Strategy

The U.S. shopper’s love affair with the off-price channel shows no signs of winding down any time soon.       Ross Stores easily beat analysts’ expectations as its earnings increased 13% in the quarter ended Oct. 29, amid better-than-expected revenue growth and stronger margins.   

Levin Management president Matthew Harding says 2016 has been an especially active year for new retail leases. Over the past nine months, he reports his company handled leasing activity for more than 500,000 sq. ft. — over 400,000 sq. ft. of that in retail.   

Changes are afoot at McDonald's.   The company is launching self-service ordering kiosk ordering with table service, the New York Times reported.    

Foot Locker reported third-quarter profit that surpassed analysts’ expectations.   The retailer’s earnings soared 96.3% in the quarter ended Oct. 29 to $157 million, or $1.17 a share, up from $80 million, or 57 cents, a year ago.   Total sales increased 5.1% to $1.886 billion this year. Same-store sales were up 4.7%.  

The first phase of Fairfield Town Center in northwest Houston is nearing completion and should be fully operational by Black Friday, promises owner Washington Prime Group, formerly WP Glimcher.   Already open and operating at the 600,000-sq.-ft. development are HEB, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Chick-fil-A, and McDonalds, among several others. The fully populated center will include Marshalls/Homegoods, Ulta, Chipotle, and Dress Barn.  

Abercrombie & Fitch’s efforts to turnaround its struggling namesake brand aren’t finding much traction with shoppers.   The teen apparel brand on Friday said that its profit declined 81% in the third quarter and warned that it expects a challenging holiday season for its namesake banner.     Abercrombie posted net income of $7.88 million, or 12 cents per share, for the quarter ended Oct. 29, down from $41.9 million, or 60 cents per share, in the year-ago period.  

Gap Inc. delivered another weak quarter as store closures outside of North America impacted its profitability and sales continue to slump at its namesake and Banana Republic divisions.   The retailer earned $204 million, or 51 cents per share, in the quarter ended Oct. 29. That compares with $248 million, or 61 cents per share, last year. Adjusted results were 60 cents per share, which matched estimates from FactSet.       

PetSmart is working with retail and design consultancy Fitch to develop a new store environment.   The test store will open in Highland Ranch, Colorado, in fall 2007, and will bring a fresh, new and engaging customer experience to the pet retail marketplace, PetSmart said.