Finance & Capital Management

New York -- MPI — Mall Properties, Inc., a private owner, developer and operator of commercial real estate — has changed its name to Olshan Properties.

The Container Store posted a better than expected profit performance during its first quarter as a public company but offered a full year outlook analysts found underwhelming.

Cincinnati -- Macy’s on Wednesday said that it plans to close five underperforming stores in early spring 2014 and cut 2,500 jobs in “organizational changes” to sustain its profitability. The cost-reduction initiatives are expected to save the retailer about $100 million annually, beginning in 2014.

Japanese apparel retailer Fast Retailing remains deliberate in its approach to growth of its Uniqlo brand in the U.S. with plans for five more stores by mid-year.

There are currently 1,300 Uniqlo locations worldwide in 13 countries, but only 17 stores in the U.S. The five new stores the company is adding this spring and summer will be located in King of Prussia, Pa., Stamford, Conn., and Daly City, Concord, and Milpitas, Calif. The company’s other existing stores are clustered in the Northeast with and northern California.

The WhiteWave Foods Company has named Kevin C. Yost as president of the company’s newly acquired Earthbound Farm business. Charlie Sweat, previously CEO of Earthbound Farm, will move into an advisory role to ensure a smooth transition.

The rest of the Earthbound Farm management team will continue to serve in their current roles.

New York -- Shareholder rights law firm Robbins Arroyo LLP is investigating whether certain officers and directors of Barnes & Noble, Inc. breached their fiduciary duties to shareholders.

Advantages include energy optimization, operational excellence

For a long time, commissioning was predominately associated with the process of testing and balancing (T&B) heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems based on specific standards prior to turning the building over to the owner. But commissioning has come a long way, and today it is a more formal and meticulous quality-assurance process of articulating and verifying that all of the building’s systems perform as they were intended.

Tech providers unveil key trends for 2014

Technology trends are rippling through the retail real estate universe. Among the most important are new apps that dig deeply into data and automate tasks such as site selection, identifying and diagnosing underperforming stores and much more. Then there are apps that analyze what is going on inside shopping centers and stores. Technology is also helping to address a major change in lease accounting rules.

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How we use technology is changing