Events

New York City -- Victoria’s Secret will begins construction on a multi- million dollar renovation of its store in Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas in late May.

Construction will take approximately three-months to complete. The newly renovated 7,722-sq.-ft. store will serve as a prototype for Victoria’s Secret, featuring various design elements not found at any of its other Las Vegas locations. 

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation announced that it is endorsing legislation that would repeal the employer mandate provision of last year’s healthcare reform law.

ISSAQUAH, Washington — Wedding season is here, and future brides who want to score a high-fashion gown, without spending their entire wedding budget, may soon be flocking to Costco. Beginning this month and continuing through August, select Costco stores throughout the country will hold special four-day trunk shows featuring the wedding gowns of designer Kirstie Kelly.

St. Louis -- Build-A-Bear Workshop lost $2.3 million in the first quarter, compared with a profit of $1.7 million in the prior-year period.

The retailer reported revenue of $96 million for the 13 weeks ended April 2, down 5% from $101.4 million a year earlier. Same-store sales were down 9%.

The company said the quarter’s results were adversely impacted by the shift of the Easter holiday and associated school vacations, which moved into the second quarter this year.

New York City -- Simon Property Group is set to sell its newly bought Prime Outlets retail shops in Jeffersonville, Ohio, as part of a deal with federal regulators that required it to sell one of two Ohio properties, the Dayton Business Journal reported.

Simon, which bought the 22-site outlet arm of Prime Outlets Acquisition Co. last year for $2.3 billion, was required to sell either the Jeffersonville site or Cincinnati Premium Outlets in Butler County amid concerns that it would gain an anti-competitive advantage in the market.

ARLINGTON, Va.  — The Retail Industry Leaders Association announced that Bill Hughes has joined the association as SVP government relations. Hughes, a 27-year veteran of Capitol Hill, will serve as RILA’s top federal lobbyist.

As thousands of retailers and shopping center owners and managers prepare to descend on Las Vegas for the International Council of Shopping Centers’ 2012 RECon conference May 22-25, we thought it appropriate to talk with a retail real estate expert about not only the state of the industry, but also what to expect from this year’s show. 

Senior editor Katherine Field talked with Mitchel S. Friedman, senior VP of New York City-based RCS Real Estate Advisors, to gain his insights about the show and the industry as a whole.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill.  — Sears announced that it is launching its fourth annual Heroes at Home spring renovation campaign with Rebuilding Together, a nonprofit working to preserve affordable homeownership. Sears said that with the help of Rebuilding Together, it expects to renovate more than 300 homes across the country as part of the Heroes at Home program, which aims to improve American military families' lives by making necessary repairs, improvements or modifications to their homes.