JCPenney Co.

Oakbrook Terrace, Ill. -- Mid-America Asset Management announced that among the new leases the firm has signed in July and August, there were several large transactions spread across Chicagoland, Southeast Wisconsin and Northwest Indiana.

In Aurora, Ill., home furnishings retailer Premier Furniture Outlet leased 38,975 sq. ft. at Aurora Marketplace, opening in September 1. Anchors include Sports Authority and Hobby Lobby.  
 

West Mifflin, Pa. -- Atlanta-based Jones Lang LaSalle announced that it was named as the property and leasing manager for Century III Mall, a 1.2 million-sq.-ft. regional shopping and retail center located in West Mifflin, Pa., near Pittsburgh.

The mall houses more than 100 retail shops, anchored by Macy's, J.C. Penney, Sears and Dick's Sporting Goods.

Plano, Texas -- J.C. Penney Co. said Monday in a regulatory filing that it has allowed shopping center owner Vornado Realty Trust to increase its stake in the department store retailer, from 9.9% to 15.4%.

The move eases a poison-pill restriction that had prevented Vornado from previously buying additional J.C. Penney shares. It mirrors a deal struck with Penney’s largest shareholder William Ackman, who received the go-ahead to up his stake, held through his Pershing Square Capital Management hedge fund, from 16.5% to as much as 26.1%.

Chicago -- Urban Retail Properties, LLC said it has been awarded the contract by Garrison Investment Group to provide management and leasing services for four regional shopping centers, effective immediately.

Urban will assume third-party responsibilities for Chapel Hills Mall (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Central Mall (Salina, Kan.), Decatur Mall (Decatur, Ala.) and Lakeshore Mall (Gainesville, Ga.).

Dallas -- J.C. Penney Co. will unveil the newest iteration of its store model with the opening of its new Dallas store in the TimberCreek Crossing shopping center on Sept. 30.

The 105,000-sq.-ft. single-level store provides an assortment of services under one roof, including dedicated in-store environments for MNG by Mango and a 1,700-sq.-ft. Sephora shop.

The prospect of learning how RFID can improve supply chain performance and the bottom line is the focus of the fourth annual RFID Forum to be held Oct. 25 to 26 in Fayetteville, Ark. The event is a creation of the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP), the University of Arkansas RFID Research Centers and the Voluntary Interindustry Commerce Solutions (VICS) Association.

New York City -- Speaking at the Goldman Sachs 18th Annual Global Retailing Conference in New York City, Myron Ullman III, chairman and CEO of J.C. Penney Co., expressed confidence that the chain is well positioned for the holiday selling season. However, he noted that uncertain economic conditions have caused the chain to pull back on its expectations.

Ullman noted that customers are still purchasing promotionally priced items along with full-priced goods.

 

CITY OF INDUSTRY, Calif. — Hot Topic has announced that two new executives have joined the company, Don Hendricks as CIO and Jeff Allison as SVP planning and allocation.

Hendricks will lead all information technology for Hot Topic Inc. Prior to joining Hot Topic, Hendricks was the CIO at Gymboree Corp. where he led many successful major systems implementations. In addition to his IT responsibilities, Hendricks was also responsible for distribution and logistics.