Retail

Dallas -- Zale Corp. reported Tuesday that same-store sales for the holiday selling season of November and December 2011 rose 5.9%, compared with an 8.5% gain in the same period last year.

Within the two-month period, same-store store sales increased 10.1% in November and 4.2% in December.

Revenues for the two-month period were $564 million, compared with $533 million in the same period last year, an increase of 5.8%.

PLANO, Texas — JCPenney announced that Thomas Engibous will become chairman of its board of directors on Jan. 28.  Engibous was named to the board in 1999 and has served in presiding director and lead independent director roles since 2008.  He will assume the chairman's role from Myron Ullman, III, JCPenney's former chief executive officer, who will step down as executive chairman.

Armonk, N.Y. -- On Tuesday, IBM released its final Benchmark announcement for the 2011 holiday season, detailing a continued strong performance for mobile as well as an overall increase in online spending for December 2011.

According to the report, the U.S. online retail sector delivered 7.5% growth in December 2011 compared to the same period last year. This followed a strong November where both Black Friday 2011 and Cyber Monday 2011 delivered double-digit growth over 2010.

Other key findings of the IBM report included:

New York City -- Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market, the U.S. division of Tesco, plans to close 12 underperforming stores, according to the Orange County Register. The company, however, left open the door to re-opening the stores at a later date.

Smart move by Target to open its first wave of Canadian stores in Ontario, as the province accounts for roughly one third of the nation’s 36 million residents and is home to Target Canada headquarters and distribution facilities.

Atlanta -- Jones Lang LaSalle said it has been named as the exclusive management and leasing provider for Townline Square, a 216,000-sq.-ft. community center located in Mundelein, Ill., and anchored by Jewel-Osco.

JLL’s retail portfolio in Chicagoland has grown to more than six million sq. ft. At Townline Square, Jones Lang LaSalle will manage a redevelopment of the property, which includes façade renovations, new landscaping and signage upgrades all of which are designed to increase tenant occupancy and drive sales.

North Plainfield, N.J. -- Levin Management Corp. said Tuesday that Michael Cohen has joined the company as VP leasing.

Cohen was previously executive VP and director of leasing for DLC Management Corp.

New York City -- Shopping centers in the United States had their first net gain in occupied space in four years amid a rise in consumer confidence and job growth, according real estate research firm Reis Inc., Bloomberg reported.

Neighborhood and community shopping shoppers saw a net increase of 3.18 million sq. ft. in the fourth quarter, the most since 10.1 million sq. ft. in the last three months of 2007.