Corporate Governance

eBags’ new airport mantra: ‘Reunited, and it feels so good’
All travelers agree: Lost luggage can ruin any trip.

With an eye on privacy and ease of use, eBags new smart solution hopes to streamline the travel experience. The luggage and travel accessory pure-play retailer has developed an app-enabled ID tag that reunites lost luggage with their owners.

Unlike the traditional luggage tag, which prominently displays the owner's contact information for anyone to see, the eBags Connected Luggage Tag uses patent-pending privacy controls to let customers control which personal information they display on tags, and when.
Report: Digital dictates the majority of in-store purchases
Traditional retailers who think the digital tide can be turned back are deluding themselves, according to the consulting firm’s fourth annual “New Digital Divide” report. With Facebook and Google playing host to hours of commercial interactions with consumers on a daily basis, the classic retail brand’s ability to guide the path to purchase is waning.

Brookshire opens 25 smaller-format stores

Brookshire Grocery Co. is expanding its portfolio with a new, smaller-store store format.

The chain held three ribbon-cutting ceremonies on Sept. 13, completing the openings of 25 new Spring Market stores in Texas. The stores are located on former Walmart Express sites, which Brookshire acquired in July.

The stores bring Brookshire’s total store count to 177.
Electronics giant adds mobile wallet

The mobile wallet wars are heating up again. Best Buy is the newest retailer to accept mobile payments, a move that it expects to streamline checkout and drive loyalty. A multiyear agreement with Chase enables the chain to accept Chase Pay in its stores, on BestBuy.com, and in the Best Buy app.
‘Workbars:’ The new gym membership?

The mobile workforce is changing the face of the workplace, and Staples wants to lead the next phase of this change.
Extreme-value teen retailer enters new market

Five Below will open its first store in the state of Minnesota, Marketplace Shopping Center in St. Cloud, on Sept. 23. And more are in the works. The company will also be opening two other Minnesota locations, in Brooklyn Center and Osseo, on Oct. 7.
Toys ‘R’ Us continues to narrow loss

Things are looking up for Toys “R” Us. The nation’s largest specialty toy retailer posted a 20% increase in operating profit and reduced its net loss for the second-quarter amid reduced costs, including the expense of running its now-shuttered Times Square flagship. In addition, the retailer announced it successfully reached an agreement to refinance all of its 2017 notes and a portion of its 2018 maturities.
Real estate companies rise on sustainability index

North American real estate owners and developers ratcheted up their green profiles markedly this year, though they still lag global trendsetters, according to the latest results of an annual sustainability study. In GRESB’s annual environmental assessment of real estate developers and investment trusts, North American companies averaged a score of 59 out of a possible hundred, a five-point rise from last year and just shy of the global average of 60.
Now Trending: Is it closing time?

I’ve been thinking quite a bit lately about an article I read earlier this summer, a piece by Krystina Gustafson that appeared on cnbc.com entitled, “For retailers, closing stores isn't as easy as it once was.”
CSA to select ‘Top Redevelopers’ for 12th-annual listing

Chain Store Age magazine is accepting nominations for its 12th annual “Top Redevelopers” listing, which recognizes shopping center owners and developers’ retail redevelopment efforts over the last 12 months. Selections will be based on square footage redeveloped between June 30, 2015 and June 30, 2016, financial investment, and project significance.
Hotel construction begins at One Daytona

Construction has started on the first hotel at One Daytona, the $120 million-plus project going up next to the Daytona International Speedway in Florida. The 105-room Fairfield Inn & Suites being erected by Shaner Hotel Group is a short walk from the track. It will be joined by a Marriott Autograph Collection hotel to be called The Daytona.
Millennials are no fans of Banana Republic

A new study from RBC Capital reveals that reversing Banana Republic’s ongoing sales decline is not going to be an easy fix for Gap Inc., reported thestreet.com.

In the survey, 48% of millennials polled said they disliked the chain compared to 22% who said they liked it. A majority of non-millennials also said they disliked the brand.