Mergers & Acquisitions

The comeback of downtown Detroit, led by the expansive District Detroit project under construction, was advanced this week with the opening of The Scott at Brush Park. The upscale, mixed-use development of Broder & Sachse Real Estate and Sachse Construction is located about eight blocks north of District Detroit on Woodward Avenue.   

Fred’s Inc. is playing defense.   The Memphis-based retailer on Tuesday adopted a shareholder rights plan, or “poison pill,” less than a week after news surfaced that an activist investor had amassed a big stake in the company. It also comes approximately one week after Fred’s announced it had agreed to purchase 865 divested Rite Aid stores as part of the expected Walgreens Boots Alliance-Rite Aid merger. The acquisition would more than double Fred’s store count.   

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission will rule on the Walgreens Boots Alliance-Rite Aid merger before the Trump Administration takes office on Jan. 20, according to the New York Post. The newspaper added approval of the transaction is “not guaranteed.”   “It is most likely [FTC] Chairwoman Edith Ramirez addresses it before she leaves,” a source close to the situation told the news outlet, and not leave it to a Republican-led FTC.  

Private-equity firm Warburg Pincus has agreed to acquire Gabriel Brothers (Gabe's) from Alvarez & Marsal Capital.   The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.  

After nearly 50 years of ownership, the Carl M. Freeman Companies has sold the Cabin John Shopping Center and Mall in Potomac, Maryland, to Edens for $165 million.   Freeman parted with a property that it built in 1968 in order to amass capital for other projects, according to CEO Michelle Freeman, who assumed the helm of the company after her husband, Josh, perished in a helicopter crash.  

With the retail environment undergoing the most complex changes in our generation, the sustainability of the current retail economic model is in question.    Historically, retail CFO’s, as the principal financial oficers, were primarily responsible for more traditional finance, treasury, regulatory, information delivery and related functions.   

From start to finish, many of this year’s biggest retail stories involved mergers and acquisitions as the industry continues to remake itself in a digital age. Here’s a look back at 10 stories that caused big buzz — and were the most viewed  by readers on Chainstoreage.com.

Walgreens Boots Alliance’s acquisition of Rite Aid took a big step forward with announcement of the divestiture of 865 Rite Aid stores to Fred’s Pharmacy for $950 million.