Finance & Capital Management

Simi Valley, Calif. — Milan Capital Management has acquired the Smart & Final Center in Simi Valley, Calif., for $16.9 million — $170 per square foot Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services represented Milan Capital and the seller, who had owned the property for 45 years.

Toronto – Sears Canada is undergoing a six-month reorganization that will result in 712 job cuts, including 79 staffers that have already been terminated at its head office. According to Sears, the head office staff reduction aligns its support structure with the size and volume of the organization and also takes advantage of internal processes that have been recently implemented to improve efficiency.

New York – The Jones Group has reportedly set Dec. 1 as a final deadline for a buyout bid from Sycamore Partners. According to Women’s Wear Daily, with the assistance of Citi Jones Group has gone through an extensive auction process which at times included KKR & Co. and G-III Apparel Group Ltd.

Woonsocket, R.I. - CVS Caremark has entered into an agreement to acquire Coram LLC, the specialty infusion services and enteral nutrition business unit of Apria Healthcare Group Inc. for approximately $2.1 billion. Coram provides infusion therapies and nutrition services to more than 20,000 patients each month, primarily through home infusion as well as a national network of more than 85 locations, including more than 65 ambulatory infusion suites.

Pittsburgh – The board of directors of GNC Holdings has authorized a multi-year program to repurchase up to an aggregate $500 million of the company's Class A common stock. The authorization is effective immediately.  The GNC may finance any repurchases with cash, potential financing transactions, or a combination of the foregoing.  

New York -- Fitch Ratings expects total U.S. retail sales growth in the 4% range in 2014, a modest increase over expected 2013 figures that reflects slight improvement in both the employment rate and real wages.

Fitch expects 2013 holiday sales to grow in the 3%-4% range, in line with The National Retail Federation forecasts that November and December sales will increase 3.9% year over year to $602 billion.

Free food, double pay and generous merchandise discounts are available to the more than one million Walmart employees called upon to work Thanksgiving weekend.

Walmart on Wednesday highlighted some of the benefits workers at its store will receive this weekend, including a 25% discount off an entire purchase, a Thanksgiving meal throughout Black Friday shifts and double pay for employees willing to endure the madness of Black Friday events scheduled for 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day.

Sears Canada is undergoing a six-month reorganization that will result in 712 job cuts, including 79 staffers who have already been terminated at its head office.

According to Sears, the head office staff reduction aligns its support structure with the size and volume of the organization and also takes advantage of internal processes that have been recently implemented to improve efficiency.

Okay, maybe not president, but if or when Walmart U.S. president and CEO Bill Simon leaves the company after being passed over for the top job, it will be Walmart’s loss and the nation’s benefit if he pursues political office or public service.

Sorting fact from fiction in the so-called strikes and other worker protests taking place this weekend is a challenging proposition, but one organization hopes to set the record straight.

A group called the Worker Center Watch supported by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is calling attention to a number of organizations such as OUR Walmart it contends are fronts for organized labor who exist to dodge regulations governing labor organizing activities.