JCPenney Co.

Mountain View, Calif. -- Best Buy was the most effective retail brand overall during the 2013 back-to-school advertising season for the second year in a row with an average Ace Score of 561, performing 15% higher than its retail peers, according to TV and video advertising data from Ace Metrix.

Office Depot was the second most effective back-to-school retail advertiser with an average Ace Score of 540.

Chicago — Jones Lang LaSalle recently appointed senior VP Larry Kilduff, a 25-year industry veteran, as head of the firm’s Midwest Retail platform, which is based in Chicago. Prior to JLL, Kilduff owned and operated two retail real estate development companies and worked with leading retailers including Wal-Mart, Target, Kmart, Sears, Bon-Ton, Kohl’s and J.C. Penney.

Plano, Texas – Coffee press manufacturer Bodum Group is reportedly suing J.C. Penney Co. for breach of contract. According to Reuters, Bodum filed a lawsuit in the New York State Supreme Court on Aug. 30 alleging the retailer did not live up to an agreement to build an agreed number of in-store Bodum specialty boutiques by March 2013.

A survey of consumers conducted by the National Retail Federation and published in the trade group’s September issue of Stores placed Walmart second on a list of the nation’s favorite e-commerce retailers, an encouraging sign given the company’s efforts to drive digital growth.

New York -- J.C. Penney Co. plans to end its association with the Martha Stewart brand after disappointing sales, according to the New York Post. The report, which cited unidentified sources, said the decision was made by Penney CEO Myron Ullman, who returned to the chain in April following the ouster of Ron Johnson.

New York -- Hedge fund manager Richard Perry has upped his already substantial share in J.C. Penney Co. Perry’s Perry Capitol LLC now ranks as Penney's second-largest investor after George Soros.
    
It was disclosed on Friday that Perry bought an additional three million shares of Penney in a secondary offering for $12.90 a share, and that it now owns 8.62% of the company, up from its previous 7.3% stake.
      

Chicago -- Jones Lang LaSalle has brought on Adam Cody as a VP in its Chicago office. He will work with executive VPs Lew Kornberg and Walter Wahlfeldt to expand the firm's retail tenant representation capabilities.

Des Moines, Iowa — The Des Moines Area Community College opened its school year with a new campus: a 65,000-sq.-ft. former J.C. Penney store located on the main level of Southridge Mall.

The mall’s owner, Macerich sold the space to DMACC for $1. The school, which has three other campuses in the Des Moines metro area, has invested $13 million in design, construction, equipment, labs and classrooms. Major donations will be announced this fall.

Bakersfield, Calif. — Foot Locker and Victoria’s Secret have expanded and remodeled at the 1.1 million-sq.-ft. Valley Plaza Mall in Bakersfield, Calif. Victoria’s Secret has also opened a new store for the popular PINK brand.

The newly remodeled Foot Locker, now spanning 5,000 sq. ft., plans to introduce an exclusive department called House of Hoops. It will feature elite athletic apparel and footwear.

New York -- Hedge fund manager and activist investor William Ackman is selling his entire stake in J.C. Penney.

Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management, Penney’s single biggest shareholder with an approximate 18% stake, is offering its roughly 39.1 million shares for sale and used Citigroup as the bookrunner for the deal, Reuters reported. Penney filed a prospectus for the sale.