Home Depot

Indio, Calif. -- Jacksonville, Fla.-based Regency Centers announced that Party City has opened Coachella Valley’s first store, at Regency’s Indio Towne Center, in Indio, Calif.

The new 20,390-sq.-ft. store will open this fall, joining an under-construction Toys “R” Us/Babies “R” Us, also slated to open in the fall.

Such retailers as Target, Best Buy, Home Depot, JCPenney, Lowe’s and Walmart are part of an organization called the Coalition for Responsible Transportation (CRT) that is pushing a new approach designed to reduce emissions at the nation’s ports. The retailers along with Hewlett Packard, Nike and a host of leading transportation providers have teamed with the Environmental Defense Fund and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to launch a program called, “EPA SmartWay Drayage Program.”

NEW YORK — Trucks that operate around major U.S. ports tend to be heavier polluters than their over the road counterparts but that situation could change thanks to a new initiative that has drawn support from major retailers and government and non-government entities.

The most recent Leading National Advertisers annual report from Advertising Age shows Target posted the biggest increased in ad spending in 2010 among conventional retailers. The total amount the company spent increased 12% to $1.508 billion compared with $1.246 billion the prior year. That put the company 18th on the Ad Age list of the nation’s 100 largest advertisers. Only two retailers spent more than Target.

TCP, the Aurora, Ohio-based manufacturer of energy efficient lighting products, has announced that industry veteran Jorge Fernandez will be joining the company in the position of SVP business development. Fernandez comes to TCP from Home Depot, where he led the company’s energy efficient lighting category.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — The market on Friday cheered a move by Kmart parent company Sears Holdings to cut 700 positions from the appliance departments at 225 stores. Shares of Sears Holding advanced $2.67 on Friday to close at $74.03 after news of the layoffs was reported Friday morning by the Wall Street Journal.

Some companies were more aggressive with promotions last months and others were less so, but Target held steady producing the same number of circular ad pages (109) in May 2011, and it did the same month the prior year, according to data collected by the Chicago based firm Market Track.

Midlothian, Va. -- Bryn Mawr, Pa.-based WP Realty announced Thursday that it has acquired Chesterfield Marketplace located in Midlothian, Va.

This transaction marks WP Realty’s 10th acquisition of the year.

Chesterfield Marketplace is a one-story, 428,576-sq.-ft. community shopping center anchored by PetSmart, Staples and TJ Maxx, and shadow anchored by Home Depot and Toys “R” Us.

The portion of the center acquired, 197,942 sq. ft., is currently 54% occupied with 91,232 sq. ft. of available space.