Retail

Whether you are a retail analyst or a casual observer, it can be all too easy to get lost in the negativity of recent store closings and retail bankruptcies.

Shrewsbury, Mass. -- Charter Realty and Development said that it has leased a 19,300-sq.-ft. space at White City Shopping Center, in Shrewsbury, Mass., to Planet Fitness.

Planet Fitness joins Shaw’s, Dress Barn and Austin Liquors, among others, at the 255,000-sq.-ft. center.

New York -- Macy's CEO Terry Lundgren had a pay package worth $11.3 million in 2012, down 22% from 2011, the Associated Press reported.

Lundgren had a salary of $1.6 million stock and options awards worth $7.7 million, and perks worth about $76,000. The decline came from a 63% smaller cash payment for performance, the report said.

Macy's said the CEO beat the profit expectations for the year but fell short on cash flow, due to a big merchandise purchase at the end of the fiscal year.

San Francisco -- More than half of Americans shop and spend money to improve their moods, according to a new survey.

The study, by Ebates.com, found that 63.9% of women engage in “retail therapy,” compared with 39.8% of men, and the belief that it improves moods was found among 39.2% of women, compared with 20.6% of men. The survey was conducted online by TNS Global and included 1,000 adults.

Boston -- Walmart Canada and Target Canada are very competitively positioned from a basket price perspective, according to a recent report by Kantar Retail.  

Based on the study’s results, Kantar Retail believes that Target’s “Pay Less” consumables prices will stack up well against its Canadian competition and that the retailer will prove to be a formidable challenge to Walmart Canada’s price position in the market.  

Tucson, Ariz. -- Commercial Retail Advisors said Tuesday that Dominick's Real Italian is opening a restaurant at Cortaro Plaza, located in northwest Tucson.

The 1,600-sq.-ft. Italian pizza and pasta place is slated to open June 1.
 

San Francisco -- Westfield San Francisco Centre will be home to the city’s first Microsoft retail store, slated to open on April 25.

Other mall additions include Samsonite, Color Me Mine ceramics studio, Amy’s Hallmark and pop-up store Celestine SF.

Huntington Beach, Calif. -- BJ's Restaurants said Wednesday it has opened a new restaurant in Puyallup, Wash.

The 8,500-sq.-ft. BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse opened Monday  at South Hill Mall, a 1 million-sq.-ft. Cafaro Co. property.

"We are very excited to open our first restaurant of fiscal 2013 in Puyallup, a suburb of the Seattle market," said Greg Trojan, BJ’s president and CEO.