Development/Redevelopment

Mexico City-based developer Grupo GICSA announced plans for 14 new experiential retail centers it will format under the trademarked term, “Mallterntainment.” GICSA is perhaps best known as the developer of the Paseo Arcos Bosques retail center in Mexico City (above).   Malltertainment developments will hew to four pillars, according to GICSA:   • Average area of 2 million sq. ft.;  

Department store retailer Belk is giving its Crown & Ivy private-label brand its very own freestanding location.    The brand, which Belk launched in in 2014, will open a store at Crabtree Valley Mall, Raleigh, North Carolina, according to a report by the Charlotte Observer.    Crown & Ivy offers preppy-styled apparel for women. 

Gander Mountain is making its first foray into the Philadelphia area.   The retailer will open a 52,700-sq.-ft. store at the Warrington Crossing development in Warrington, Pa., on Sept. 8. It will be the 12th Gander Mountain location in Pennsylvania.      

Lowe’s Foods rang in retail this week at Morganton Park South in Southern Pines, North Carolina, opening a 50,000-sq.-ft. anchor store in the center that is part of the 188-acre Morganton Park master-planned community.   Lowe’s, which recently executed a re-branding, is a fixture in North Carolina, where it has done business since 1954. Its neighbors in the center are still to be determined. Leasing agent Lincoln Harris reports that most of the 21,000 remaining square feet in the center remains available.  

The story of Hy’s Toggery has been in the making for nearly half a century. What began in 1969 as a move by company founder Hy Wakstein to establish his own high-end menswear operation after 20-plus years in the industry would ultimately become a brand that has matured into one of the most respected independent clothiers in the southeast.  

Aeropostale may still live to see another day thanks to a last-minute bid.   In a development that no one saw coming, a consortium of landlords, liquidators and others joined together to make a $243.3 million offer to save 229 Aeropostale stores, Fortune reported. The group includes General Group Properties, Simon Property Group, Gordon Brothers Retail Partners, Hilco Merchant Resources, and Authentic Brands Group.  

Abercrombie & Fitch Co.’s turnaround was called in to question on Tuesday as the chain posted a wider loss in its second quarter, hurt by a decline in tourist traffic at its flagship locations.     The teen apparel retailer also revealed that it expects to close up to 60 U.S. stores as their leases expire this fiscal year. On its quarterly conference call, company executives said the chain has flexibility to close even more stores, with about half of its U.S. leases expiring by the end of 2017, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Branch Properties, which owns 24 retail centers and restaurant parks in the Southeast, made its first foray into Alabama with the purchase of two Birmingham properties from Bayer and a silent partner.   The Atlanta-based Branch gets Inverness Corners, a 236,444-sq.-ft. center anchored by Winn-Dixie and Kohl’s, and Inverness Plaza a 74,818-sq.-ft property that houses Alabama’s only PGA Super Store. The deal was brokered by JLL.