Restaurant

Oakville, Canada – The omnichannel Tim Hortons Duelling Donuts contest kicks off July 7 and at the end of seven weeks, the creator of the next Tim Hortons menu item will be crowned — and they'll win $10,000. New this year, eight finalists will have the opportunity to defend their donut ideas in person to a panel of famous Canadians — Jason Priestley, Jann Arden, Anna Olson and Ben Mulroney.

Newport News, Va. - Marketplace at Tech Center, a mixed-use lifestyle center Newport News, Va., will be the site of several stores and restaurants that cannot currently be found elsewhere on the Virginia Peninsula. These “first-to-market” retailers (with the exception of those that have outlet stores in Williamsburg) that have inked deals include:

• Whole Foods: 35,000-sq.-ft. of retail space
• DSW Shoe Warehouse: 18,062-sq.-ft. of retail space
• BJ’s Brewhouse: 7,400-sq.-ft. of retail space

EnTouch Controls, a provider of cloud-based energy management services, is embarking on an aggressive growth strategy and to that end has appointed William Rickman as its new director of national accounts.

Rickman has more than a decade of experience of selling cloud-based financial services and fraud prevention solutions to the restaurant and retail markets.

Virginia Beach, Va. - Divaris Real Estate Inc. has signed a lease with Twist Martini & Associates for 2,442 sq. ft. of retail space in the Town Center of Virginia Beach. Twist Martini will operate a full-menu, dine-in restaurant including a martini bar, a cigar club, an outside patio area and a private lounge on the second floor. 

Plano, Texas – Pizza Hut is launching an omnichannel summer promotion tying in to the upcoming release of the Aug. 8 “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” live action film. In addition to a custom national television spot and special menu items, the promotion features a number of digital components.

Ikea has partnered with Feeding America, the nation's largest domestic hunger-relief organization, to sponsor an in-store program that supports national children's hunger programs.

These programs include giving free meals and snacks to low income children, as well as giving out nutritious easy-to-prepare food for children to take home on weekends, in addition to other programs to meet the needs of hungry children.

Denver - While on summer vacation, nearby location trumps brands for many types of consumer purchases, and mobile devices will be the dominant form of search. A new study conducted by location marketing automation provider Placeable shows that proximity is apparently so important that only 1% of vacationers consider reviews when looking to replace a forgotten item.

Oakbrook Terrace, Ill. -- Mid-America Asset Management Inc. has announced three new retail leases on behalf of two shopping centers in Chicago’s southwest suburbs.     

Flexeon Rehabilitation signed a lease for 2,923 sq. ft. at Hillcrest Shopping Center in Crest Hill, Illinois. The 240,268-sq.-ft. center is anchored by TJ Maxx, Food 4 Less, Citi Trends, and Harbor Freight Tools.