Consumer Electronics

Greenwood Springs, Ind. -- Jacksonville, Fla.-based Regency Centers said it has leased retail space in Greenwood Springs, Ind., to two new tenants at Greenwood Springs shopping center.

Cannoli Queen has leased 1,400 sq. ft. of restaurant space and Superior Discount Liquors has leased 2,800 sq. ft. of retail space. The businesses are slated to open in the spring.

The 292,827-sq.-ft. shopping center is anchored by Walmart and Gander Mountain alongside national retailers such as Sport Clips and Buffalo Wild Wings.

Easton, Pa. -- New York City-based The Lightstone Group said that Advance Auto Parts has signed a seven-year, 9,000-sq.-ft. lease extension at 25th Street Shopping Center in Easton, Pa.

The 25th Street Shopping Center is a 131,000-sq.-ft. retail strip corridor home to CVS, RadioShack, Petco, Retro Fitness, Jenny Craig, McDonald's, Pizza Hut and Sherwin-Williams.

Tilden, Pa. -- Metro Commercial Real Estate announced Wednesday that Tilden Ridge, a 400,000-sq.-ft. regional shopping center located in Hamburg, Pa., and anchored by a Wal-Mart Supercenter and Lowe’s Home Improvement, had its grand opening on March 15.

The shopping center, owned by West Conshohocken, Pa.-based Ironwood Property Group, is 98% pre-leased and includes, besides Walmart and Lowe’s, Five Guys Burgers & Fries, Logan’s Roadhouse, GameStop, Pet Supplies Plus, Sleepy’s and Schuylkill Valley Sports.
 

MINNEAPOLIS -- Consumer electronics become outdated almost as soon as the public learns about them, so electronics trade-in services, such as the one offered by Target, help consumers stay on top of the latest trends without having to have a pile of old cell phones collecting dust in their homes. Target Wednesday announced that it has expanded its trade-in program to include Nintendo DS, in time for the upcoming release of the Nintendo 3DS. 

New York City -- Sporting goods retailer Scheels will open a 220,000-sq.-ft. store in Sandy, Ohio. The store, which will be located at a new development to be called One Fourteen, will feature a 65-ft.-tall Ferris wheel, a 16,000-gallon salt-water aquarium, and “sports simulators” for golf, soccer, hockey, baseball, football and basketball.

Scheels operates 23 stores in eight states. The new Ohio location is expected to open in the fall of 2012.

Toronto -- Canadian discounter The Bargain Shops said Tuesday it has hired Beryl Jack Buley, former division president of Dollar General Corp., as its CEO.

The retailer said it is prepping for Target Corp.’s takeover of former Zellers stores across Canada in two years, which could shift some of Bargain Shop customers over to Target.

According to an Associated Press report, however, Buley said he is not worried about the impending competition from Target, saying that “enormous opportunity” remains in Canada.

STAMFORD, Conn. -- WWE and Vivendi Entertainment announced that Walmart will be the exclusive retailer for WWE Studios’ films. Vivendi Entertainment will continue to be WWE’s North American retail and rental distribution partner. 

Retailers’ growth plans in the United States are up 40% over last year’s levels, according to ChainLinks' Retail Advisors Spring 2011 National Retail Report. The report, which details trends impacting retail commercial real estate in more than 40 of the nation’s top markets, credits the surge in expansion to two key factors: the return of optimism within the retail sector; and the desire to expand quickly now -- before retail fundamentals improve enough for rents to start climbing again.