Apparel

Alpharetta, Ga. --  Brixmor Property Group announced the opening of a 24,000-sq.-ft. REI at Mansell Crossing in Alpharetta, Georgia.  This is the fifth Atlanta-area location for the national outdoor retailer.

New York -- Bonobos, the online-driven men’s clothing brand, keeps expanding its physical presence. The company announced plans to opens its largest location to date, in Manhattan’s Flatiron District. The 4,000-sq.-ft. “Guideshop (which is how Bonbos refers to its brick-and-mortar spaces) is slated to open in June. It will be the brand’s seventeenth location nationwide and fourth in New York City, following the expected openings of Guideshops in Newport Beach, California, and Brookfield Place, New York City, in March.

Online consignment marketplace Swap.com is expanding into women’s clothing, shoes and accessories.

Executives with Swap.com said the new women’s collection will launch with more than 25,000 items.

“The expansion into women’s apparel is not just about making it easier for our customers to buy and sell their gently loved clothes and handbags,” said Jesse Gonzalez, merchandising manager at Swap.com. “It’s also about offering the fashionable looks that our customers love, at a better deal than you can find in-stores.”

Increased sales at Famous Footwear and the divestiture of its Shoes.com website helped Brown Shoe increase profits in the fourth quarter.

Brown Shoe Company reported that same store sales increased 4%, while profit was $16.2 million, or 37 cents a share, for the fourth quarter that ended Jan. 31, up from $6.2 million a year earlier. Adjusted earnings totaled $9 million in the quarter, or 20 cents a share, up from $6.2 million a share, or 14 cents a share, a year earlier. Net sales rose 2.6 percent in the quarter to $615.4 million.

Toronto - Sears Canada Inc. has entered into a definitive agreement with Concord Pacific Group of Companies to sell and lease back three of its properties for $140 million. The after-tax proceeds, including adjustments, will be approximately $130 million.  

The locations include store space and adjacent property located at the Metropolis at Metrotown in Burnaby, British Columbia, Cottonwood Mall in Chilliwack, British Columbia and North Hill Shopping Centre in Calgary, Alberta. The transaction is scheduled to close on or about June 8, 2015.

Glendale, Wis. -- Olshan Properties announced that Old Navy will open a store at Bayshore Town Center, in Glendale, Wisconsin. Old Navy will occupy a 17,025-sq.-ft. space that formerly housed Applebee’s, which has relocated to a larger location within the center.
     

New York -- Juicy Couture, which was acquired by Authentic Brands Group in 2013, may no longer be a coveted brand in the United States, but it is still has great appeal in foreign markets. The company expects to open 133 stores (through its various licensing partners) during the next five years, according to Women's Wear Daily.

Juicy will open 31 international locations in eight countries this year, the report said. Three of the countries — India, South Africa and Azerbaijan — will be new market entries for the brand.

Columbus, Ohio – Expenses, primarily related to incremental marketing activities, helped decrease profits at Express Inc. during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. But the chain beat Wall Street analysts earnings and sales estimates while also giving an upbeat outlook for its current quarter.

Express reported net income of $41.8 million, down 16% from $49.7 million last year.