Corporate Governance

New York -- McDonald's named Julia Vander Ploeg as its first VP of digital in the U.S., as part of its ongoing efforts to strengthen its digital presence, Ad Age reported.

Vander Ploeg will report to company’s chief digital officer, Atif Rafiq, who joined McDonald’s in October.
 

New York -- Overstock.com will allow international customers to pay in Bitcoin, beginning on Sept. 1. The move makes the online retailer, which started accepting Bitcoin for domestic orders in January, the largest American retailer to extend the payment option to foreign customers.

Overstock plans to introduce a new payments system on its international website, O.co, that will allow customers to make purchases using the virtual currency, the New York Times reported.
 

San Antonio -- CST Brands announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire the convenience store assets, franchisor rights and associated trademarks of Nice N Easy Grocery Shoppes.

Nice N Easy operates 77 corporate and franchise stores in Central New York. The company operations include thirty-three company operated stores along with forty-four franchise locations.

Sweetwater, Fla. -- Ikea will open its first store in the Miami-Dade region of Florida on Aug. 27.

Ikea Miami is the home furnishings company’s fourth store in Florida, 39th in the United States, and 361st worldwide. The 416,000-sq.-ft. Ikea Miami features the largest rooftop solar array in South Florida.

New York -- Chain Store Age is conducting its 10th annual survey of the Top Redevelopers in the United States. Survey results, which measure renovated and redeveloped projects completed within the last 12 months (June 30, 2013 to June 30, 2014), will appear in the November 2014 issue of Chain Store Age.

Deadline for submission is September 15, 2014. To enter, click here.

Salisbury, N.C. -- Delhaize America banner Food Lion has unveiled a new shopping experience for customers in 31 stores in the greater Wilmington, North Carolina, market, and has announced plans to remodel 45 stores in Greenville as part of the grocery’s "Easy, Fresh and Affordable…You Can Count on Food Lion Every Day" strategy.

New York -- Seiko Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Seiko Watch Corporation, announced the grand opening of its first Seiko boutique to enter the United States at 510 Madison Avenue in New York City.  

The New York Seiko boutique is primarily dedicated to Seiko's collections, but also features boutique exclusives.

Philadelphia — Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust has entered into an agreement to sell an anchor pad underlying a Bon-Ton store in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, contiguous to Westgate Mall.

The transaction is expected to close prior to the end of 2014.

Birmingham, Alabama — Charles McNamee has joined Bayer Properties as senior VP of development and construction. McNamee most recently served as senior VP of commercial development and construction with Colonial Properties Trust.

In his position with Bayer, McNamee will be responsible for all aspects of development and construction, including oversight of both the Development and Tenant Coordination and Construction Departments.