Convenience Stores

Report: Walmart Canada settles dispute with Visa
A six-month battle between Walmart Canada and Visa has come to an end. The retailer, which threatened to ban the card processor from all of its stores nationwide due to “unacceptably high” credit-card transaction fees, has ended its feud, and will resume accepting Visa cards at its more than 400 stores starting Friday, Jan. 6.
New center set to rise in Richmond
A site near the entrance to Innsbrook Office Park in Glen Allen, Virginia, north of Richmond, has been slated as the home of Dominion Shoppes at Innsbrook, a project of Dominion GA, LLC. In a deal brokered by Cushman & Wakefield/Thalhimer, Dominion acquired the 2.4-acre tract from Doswell Properties for $2.9 million. The planned center is 100% pre-leased to tenants including Starbucks, Blaze Pizza, American Family Care, and Noodles & Company.

Former Walmart executive joins Dollar Tree management team

Dollar Tree has appointed Duncan Mac Naughton as president and COO of its Family Dollar subsidiary. Mac Naughton, 54, most recently served as CEO of Mills Fleet Farm. He has held numerous leadership roles at Wal-Mart Stores, including chief merchandising and marketing officer of Wal-Mart U.S. from 2011 to 2014, executive VP of consumables health and wellness and Walmart.com from 2010 to 2011, and chief merchandising officer of Wal-Mart Canada from 2009 to 2010.
New CEOs to Watch

The past year brought with it a changing of the guard, as many companies named new leaders to steer their ships in a transformed marketplace. Here are six newly arrived — or soon to arrive — CEOs to keep an eye on in 2017:
Jeff Gennette, Macy’s: A 33-year company veteran who came up through the ranks, Gennette takes the reins from longtime CEO Terry Lundgren in the first quarter of this year.
Mortgage expert: Look to unsexy cities for retail growth

Retailers and developers looking for potential expansion spots in the coming year should bypass Gotham and head to Grand Rapids.
Walgreens Q1 profit tops as it moves toward closing Rite Aid deal

Walgreens Boots Alliance on Thursday reported a better-than-expected profit for its first quarter and also said an announcement that it has closed the deal on its proposed acquisition of Rite Aid would come soon. Walgreens confirmed it is actively engaged in discussions with the Federal Trade Commission regarding its pending Rite Aid acquisition, which was announced more than 14 months ago. Also subject to FTC approval is the sale of 865 Rite Aid locations to Fred's for almost $1 billion.
Expanding North

DLC Management Corp.’s grocery-anchored shopping centers can be found in places such as Dallas; Milwaukee; Columbus, Ohio; and Birmingham, Ala.; but the company has a special stake in the Northeast. In October, DLC closed the biggest deal in its history, acquiring a passel of 16 centers, all but one of them in New York state. Chain Store Age Real Estate Editor Al Urbanski talked with DLC CEO Adam Ifshin and asked him what retailers need to know about the Northeast market.
Employee Training Goes Digital

McDonald’s leverages smart technology for onboarding training
Onboarding is a costly process for any company, especially one as vast as McDonald’s Corp. But by transitioning a paper-based operation to a digital one driven by smart devices, the fast food giant is slashing training time in half.
Election: Don’t Pop the Cork Yet

In the days and weeks since Election Day, much has been written about the impact results will have on store and restaurant operators. Other than some unease regarding trade and consumer confidence, entry-level employers generally feel optimistic about what might lie ahead with policy changes to taxes, wages and healthcare.
Most employers feel like they had a big “win” election night and in many cases, they may be right. But I think it’s a little early for employers to lace up their shoes for a collective victory lap around the boardroom.
2017 Update

RILA looks ahead to what retailers can expect in the coming year
With the historic 2016 election behind us, there has been much speculation about what to expect from Washington in the coming year.
With consideration of a Republican-controlled Congress and President-elect Trump’s proposed policies, the Retail Industry Leaders Association has outlined below the key legislative and regulatory issues retailers should be aware of in 2017:
Lowes Foods remains ‘targeted’

Lowes Foods knows the key to success is retaining your best, most profitable shoppers. By extending its partnership with ProLogic, the engine behind the grocer’s Fresh Rewards loyalty program, the chain will continue to award customers with instant rewards for merchandise throughout its 100 stores, and gas at participating Speedway and Lowes Foods gas stations.
Starbucks among brands on cutting edge of AI in retail

Coming soon to Starbucks: virtual baristas. The coffee giant plans to add a Siri-like virtual assistant to its mobile app that will allow users to place an order by talking to a virtual barista that will then send the order to a store nearby user where it will be made by an employee.