Mergers & Acquisitions

Westlake Ace Hardware has announced two executive promotions.   The company promoted current COO Joe Jeffries to president and COO, continuing to support CEO Tom Knox. In addition, Andrew Schmitt will be promoted to the position of VP of operations for Westlake Ace Hardware. Schmitt currently holds the position of director of retail operations – Western Division, for Ace Hardware Corporation.  

The owner of Ann Taylor, Loft, DressBarn, Lane Bryant and other brands is consolidating its executive leadership structure as part of its efforts to reinvigorate top-line growth.  

Formed just three years ago, an aggressive acquirers of grocery-anchored centers has purchased its 34th property.   New Market Properties, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Preferred Apartment Communities, has acquired Irmo Station, a Kroger-anchored center in Columbia, South Carolina. The company targets high-yield suburban markets in Texas and the mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions and market-leading grocery anchors such as Publix, Kroger, and HEB.  

While many other retailers are bumping along the bottom in terms of growth, Amazon increased its sales line (in its second quarter) by almost a quarter.  In real terms, this means the online behemoth took some $7.5 billion more in revenue this quarter than during the same period last year. By any standards, this is an impressive performance -- but it is doubly so for a company of the size and scale of Amazon.  

Macy's and Sears are by no means the only department store companies with valuable real estate.    Activist investor Snow Capital Partners has built a position in Dillard's Inc. and is planning to push for changes at the retailer, including unlocking the value of its real estate portfolio, Bloomberg reported.  

Not all department store retailers are closing stores.   Charlotte, North Carolina-based Belk said it plans to open three new stores, part of a nearly $40 million investment in store remodels, capital improvements and new store openings in 2017.  

Staples met the first requirement on its road back to private ownership.   The office supplies giant, which is being acquired by private equity firm Sycamore Partners, has been granted early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. This act states that no merger or acquisition can take place until the United States Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice have determined that the filed transaction will not violate U.S. commerce antitrust laws.   

Don’t expect Amazon to stop experimenting with cashier-less grocery stores anytime soon.   Despite announcing in June it would acquire Whole Foods Market for $13.7 billion, the online giant will continue evolving its Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go concepts, among other efforts. Its goal: to reinvent the way consumers shop for food, according to Business Insider.