Corporate Governance

York, Pa. -- The Bon-Ton Stores  announced it will close its Bon-Ton store in the Clearview Mall in Butler, Pennsylvania, and its Elder-Beerman store in the Raleigh Mall in Beckley, West Virginia.

The company will not renew these leases, which terminate January 31, 2015. The stores will close at the end of the leases.

Howell, N.J. -- Norman’s Hallmark, a family-owned and operated card and specialty gift retailer, has signed a lease to occupy 5,200 sq. ft. at Aldrich Plaza, Howell, New Jersey, announced Levin Management, exclusive leasing and managing agent for the 150,000-square-foot shopping center.
 
Gloria Mercado, Levin’s leasing representative, negotiated the long-term lease.
 

Houston - Stage Stores Inc. has entered into an amended and restated $350 million senior secured revolving credit facility that will mature on Oct. 6, 2019. The credit facility replaces the company’s former $250 million senior secured revolving credit facility, which was set to mature on June 30, 2016.

Holiday sales are projected to grow at their fastest level in years, rising 4.1% to nearly $617 billion after a 3.1% increase last year, according to an annual forecast released by the National Retail Federation.

Austin, Texas - Starmount has donated laptop computers to Retail ROI to help equip a computer lab at the Hogar de Niños Tía Tatiana School, an inner-city school in Herrera that’s located in an impoverished area in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The laptops will be used to help replace outdated computers at the school, which serves more than 500 children.

Levi Strauss has added Jenny Ming to its board of directors. Ming is president and CEO of Charlotte Russe, a specialty retailer of apparel and accessories catering to young women, with more than 500 stores across the US, a position she has held since October 2009.

New York – Ann Inc. is opening its first Loft store in Mexico, continuing the company's international expansion. The store is located in the Antea Lifestyle Center in Queretaro, with additional locations planned for later this year in Mexico City's Parque Toreo Mall and Puebla's Angelopolis Mall.

Ann Inc. is working with its franchise partner Grupo Axo to establish its retail presence in Mexico.

Continued softness in mall traffic and lower-than-expected sales from its September fashion show have prompted Christopher & Banks to cut its sales forecast for the third quarter of fiscal 2014.