’s energy deregulation sought.
Business
Reporting and commentary on Texas businesses and the trends and innovation happening in our state
Business
June 3, 2021
Hot Pants, Love Potions, and the Go-go Genesis of Southwest Airlines
Fifty years ago this month, the Dallas-based carrier first took flight. It’s reflecting on its past as it confronts a pandemic-shaped future.
Business
June 1, 2021
Inside the Greater Houston Partnership’s Tense Fight Over Voting Rights
Before a Democratic walkout blocked the passage of an "election integrity" bill in the Texas Lege, members of the partnership had split over how to respond to the legislation.
Energy
May 27, 2021
ExxonMobil and Its Rivals Learn They Can’t Ignore Climate Activists
Major setbacks this week may force the oil giants to speed efforts to curb carbon emissions and invest in renewables—and perhaps even abandon the search for new fossil-fuel plays.
Energy
May 20, 2021
Texas’s Oil and Gas Industry Is Defending Its Billions in Subsidies Against a Green Energy Push
The state's energy business has long counted on tax breaks and other largesse. Whether renewables or fossil fuels get more depends on how you do the math.
Film & TV
May 18, 2021
Eva Longoria’s Flamin’ Hot Cheetos Movie May Be Based on a Frito-Lie
Plano probably had more to do with the invention of the snack than Richard Montañez's inspirational tale did.
Business
May 18, 2021
AT&T’s “Cowboy Swagger” Led to Its Hollywood Misadventure
With its WarnerMedia announcement, the Dallas-based telecom tacitly admits its latest bold acquisition—by a Texas company built on them—was a mistake.
Business
May 12, 2021
Elon Musk Is Turning Boca Chica Into a Space-Travel Hub. Not Everyone Is Starstruck.
Residents of the South Texas beach town say SpaceX’s billionaire owner is ruining their “little piece of heaven.”
Business
April 29, 2021
Amid a Bitcoin Boom, Texas Leaders Get Cozier With Cryptocurrency
A resurgent mining industry is lobbying the Legislature to make the state friendlier to the blockchain.
Politics & Policy
April 17, 2021
Why Have Texas’s Restrictive Voter Bills Received Less Corporate Pushback Than the Ones in Georgia?
A few of Texas's big businesses have publicly criticized efforts to make voting more difficult. But many more, fearful of Republican retribution, are trying to keep their heads down.
Business
April 14, 2021
Outdoor Voices Is Not F***ing Around With Austin Bar Little Brother
The athletic wear giant threatened legal action over the bar’s parody of its famous blue hat.
Health
April 9, 2021
This COVID-19 Vaccine Plant Shows Texas Is Becoming Biotech’s Third Coast
With the pandemic spurring officials to keep more high-tech drug manufacturing on U.S. soil, the state stands to benefit.
Business
April 8, 2021
How Austin’s Start-up Sector Won the Pandemic
The city’s tech industry enjoyed big-time growth despite—or because of?—the nation’s difficult past year.
Business
April 6, 2021
The Off-Grid Business Has Never Been Better
When demand surged for pandemic-friendly RVs and camper vans, Austin-based rental company Outdoorsy was ready to capitalize on the trend.
Energy
March 31, 2021
America’s Offshore Wind-Powered Future Begins in a Texas Shipyard
In announcing an ambitious renewable-energy push this week, the Biden administration highlighted a vessel under construction in Brownsville as proof of the economic opportunities of going green.
Business
March 26, 2021
H-E-B Is Coming to DFW, and People Are Like OMG
The beloved supermarket chain, which has carefully guarded its intentions in North Texas, dropped a bombshell on Friday.
Business
March 24, 2021
A Tale of Two Houston Restaurants—One That Requires Masks and Its Neighbor That Doesn’t
Roma and D'Amico's, Italian eateries in the Rice Village, have taken opposite approaches after Greg Abbott lifted pandemic-era restrictions on businesses. Both establishments' owners say they're looking out for staff.
Business
March 16, 2021
Some on Wall Street Profited off Texas Blackouts. In a Private Call, a Top Regulator Pledged He Would Try to Protect Their Windfall.
Public Utility Commission chairman Arthur D’Andrea apologized to investors last week for the “uncertainty” around its profits.
Business
March 5, 2021
Alamo Drafthouse’s Founder Vows to Protect What Makes It Special
Yet, in an interview two days after the beloved cinema chain’s pandemic-induced bankruptcy filing, Tim League also says he can’t guarantee changes aren’t coming.
Business
March 4, 2021
Despite Losing Power for Days, Texans Will Pay Higher Power Bills—Perhaps for Decades to Come
The bankruptcies and staggering electricity charges are beginning to arrive. Could it go from bad to worse?
Business
February 24, 2021
Why We Shouldn’t Bet Against GameStop
The megachain has never been shy about flexing its industry might, yet it somehow became a poster child for fighting the power of Wall Street.
Business
February 8, 2021
The Buc-ee’s Stops Here: Why the Iconic Chain Is Facing a Backlash East of the Sabine
Turns out not everyone loves Texas-size gas stations (or 13 varieties of jerky).
Business
February 5, 2021
Texas Payday Lenders Get Millions in Pandemic Relief Money
Many short-term lenders receive government help even as their ultrahigh interest rates trap vulnerable customers in debt.
Business
February 4, 2021
Can a “Modern Retail” Makeover Save JCPenney?
The Plano-based chain tried this before, to disastrous results. Has the department store’s time simply passed?
Energy
January 28, 2021
Can Biden Really Be Any Worse for the Oil Patch Than Trump?
The new president’s energy-related executive actions have stirred opposition in Texas and other oil-producing states. But Biden’s moves are dwarfed by the larger forces that have battered, and will transform, the industry.
Energy
January 19, 2021
How the Most Hyped U.S. Oil Merger in a Decade Went Bust
As CEO of Occidental Petroleum, Vicki Hollub made the biggest deal the oil business had seen in years. Will it also go down as the biggest failure?
Business
January 3, 2021
No, Austin Won’t Become Silicon Valley 2.0
Attracting so many tech companies and workers from California isn’t going to transform the city into another San Francisco—for both the better and worse.
Business
December 17, 2020
Russian Hackers Thrust Texas Company SolarWinds Into the Spotlight
The Austin firm whose software has become nearly ubiquitous in the networks of the federal government and Fortune 500 companies reportedly left its clients vulnerable.
Business
December 17, 2020
Welcome to Texas, Elon Musk. You Don’t Have to Move to Austin.
The founder of Tesla and SpaceX says he’s relocating to the Lone Star State. But which of our tech hubs is the best fit for the eccentric billionaire?
Best Thing In Texas
December 16, 2020
The Best Things in Texas, 2021: H-E-B’s Charles Butt
During a very tough year, no Texas CEO did more—for customers, students, and voters.
Business
November 23, 2020
This New Daily Flight Between Dallas and Houston Lets You Skip the Security Checkpoint
Dallas-based airline JSX operates small planes out of private-jet terminals—meaning no body scans, pat-downs, or other TSA hassles.
Business
November 18, 2020
Salaryman Permanently Closes as Chef Justin Holt Fights Leukemia
Holt’s partner, Trina Nishimura, who was the beverage director at the beloved ramen shop, shares their story with Texas Monthly.
Business
November 12, 2020
A New Plano Company’s Business Model: Buying Snacks at Buc-ee’s, Then Shipping Them to Texpats Worldwide
The Beaver nominally approves.
Business
November 10, 2020
ExxonMobil’s Failure to Go Green Could Worsen Its Financial Future
As other major oil companies have invested in renewable energy, the Irving-based producer has stubbornly stayed the course.
Business
October 30, 2020
Will Southwest Airlines Lose That Lovin’ Feelin’?
Travel demand has cratered because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Dallas-based carrier has made recent significant shifts to cope.
Business
October 16, 2020
After Offensive Comments, Stan Richards Leaves His Dallas Ad Agency
The longtime adman had no choice in the face of massive losses following his insensitive statement that a Motel 6 ad was “too Black.”
Business
October 3, 2020
Why Is American Airlines So Infuriating?
With its industry reeling, the Fort Worth–based airline giant is quietly betting that diminished competition will keep passengers coming—even as they grumble about the carrier’s poor service, late arrivals, and the jam-packing of its flights amid the pandemic.
Business
September 8, 2020
Luby’s Is Liquidating Its Assets and Dissolving the Company
This might be the end of the LuAnn Platter.
Business
August 27, 2020
The State Fair of Texas Is Opening a Drive-thru
You can’t keep Big Tex down.
Business
August 5, 2020
How Robots Are Helping One Texas Company Thrive During the Pandemic
Six months ago, Nuro was still making a name for itself. Now, thousands of Houstonians rely on the autonomous delivery service to help them avoid getting the coronavirus.
Business
July 29, 2020
How Tesla Was Lured to Austin
Travis County offered the electric car giant a package of tax incentives worth about $1,200 a year for each of the five thousand jobs it promises to create at its new factory.
Business
July 25, 2020
Texas’s Oldest Lesbian Bar Faces Its Latest Challenge: Surviving the Pandemic
A mainstay of Dallas queer nightlife, Sue Ellen's is thought to be one of about ten lesbian bars left in the U.S.
Business
July 22, 2020
No Store Did More: How H-E-B Became a Model of Emergency Preparedness
It's not just the pandemic. Texas's beloved grocery chain has been developing its disaster response for more than a decade.
Made in Texas
July 22, 2020
Holly Thaggard: San Antonio Will Always Be Home to Supergoop
Despite the popular sunscreen brand's success and New York expansion, its founder says Texas is home.
Business
July 13, 2020
Is Your Business Violating Coronavirus Protocols? This Facebook Group Will Expose You
"Shame is a powerful tool," says Kelly Ingram, the founder of Houston's COVID—Call Outs Group.
Business
June 24, 2020
Why Urban Sprawl Could Actually Be a Boon in the New Economy
After the pandemic, will Texas's wide open cityscapes lure big business?
Energy
June 18, 2020
The “Mother Fracker” Reckons With the Mother of All Oil Busts
Pioneer CEO Scott Sheffield has been through more ups and downs than just about anyone in the business. This bust, he says, will change everything—forever.
Energy
June 18, 2020
Can a Renewables Boom Put Texans Back to Work?
After the oil bust, wind and solar energy might be the Permian Basin’s best hope.
The National Podcast of Texas
June 4, 2020
Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly Yearns for the Days When We Argued About Reclining Seats
On the National Podcast of Texas, the leader of the beleaguered, but beloved, Dallas carrier on what it will take to survive the pandemic.
News
May 25, 2020
“If People Want to Take a Chance, It’s Their Prerogative”: Inside One Bar on the First Day of Reopening
Over Memorial Day weekend, locals and tourists flocked to the Poop Deck in Galveston as Governor Greg Abbott allowed Texas bars to open at limited capacity.