Shopping Center & Retail Buildout
$85–$250 per sq ft
Every week a retail space sits unfinished, you pay rent on a store that is not open. We build shopping center and retail buildouts across Katy and west Houston, including white-box and in-line shop space, restaurant pads, and anchor retail work. We handle the hood, grease, and gas work restaurants need. We coordinate plumbing, electrical, and HVAC ourselves, and we pull the City of Katy and Harris or Fort Bend County permits. We build the schedule around your lease deadline, work letter, and opening date.
What We Do
- White-box and in-line shop space for shopping centers and strip retail
- Restaurant buildouts, including hood, grease interceptor, gas, and health department coordination
- Landlord work letter and tenant improvement (TI) allowance coordination
- One schedule for plumbing, electrical, and HVAC, coordinated in-house
- City of Katy and Harris or Fort Bend County permits, pulled by us
- A schedule built around your lease start date and grand opening
Why hire one contractor for the whole project?
We handle mechanical, electrical, and plumbing work in-house. We also handle City of Katy and Harris/Fort Bend County permits ourselves. That means one contractor instead of three. Every job gets a named project manager and a clean, documented permit record. No hidden change orders. No chasing separate subs.
Get a free estimate →Prices shown are estimates for typical Katy-area projects. Actual cost depends on scope, finishes, materials, and permit requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a shopping center or retail buildout cost in Katy, TX?
Most Katy-area retail and shopping center buildouts run about $85 to $250 per square foot. The price depends on whether you're starting from a white box, the finish level, and how much plumbing, electrical, and HVAC work the space needs. Restaurant and food-service spaces cost more because of hood, grease, and gas work. We give a free, itemized estimate before any work begins.
How long does a retail buildout take in the Katy area?
A typical in-line retail or shop-space buildout takes about 8 to 16 weeks from permit to grand opening. Restaurant pads usually take longer because of health department review and the extra plumbing, electrical, and HVAC work. The City of Katy plan-review and permit timeline is the biggest variable, so we handle permits ourselves and build the schedule around your lease start date.
Do you coordinate with the landlord's work letter and tenant allowance?
Yes. We work directly from the landlord's work letter and your tenant improvement (TI) allowance, so the scope, draws, and base-building responsibilities stay clear. We write down what the landlord provides and what you provide before work starts, which heads off the change-order disputes that delay openings.
Can you handle restaurant buildouts with hood, grease, and gas work?
Yes. Restaurant and food-service buildouts are a regular part of our retail work, including exhaust hoods, grease interceptors, gas line sizing, and health department coordination. We manage the plumbing, electrical, and HVAC trades ourselves, so the kitchen systems are planned before anyone opens a wall.
Who pulls the permits for a shopping center buildout?
We pull and track the permits ourselves through the City of Katy and Harris or Fort Bend County. We don't sub that work out. That means your storefront, your landlord, and the city inspectors are all dealing with one contractor, so your opening date isn't stuck behind a permit nobody is following up on.
Is there a best season to start a retail buildout in the Houston metro?
Interior retail buildouts can run year-round, since most of the work happens inside. That makes them a good fit for the Gulf Coast summer and hurricane season, when outdoor construction slows down. Your lease start date and target opening date are the bigger factors, and we build the schedule around those.
Related Services
Commercial Buildout / Tenant Improvement
We build office, medical, professional, and light-industrial tenant improvements. We work to your lease deadline and handle the permits and the trades.
Ground-Up Commercial Construction
We build free-standing retail, small office, medical, and light-industrial buildings. One contract covers everything from site work to your certificate of occupancy (CO).
Planning a buildout or remodel?
Call or text. Talk to the team that handles design, permits, and MEP under one roof.
Call or text · Answered live(832) 490-8910