Events

New York -- Charming Charlie has signed a lease for a 15,500-sq.-ft. store at 445 Fifth Avenue in the heart of midtown Manhattan. The fashion accessories retailer will open its first-ever Manhattan flagship store in early 2015.

Thor Equities owns and manages the building, which is located at the northeast corner of 39th street and Fifth Avenue, across from the New York Public Library. RKF and Strategic Retail Advisors represented Charming Charlie in the transaction. Thor Equities represented itself.

Washington, D.C. – The National Retail Federation told a congressional committee holding an Oct. 9 hearing on the terrorist attack at a Kenyan shopping mall that the safety of employees and customers is retailers’ top concern.

New York -- U.S. chain-store sales posted a gain of 4.0% for the fiscal month of September on a year-over-year basis according to a tally compiled by the International Council of Shopping Centers. Excluding gasoline sales, the September tally would actually be +5.1%.

Milk-Bone has teamed up with lifestyle technology company Brit + Co. to help launch a new pets destination website at brit.co. To celebrate the partnership, Milk Bone is holding a Halloween "Trick or Treat Best Pet Costume Contest." 

Atlanta - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has recognized The Home Depot with a 2013 WaterSense Retail Partner of the Year award. The Home Depot was honored during the WaterSmart Innovations Conference for its commitment to water efficiency and outstanding efforts to support the WaterSense program during 2012.

Matthews, N.C. -- Family Dollar hit a major milestone in its history on Thursday as the company opened its 8,000th store, in Lancaster, S.C.  

On shelf availability at Walmart and the retailer’s newest technology tool will be the topic of discussion next week when Doing Business in Bentonville hosts an event on October 16 featuring a panel of speakers that includes Walmart’s director of supplier innovations Mike Graen.

The focus of the 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. breakfast session will be Walmart’s SPARC program, an initiative born out of the desire to improve the on shelf availability of products by creating a Supplier Portal Allowing Retail Coverage (SPARC).

Dallas – SAP previewed a mobile app called Snap at its SAP Retail Forum held in Dallas Oct. 7-9. Designed for both tablets and smartphones, Snap is aimed at consumers who purchase items that require DIY assembly.