DESIGN/CONSTRUCTION

A new women's apparel store has made its debut in Chicago.    Marcus Lemonis Fashion Group, which is owned by Marcus Lemonis, star of CNBC hit reality series “The Profit,” CEO of Camping World and all-around retail entrepreneur, has opened Marcus, on Chicago's Gold Coast. Additional locations are expected to open within the next six months in Aspen, Col.; Hinsdale, Ill., and New York City.   

Ikea is entering new territory.   The retailer will open a store on Oct. 11, in Fishers, Indiana. It will be Swedish company’s first location in Indiana, 45th in the United States, and 408th worldwide.    The 289,000-sq.-ft. Ikea includes one of Indiana’s largest solar rooftops, as well as three electric vehicle charging stations. Ninety percent of Ikea U.S. stores have a solar presence.   

Fiorucci is back — and it hasn't lost its cheeky, irreverent attitude.   The brand, which acquired cult status and flourished throughout the 1970s and 1980s before going into a slow decline, was relaunched earlier this year with a new website, new fashions and pop-ups in Barneys New York and Selfridges (London). Capping off its comeback, Fiorucci has opened a 5,000-sq-ft. flagship in London's SoHo neighborhood. A New York City location is planned for 2018.   

Uniqlo is opening a shop in one of the nation's most historic train stations.    The retailer will open its newest U.S. outpost on Oct. 10, at Union Station in Washington, D.C. It will be located on the main level, adjacent to Amtrak ticketing, and will open at 7 a.m. during the week to serve morning commuters.  

Shake Shack, the burger chain founded by famed restaurateur Danny Meyer, is taking a high-tech approach to its newest site.  

Nordstrom opened the doors on Tuesday to its newest full-line store, one that includes new store design concepts and services.   

It takes a lot of work for retail brands to deliver a remarkable experience. However, it can be done by making sure the environment provides a sensory experience. A sensory experience affects a human’s sense of sound, sight, touch, smell and taste. Retailers often naturally focus on sight, primarily caring about how the space looks. But what they don’t realize is that the look and feel of the environment encompasses a lot more than simply how it appears.   

Though many types of theft deterrent equipment exist, one of the most effective and affordable approaches is preventing retail shoplifting is by avoiding “blind spots” in the store layout.   In this regard, one of the hardest places for supermarket or mass merchandise cashiers to control and easily view has been under the shopping basket, which is usually blocked by a basketful of other items above it.  Failing to ring up items under the basket before customers leave the store can be extremely costly to retailers.

RYU Apparel is coming to the Big Apple.   RYU (Respect Your Universe) announced plans to open a store in in the hip Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. The 2,800-sq.-ft. store, the brand's first in the U.S., will open in the first quarter of 2018.  

As retailers consider how to best use physical spaces in a digital world, Nordstrom is going "local," debuting a small-format concept that has no dedicated inventory.