Strategy

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.

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.

Effectively managing an end-to-end supply chain is a tricky proposition for most retailers.

No matter where a retailer is located or what products they sell, their supply chain likely extends across the globe, exposing them to a wide variety of potential issues. In a new report, “Is Your Luck Running Out? Managing Supply Risk in Uncertain Times,” A.T. Kearney identifies 12 specific risk trends, most negative but some with mixed or even positive impact that will affect the supply chain through 2025.

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.

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.

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.

The world’s largest ice cream manufacturer has opened its first U.S. storefront, a pop-up in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood.

Unilever is opening custom-dipping shops for its Magnum Ice Cream brand around the world, and the SoHo outpost is its first U.S. storefront. (Unilever’s other ice-cream brands include Ben & Jerry’s, Fudgsicle and Klondike.)

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.