Corporate Governance

Omaha, Neb. — A private California buyer has purchased a 20,134-sq.-ft. Natural Grocers in Omaha, Nebraska. Mid-America Real Estate Corp. represented the seller, a private developer, in the transaction.

Mid-America Real Estate Corporation is a member of Mid-America Real Estate Group, a ChainLinks affiliate headquartered in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois. The company is the Midwest’s leading full-service retail real estate organization with offices in Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis and Detroit.

The Container Store’s net income soared by about 800% year-over-year during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013, to $18.34 million from $2.09 million. A substantial drop in effective tax rate, as well as lower net interest expense, helped drive the impressive growth in net income.

Net sales slipped from $217.02 million to $216.82 million, while same-store sales climbed 1.4%. The company cited severe weather as reducing sales.

Seattle -- REI's members recently elected two new directors to represent their interests on the co-op's board of directors.

Karen E. (Kari) Glover and Sharon Philpott were elected to three-year terms and Cheryl Scott was re-elected to a three-year term. Earlier in the year, the REI board re-appointed Chloe Harford and Matt Compton to one-year terms.

Foot Locker Foundation, the charitable arm of Foot Locker, announced the 20 recipients of the Foot Locker Scholar Athletes Program. Each student will receive $20,000 in college scholarships, totaling $400,000.

The scholarship program, funded by the Foot Locker Foundation and administered by DoSomething.org, honors students who demonstrate academic excellence and exemplify strong leadership skills in sports and within their communities. To date, the program has awarded $1.2 million to help deserving high school student athletes pay for school.

New York -- Uniqlo debuted a new flagship with the opening of its fifth location in Paris, in the city’s Marais area.

Located in a 19th century building that once housed a foundry, the three-level, 8,800-sq.-ft. store combines such historic details as a 115-ft- red-brick chimney with a modern layout and high-tech accents, including video screens and LED displays.

It was designed by Tokyo architects Wonderwall, a longtime collaborator with Uniqlo.

Minneapolis -- Target Corp. named veteran IT executive Bob DeRodes as chief information officer. The retailer also announced that it plans to incorporate MasterCard chip-and-PIN technology across its Target-branded REDcard portfolio by early 2015, and is converting existing payment terminals at its stores this year ahead of schedule.

Tuesday Morning Corporation has added Frank M. Hamlin, EVP of marketing at Guitar Center, and Sherry M. Smith, who most recently served as EVP and CFO of Supervalu, to its board.

Hamlin will serve on the nominating and governance committee, while Smith will serve on the audit and compensation committee.

Carle Place, N.Y. – A shift in the Easter holiday from the third to the fourth quarter and severe weather negatively impacted financial results at 1-800-Flowers.com during the third quarter of fiscal 2014. 1-800-Flowers reported a net loss of $1.42 million, compared to net profit of $2.64 million in the prior fiscal year.

Net sales dropped 9% to $139.92 million, from $144.55 million.