Is Kirkland's an investment grade tenant?

No. Kirkland's is a small-cap home decor retailer not rated by S&P or Moody's. The company is considered a speculative-credit retail tenant in the NNN market.

What cap rates do Kirkland's NNN properties trade at?

Kirkland's NNN properties trade at approximately 8.00% to 9.50% cap rates, reflecting the sub-investment-grade credit and specialty retail sector risk.

What is Kirkland's store count and footprint?

Kirkland's operates approximately 320 home decor stores across the United States, concentrated in the Southeast, Midwest, and Sun Belt. Typical store size is 6,000-9,000 square feet in power centers.

How should NNN investors underwrite a Kirkland's property?

Underwrite for re-tenanting risk. Kirkland's has faced sustained revenue declines and operates in a competitive specialty home decor category. Model a scenario where the lease is rejected or renegotiated before natural expiration and price on land-value-plus-improvements basis.

What is the difference between Kirkland's and HomeGoods?

HomeGoods is owned by TJX Companies (A/A2 investment-grade) and trades at 5.5% to 6.5% cap rates. Kirkland's is a standalone small-cap (unrated, sub-investment-grade) and trades at 8.0% to 9.5% cap rates. The 200+ basis point spread reflects the credit differential.

Kirkland's Credit Rating & NNN Status

Metric	Details
Entity Status	Bankrupt — Chapter 11 filed February 2025, liquidated
Chapter 11 Filed	February 2025
All Stores Closed	All ~350 US locations closed mid-2025
Pre-Bankruptcy S&P / Moody’s	Not Rated (private/small-cap)
Investment Grade Status	Liquidated — No longer a NNN tenant
Sector	Home Decor & Gifts Specialty Retail
Former Typical Building Size	6,000–10,000 SF
Former Store Count	~350 (strip and power center locations)

What Happened to Kirkland’s?

Kirkland’s, the Tennessee-based home decor and gifts retailer, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February 2025 and subsequently liquidated all approximately 350 US stores. Founded in 1966 in Jackson, Tennessee, Kirkland’s had operated for nearly 60 years as a specialty retailer of decorative home accessories, wall decor, and seasonal gifts. The company was publicly traded on the NASDAQ under the ticker KIRK before its delisting following the bankruptcy filing.

Kirkland’s credit deterioration reflected structural challenges across the specialty home decor segment: intense competition from Amazon, HomeGoods, TJ Maxx, and big-box competitors with broader merchandise assortments, post-COVID normalization of home decor spending that had surged during lockdowns, and an inability to generate consistent profitability in a highly promotional retail environment. The company had been burning cash for multiple years before the filing, and attempts to pivot toward an online and marketplace model did not generate sufficient revenue to offset physical store losses.

NNN Investor Note: Kirkland’s leases were relatively small-format (6,000 to 10,000 SF) in strip and power centers — among the most re-tenantable formats in retail. Former Kirkland’s spaces readily absorb a wide range of specialty retail, beauty, healthcare walk-in, fitness, and food & beverage concepts. If you own a former Kirkland’s property, the re-tenanting outlook is generally favorable relative to larger-format retail bankruptcies.

Former Kirkland’s Properties: Re-Tenanting Options

Replacement Category	Format Fit (6–10K SF)	Credit Quality
Five Below / Dollar concepts	Excellent	Private / NR
Urgent care / medical clinic	Excellent	Often IG health systems
Beauty (Ulta, Sally, Great Clips)	Excellent	Varies
Food & beverage / QSR	Good	Varies by concept
Pet supplies / specialty	Good	Varies
Insurance / financial services	Good — divisible	Varies

Did Kirkland’s go out of business?

Yes. Kirkland’s filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2025 and subsequently liquidated all approximately 350 US stores. The company is no longer an active retail operator. Former Kirkland’s properties are vacant strip and power center spaces in the 6,000 to 10,000 SF range.

What are re-tenanting options for former Kirkland’s spaces?

The 6,000 to 10,000 SF small-format strip center footprint is highly re-tenantable. Strong replacement categories include urgent care clinics, beauty retail, value variety concepts, food and beverage, and specialty retail. This format size attracts the broadest range of replacement tenant demand in the retail market.

Own a Former Kirkland’s Property? We Can Help.

Small-format strip center vacancies from Kirkland’s are among the easiest retail boxes to re-tenant. Whether you need re-tenanting advisory, want to sell the property, or are looking to 1031 exchange into investment-grade NNN, our team handles all three scenarios.

Talk to a Retail NNN Specialist →

In a 1031 exchange? Tell us your timeline — we move faster.

Related NNN Tenants

Own multiple Kirkland's properties? Considering an off-market sale?

Investment Grade represents owners on confidential disposition of Kirkland's portfolios and individual properties through off-market direct-to-principal distribution to specialty REITs, private equity funds, and family offices. Kirkland's buyer demand runs deep, and portfolio sales consistently produce stronger pricing than sequential individual sales because the institutional buyer pool is structured around portfolio acquisition.

For multi-property owners considering a portfolio disposition, see Selling Investment Grade NNN Off-Market: Tenant-by-Tenant Buyer Demand. For the full off-market framework covering individual property dispositions, sale-leasebacks, and 1031 coordination, see Off-Market CRE Sales: The Complete 2026 Guide.

The pre-listing conversation is at no cost and fully confidential. Email team@investmentgrade.com or see contact Investment Grade.

Kirkland’s Credit Rating & NNN Status