Mergers & Acquisitions

Simon has long been known as one of the pre-eminent players in retail real estate and shopping center management and development. But with the formation of a new venture capital division, Simon Venture Group, and partnership with Plug and Play, a global investor and technology accelerator that specializes in growing tech startups, Simon is looking to take a leading role in retail IT, as well.

Virginia Beach, Va. – The Investment Sales Group of Divaris Real Estate Inc. has brokered the sale of Shippensburg Marketplace in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania for $12 million. Divaris represented the seller, ACL Realty Corp., in the transaction; American Realty Capital Properties, Inc. was the purchaser.

Shippensburg Marketplace is a 56,875-sq.-ft., Giant-anchored shopping center. The property was developed in 2002 and was 94% occupied at the time of the sale.

Toronto -- Sears Canada Inc. announced that Douglas C. Campbell, president and CEO, intends to resign and return to the United States by yearend for “personal family” issues. Campbell, formerly COO of Sears Canada, was appointed to the top spot in September 2013, after former head Calvin McDonald quit.  

Campbell was charged with turning around a struggling chain, which has seen eight years of falling sales.

Northbrook, Ill. - Pine Tree Commercial Realty LLC has acquired Riverbend Marketplace, a regional shopping center located in Asheville, North Carolina, in partnership with Wanxiang America Real Estate Group. The 142,617-sq.-ft. shopping center is shadow-anchored by Walmart, anchored by Kohl’s and Petsmart, and features 110,715-sq.-ft. of national best-in-class retailers.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. – Kmart Corp. will close at least eight stores by the end of 2014 as part of broader cost-cutting moves by parent company Sears Holding Corp. Kmart spokespeople sent emails to media outlets in Michigan, Indiana and Iowa announcing that Kmart will close at least five stores in the Detroit area, two in the Indianapolis area and one in Ames, Iowa.

Sears Canada president and CEO Douglas C. Campbell has resigned his spot so he can return to the United States by the end of the calendar year to tend to personal family issues. The board will commence a search for a new CEO immediately.

Campbell intends to continue as the CEO until Sears Canada names a replacement, but no later than January 1, 2015.

Seattle -- Starbucks Corp. will acquire the remaining shares of its Japanese joint venture, Starbucks Coffee Japan, for $913 million to accelerate growth across multiple channels in the country, including the introduction of new concepts such as Teavana. The acquisition is the largest to date made by Starbucks. Japan is the company’s second-largest market in store sales after the United States.

“Full ownership in this market is the right approach for the future," said Troy Alstead, COO, Starbucks, in a conference call with analysts.

Dublin, Calif. – DD’s Discounts, a division of Ross Stores Inc. will open a new store in Las Vegas on Sept. 27. The store is located in the Winterwood Pavilion.

Including this new location, DD’s Discounts will operate 150 locations in 14 states and is on schedule to complete its expansion plan to open approximately 20 locations in 2014. Together, Ross Dress for Less and DD’s Discounts currently operate over 1,300 off-price apparel and home fashion stores in 33 states, the District of Columbia and Guam.