Real Estate

Philadelphia -- Metro Commercial Real Estate said that Athleta has opened its first store in the Philadelphia area at 1722 Walnut Street in the heart of Center City. 

The 4,000-sq.-ft. store, which is a division of Gap Inc., opened on Nov. 9. Kaiserman Cos. is the landlord of 1722 Walnut Street, a strip of high-end retail along Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Row.
 

Niwot, Colo. -- Casual footwear-retailer Crocs debuted its new concept store, with locations in Mall of America, Bloomington, Minn.; Barton Creek, Austin, Tex.; and Streets at Southpoint, Durham, N.C.

New York City -- Gap Inc. on Thursday opened its first store in Poland, in Warsaw’s Arkadia mall.

Gap and its Polish franchise partner, Ultimate Fashion, are planning to open more stores in Poland in 2012 and expand to other countries in the region.
 

St. Louis -- Brown Shoe Co. said Monday that while profit rose dramatically in the third quarter thanks to a business unit divestiture, the retailer will cut several of its lines and close underperforming stores nationwide to shore up profitability.

Menomonee Falls, Wis. -- Kohl’s Corp. was recognized with its third Green Power Partner of the Year Award by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Energy and the Center for Resource Solutions. The chain is the first retailer to be named Partner of the Year for three consecutive years.

Amsterdam -- A Monday report by Bloomberg said that Royal Ahold NV will grow its online business, expand its store count in Belgium and add 150 convenience operations in an effort to ramp up sales.

The Dutch owner of Stop & Shop is also on a cost-cutting mission, saying it will reduce expense by $473 million over three years via supply chain improvements and a reduction in logistics and overhead expense.

San Francisco -- Gensler has been selected to refurbish Wilkes Bashford, an upscale men’s and women’s clothing store in San Francisco. The project will involve a top-to-bottom renovation of the iconic, seven-level store.

Carle Place, N.Y. -- 1-800-Flowers.com announced Tuesday the signing of a 45-store franchise development agreement for its Fannie May Fine Chocolates division with GB Chocolates. The agreement calls for 45 new Fannie May franchise stores beginning in December 2011, with all open and operating by year-end 2014.

The first three stores under the agreement are slated to open in Minnesota in time for the Christmas holiday. The agreement provides exclusive development rights for several Midwestern states as well as specific cities in Florida and Ohio.