Early this year, after much anticipation, a trendy Asian retailer opened its third San Antonio location. But after only a few weeks of operating, customers were surprised to see that upon visiting Miniso, it was forced to close.

Located at the Rim, the brand originated in Guangzhou, China. Its rise to fame was its offering of plush toys, snacks, blind boxes, and fashion accessories — many of which are collaborations with Marvel and Sanrio Residents often share their visits to the store on social media, but over the past month, users started claiming it was shut down.

“They just opened up, and it’s closed for the time being. I don’t know if it’s going to reopen or what,” one TikTok creator said in a post. “When I got up there, the doors were locked, and there’s an orange sign on there …”

A trip to the property, located at 17503 La Cantera Pkwy., revealed that master locks were looped through the entry door handles, and a notice from the City of San Antonio was on the window. Development Services Department staff member Ximena Copa-Wiggins tells MySA that the city issued a Stop Work Order to the business on Tuesday, March 31, because Miniso opened without a Certificate of Occupancy (COO). This certificate is provided when a structure is determined safe to welcome guests and when it meets all of the currently adopted building-related codes set by the city.

Miniso passed other inspections, including following fire and plumbing codes, but not all, according to Copa-Wiggins. She adds that legally, the business should not have opened without having a COO. The grand opening was on Saturday, February 28, per a past MySA report. 

“They currently have a couple of electrical issues outstanding,” Copa-Wiggins said via email. “Once they are corrected, the COO will be issued.” 

A Miniso spokesperson said via email on Wednesday, April 8, that the permitting issue was resolved and the Rim store has reopened. The City of San Antonio also confirmed it received its COO on Wednesday. MySA reached out to the company for a comment regarding its opening without the certificate.

There is one other Miniso location at San Antonio’s Ingram Park Mall and South Park Mall. Most days, its hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. The full calendar can be viewed on the brand’s website.