Strategy

For all their differences, the shopping center owners and brokers from around the world who will gather at the end of May in Las Vegas for retail real estate’s annual RECon confab are alike in they will all be on the lookout for new retail concepts to entice shoppers.

The good news is that are plenty of brands ready to spread their wings. Some have been around for a couple of years, but are now flush with new financing. But many are formerly pure players that are now turning their attention to physical stores.

May 20 is shaping up as a momentous day at Brixmor Property Group with newly appointed CFO Angela Aman slated to begin work the same day as recently appointed CEO Jim Taylor.

Aman’s appointment as CFO was announced in conjunction with the release of Brixmor’s first quarter financial results on April 26 and follows the April 12 announcement that James Taylor had joined the company as CEO.

Plans are being finalized for a new 100,000-sq.-ft. retail re-development in Enid, Oklahoma, across from the city’s Oakwood Mall, according to developer GBT Realty Corp.

It’s closing time for Sports Authority, which is giving up on reorganization.

An attorney for the sporting goods retailer told the judge in bankruptcy court on Tuesday that the company is no longer pursuing reorganization and exiting Chapter 11. Instead, it will look for buyers to purchase some or all of its remaining stores.

“It has become apparent that the debtors will not reorganize under a plan but instead will pursue a sale,” company attorney Robert Klyman said in court.

Academy Sports + Outdoors has opened a 1.6 million square foot distribution center that dramatically increases the company’s ability to support store expansion and omnichannel initiatives.

The man who turned a single struggling bookstore he bought in 1965 into a retail empire is retiring from active duty.

Leonard Riggio, founder and executive chairman of Barnes & Noble Inc., announced that he will retire as chairman in September, following the chain’s annual shareholder meeting.

“I’ve done everything I have wanted to do in business and now it is time for me to pursue the many other endeavors related to my philanthropic and social interests,” said Riggio.

Ace Hardware Corp. is best known for selling home improvement merchandise, but also operates a growing grocery channel.

Using technology from ProLogic Retail Services, a provider of loyalty marketing solutions specializing in independent grocers, the retail cooperative is enabling its Ace Rewards loyalty program in co-located grocery stores. Ace operates grocery in both “store-within-a-store” configurations and adjacent storefronts with grocery partners.

The number of Sephora shops inside J.C. Penney stores is about to increase.

The department store retailer announced it will open 60 additional Sephora shops in Penney stores, including a flagship set to open in November.

More retailers are suffering data breaches, but the industry is also feeling an increased level of capability to deal with them.

According to a new study of more than 200 IT professionals from security technology provider Tripwire Inc., 33% of retailers say they have experienced a breach where intruders stole or gained access to personally identifiable information, This is more than double the 14% who had experienced this type of breach in 2014.

Wireless provider T-Mobile is launching a major retail expansion drive this year.

The company plans to open 400 of its own branded stores this year, according to a report by Fortune.

“We always just follow what the customer really wants,” T-Mobile’s chief operating officer Mike Sievert told Fortune, and customers, he added, have been “very clear” that “they prefer to do business at a fully branded store.”