Retail

Fashion retailer Neiman Marcus and Popsugar, a leading global media and technology company at the intersection of content and commerce, have teamed up to create a limited-edition box filled with a luxury assortment of gifts that can be shipped directly to consumers’ homes.

Washington, D.C. - Consumers will take a conservative approach to spending this holiday season. According to NRF’s holiday consumer spending survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, the average holiday shopper will spend $737.95 on gifts, décor, greeting cards and more, 2% less than the $752.24 they actually spent last year.  Despite this reduction in individual holiday budgets, NRF is forecasting holiday sales will increase 3.9% to $602.1 billion.

Perry Ellis International has launched a new e-commerce site dedicated to selling Callaway Golf Apparel. The callawayapparel.com site offers U.S. and Canadian customers a fully-branded, state-of-the-art online shopping experience, and will be available throughout Latin America by mid-November.

Centreville, Va. — Sleepy’s The Mattress Professionals has opened a 6,700-sq.-ft. store in Centreville Square II on Lee Highway in Centreville, Va.

A.J. Dwoskin represented the landlord in the lease negotiations. Centreville Square II is a 200,366-sq.-ft. neighborhood center. Current tenants include Party Depot, Five Guys, Wells Fargo, Hair Cuttery and The UPS Store.

99 Cents Only Stores is driving some Halloween traffic to its stores by taking its marketing campaign to the zoo. From 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Oct. 19-Oct. 20 and again on Oct. 26-Oct. 27, the retailer will be on hand at the Los Angeles Zoo's 24th Annual Boo at the Zoo event.

Store employees will be handing out goodies to children at trick-or-treating stations throughout the zoo. 99 enthusiast Papa Joe Aviance will be at the 99 Cents Only Stores booth reading spooky stories to the kids.

Chattanooga, Tenn. — CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. has closed on an $80 million non-recourse loan secured by The Outlet Shoppes at Atlanta, a 75/25 joint venture with Horizon Group Properties. The 10-year loan bears a 4.9% fixed interest rate. Proceeds from the loan were used to repay a $53.2 million recourse construction loan. CBL www.cblproperties.com used its share of the remaining funds to reduce outstanding balances on the company’s unsecured credit facilities.

Plano, Texas – Law firm Wites & Kaplan, P.A. says class-action lawsuits have been filed that allege that JC Penny Company, Inc. and certain of its officers and directors committed violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Advance Auto Parts plans to acquire General Parts International in an all-cash transaction worth $2.04 billion. The transaction has been approved by the boards of directors of both companies.

General Parts International is a leading privately held distributor and supplier of original equipment and aftermarket replacement products for commercial markets operating under the Carquest and Worldpac brands.