Foodservice

Houston -- Jacksonville, Fla.-based Regency Centers said it has leased space to two new restaurants in Houston at Fort Bend Center.

Baskin Robbins has leased 1,280 sq. ft., and The Fish Place has leased 1,380 sq. ft. of space. Both restaurants are slated to open in July.

The 97,000-sq.-ft. shopping center is anchored by Kroger alongside national retailers such as LA Fitness, Starbucks, Wendy’s, and Cato.
 

One of the more interesting developments in the retail industry is set to unfold in a series of small towns along the Western edge of Arkansas where Walmart is set open the first of its experimental small formats.

Miami Beach, Fla. -- Terranova Corp. announced that self-serve frozen yogurt concept FreshBerry has signed on to a long- term deal for an 1,800-sq.-ft. space in El Mercado Shopping Center, in Hialeah, Fla.

El Mercado is a Publix-anchored center with additional tenants such as Anna’s Linens, GNC and Pollo Tropical.

FreshBerry has also signed on to join Parkhill Plaza, in Miami, in a long term 1,600-sq.-ft. deal. Parkhill Plaza is a Winn-Dixie-anchored center.

Eden Prairie, Minn. -- Supervalu has named Santiago Roces, a former Wal-Mart Stores executive, as the CEO and president of its discount Save-A-Lot division. Roces, who most recently served as senior VP and general manager of Wal-Mart's small-format division, replaces Bill Shaner, who led Save-A-Lot since 2006 and worked for Supervalu for 27 years.

Supervalu it plans to double the number of Save-A-Lot stores, growing it to more than 2,400 locations by the end of 2015.

Lakeland, Fla. -- Publix Super Markets said that it has reached a deal to sell the Crispers restaurant chain to Healthy Food Concepts, an affiliate of the Miami-based investment group Boyne Capital Partners. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Crispers is a fast-casual restaurant chain serving soup, salads and sandwiches with 36 locations in Florida.
 

New York City -- CBX, the strategic branding and retail design consultancy, announced that its Retail Division has been retained by Cadena Comercial OXXO, North America’s largest operator of convenience stores, to assist with an expansion of its foodservice offer.

Lubbock, Texas -- United Supermarkets officially entered the convenience market on Wednesday with the opening of its first United Express location, in Lubbock, Texas. It is the company’s first standalone convenience store.

The location includes a six-pump fuel station and will feature fresh offerings along with the traditional items guests would expect to find at a convenience store.

Dallas -- 7-Eleven has signed an agreement to purchase Wilson Farms, a Buffalo-based convenience store chain with 188 locations in New York State, with an expected closing in the second quarter. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Palm Springs, Calif. -- Costa Mesa, Calif.-based Donahue Schriber announced that five new restaurants will be opening at is Smoke Tree Village shopping center, located in Palm Springs, Calif.

The Ralphs Fresh Fare-anchored shopping center will now feature Twisted Bistro, Giuseppe’s Pizza and Pasta, Teriyaki Yogi, Pho 533 and Hedi’s Café Paris.

The 89,810-sq.-ft. Smoke Tree Village is owned by Donahue Schriber. 

Chicago -- Convenience store in-store sales grew 4.4% in 2010, reaching a record $190.4 billion, according to NACS. Total convenience store sales in 2010 were $575.6 billion.

The industry's 2010 numbers were announced in Chicago at the annual NACS State of the Industry Summit. The number of U.S. c-stores grew 1.2% over the past year and stands at a record 146,341 stores, according to the NACS/Nielsen TDLinx 2011 Convenience Industry Store Count, released in January 2011.