Corporate Governance

Washington, D.C. - The National Retail Federation has expressed its strong support for H.R. 30, the Save American Workers Act, a bill that would restore the traditional 40-hour workweek standard for health benefits under the Affordable Care Act. The NRF sent a letter to each and every House office stating that all votes related to the bill would be considered “key votes” and factored into its annual legislative scorecard.

The 2014 holiday season was a perky one at L Brands, as sales increased beyond expectations in December.

The parent company of Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works reported that same store sales across the company increased by 4% for the month. Wall Street analysts had been predicting a 3.6% increase.

Miami Gardens, Fla. -- Palmetto Park, the owner of Palmetto Gardens Plaza, announced that its new anchor tenant Walmart Neighborhood Store has opened. The new store occupies 40,000 sq. ft. of the 63,000-sq.-ft. shopping center, located at 3799 NW 167th St. in Miami Gardens.

Palmetto Gardens Plaza will also feature T-Mobile, Cell Phone Repair, and Lee Nails, among other retailers, when construction on the remaining portion of the plaza is complete by the third quarter of this year.

Macy’s announced a series of major operational and merchandising moves to accelerate its omnichannel approach while also releasing solid holiday sales.

Atlanta --  The Shopping Center Group announced its continued expansion with the addition of a California brokerage team of industry veterans. The move across the Mississippi River marks the firm’s first foray into western United States. Located in Santa Barbara, the new office opened Dec. 1.

“The acquisition of this team is a big step in The Shopping Center Group’s pursuit of a national footprint," said chairman and Co-CEO David Birnbrey.

Regional discounter Fred’s strong pharmacy sales weren’t enough to help the company avert a 1.4 percent same store sales decline for the month.

Long Beach, Calif. -- Nordstrom, Inc. announced plans to open a Nordstrom Rack at Marina Pacifica Mall in Long Beach, California. The 24,000-sq.-ft. store is scheduled to open in fall 2015. The property is managed by NewMark Merrill Companies.

The new Nordstrom Rack will occupy a former Loehmann's space and join a mix of tenants including Best Buy, ULTA Beauty, Pier 1 Imports, AMC Theaters, Barnes & Noble, Sports Authority and Ralphs.

Pacific Sunwear said it will lose less money in the fourth quarter than originally expected after its California lifestyle product assortment resonated with holiday shoppers and drove a 9% same store sales increase.