Real Estate

Aéropostale is closing its 19,000-sq.-ft. flagship in Manhattan’s Times Square.

Troy Alstead, the longtime Starbucks executive who resigned as COO in February 2016, is ready to take his next professional step.

According to the Puget Sound Business Journal, Alstead is planning to open a 57,000-sq.-ft. “sustainable social hub” in Gig Harbor, Washington. Offerings will include a restaurant, bar and café as well as a 20-lane bowling alley and meeting and party rooms.

In a move rumored for weeks, Aéropostale on Wednesday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

The struggling teen apparel retailer said it would close 113 stores in the United States and all 41 of its stores in Canada. Store closing sales in the United States will begin this weekend (May 7-8), and in Canada during the week of May 9.

The fast-casual restaurant chain McAlister’s Deli has opened its first store in the New York City area, a market where residents know a thing or two about delis.

With rental rates rising, expansion minded retailers have a unique opportunity to satisfy their growth aspirations by capitalizing on below market rates available at nearly 200 former Hancock Fabric locations.

David’s Bridal is expanding south of the border.

The bridal and special occasion retailer is partnering with Diltex, a leading manufacturer and retailer of intimate apparel in Mexico, to open its first franchise location, in Mexico City.

The store is expected to open by the end of 2016 with additional franchise locations planned to open over the next five years across the country.

Aeropostale will reportedly file for bankruptcy protection this week and subsequently close more than 100 of its 800 stores, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The struggling teen apparel retailer plans to reorganize under a Chapter 11 filing this week ahead of May rent payments, the report said. On Aeropostale has been struggling for some time. The chain has recorded three consecutive years of losses as its struggles to deal with a teen audience whose spending tastes now favor fast-fashion giants such as H&M as well as online retailers.

Build-A-Bear Workshop on Tuesday said it has hired financial and legal advisers to help it explore strategic alternatives. The news came the day after General Nutrition Corp. (GNC) said it was doing the same.