Corporate Governance

Walmart does things differently, see how
It was a busy few days in Bentonville earlier this week when Walmart held its “Made In USA” Open Call event combined with a U.S. Manufacturing Summit.
Is The Container Store back on track? Posts smaller than expected loss
New York -- The Container Store may have exceeded the expectations it set for itself in the first quarter, but its results were decidedly mixed.

The company lost $5.2 million, or 11 cents a share in the first quarter, compared to a loss of $3.6 million, or seven cents a share, the prior year. The retailer had forecast a loss between 12 cents and 14 cents and analysts pegged the number at 13 cents.

Total sales declined 2.1% to $169.8 million in part because of a $5.2 million foreign exchange headwind.

Facebook building massive center

New York -- Construction has just started on Facebook’s new data center, but the massive facility already has its own Facebook page.

The world’s largest social network announced that construction has started on its fifth data center, which will be powered by wind. The new center is located in Fort Worth, Texas, and joins Facebook’s four existing data hubs in Oregon, Iowa, North Carolina, and Sweden.
Nordstrom Rack in 2017 opening

Seattle -- Nordstrom remains on the move with its off-price division.
Phillips Edison buys trio of grocery-anchored centers

Photo: Central Valley Marketplace, Ceres, California
Venture completes three anchor leases across Texas

Dallas -- X Team International announced that partner Venture Commercial Real Estate completed three retail anchor leases for landlords and tenants, totaling 110,000 sq. ft. across Texas.

Walmart signed a ground lease to build a 42,000-sq.-ft. Walmart Neighborhood Market store at the site of a former Brookshire Brothers at 1030 N. University Drive in Nacogdoches.

Hobby Lobby signed a lease to open a 50,200-sq.-ft. store at 2200 S. Loop 256 in Palestine.
Merchants Retail Partners acquires Alabama shopping center

Auburn, Ala. -- Merchants Retail Partners recently led the acquisition of Flint’s Crossing in Auburn, Alabama, on behalf of its related investment partner. The 100,000-sq.-ft. shopping center is anchored by gourmet grocer EarthFare and Panera Bread.
InvenTrust announces senior management appointments

Oakbrook, Ill. -- InvenTrust Properties Corp. announced a series of appointments to its senior management team. The new appointments, effective immediately, are as follows:

· James Christensen has been named senior VP of asset management.

· Chris Dykstra has been named senior VP of property management.

· Nicole Horne has been named VP of transactions.
Strategic Retail Advisors selected as broker for Orange County property

Newport Beach, Calif. -- X Team International announced that partner Strategic Retail Advisors has been selected as a broker for the 81,658 sq. ft. of development surrounding a premium outlet center made up of shops and pads fronting Avenida Vista Hermosa in San Clemente, California.
CityLine to add three new restaurants to mix

Photo: Fernando’s owner Fernando Padilla with CityLine location general manager Omar Hernandez.
Small supermarkets manage big workforce issues in the cloud

Paragould, Ark. – Even smaller retailer still have to handle big issues relating to effectively managing workforce management processes. That’s why small-to-mid-sized supermarket chains such as Paragould, Arkansas-based Hays Supermarkets and Brockton, Massachusetts-based Vicente’s Tropical Grocery are relying on the cloud-based Kronos Workforce Ready Suite.
Retail ‘Wrap’

If you’ve been reading this column over the last four years, let me first say, “thank you!” It’s gratifying to think that my musings about retail and retail real estate have kept your attention and interest. In this, my 100th and final (except for an occasional contribution) Retail Rap, I wanted to tackle the big question: What’s next? Where is the retail industry — particularly brick-and-mortar — headed in the months and years ahead?