Convenience Stores

New York -- Fresh & Easy plans to close 55 stores, which would leave the chain with about 110 locations, the Orange Country Register reported. Fresh & Easy is owned by the Yucaipa Cos., which bought the supermarket chain out of bankruptcy in 2013 from U.K. retailer Tesco. It operates stores in Nevada, California and Arizona.

The stores slated for closing do not meet Fresh & Easy’s new model of “modern convenience.”

Vancouver, Wash. – Pizza retailer Papa Murphy's Holdings Inc. plans to strengthen and grow its presence in the Southeast.

The company, which currently has more than 1,400 locations in 38 states, recently completed acquisitions of existing Papa Murphy's franchise stores in Jacksonville, Forida, as a springboard for further expansion throughout the Southeast.

New York -- The collapse of oil prices translates into a huge tax cut for 90% of the economy, former CNBC host, economist and newspaper columnist Larry Kudlow told attendees at Chain Store Age’s 51st annual SPECS show. Kudlow was a keynoter at the event, which was held at the Sands Expo, Venetian/Palazzo Hotel, Las Vegas, March 15 – 16, and brought together retail executives in store planning & design, construction and facilities.
 

Seattle -- Starbucks Corp. remains highly bullish on expansion. In remarks at the company’s annual shareholders meeting, the coffee giant revealed that over the next five years it plans to open 3,500 locations in its Americas region and 8,000 new stores in foreign markets. And just in case you were wondering … Starbucks noted that Shanghai has more Starbucks stores than any other city in the world in which it operates.

As burgeoning food retailer Haggen charts a path of expansion across the West Coast, the company is also making some key executive moves to support its growth in the Southwest.

The grocery chain Haggen named the first five senior members of its Pacific Southwest leadership team this week:

Trader Joe’s will open its first-ever Schaumburg (Illinois) location on March 20, at Woodfield Village Green, a 687,015-sq.-ft. foot shopping center owned by DDR.

Check out this quick time-lapse video of the nine-month construction process, which involved filling in a man-made retention pond and building the store on top.

Irving, Texas -- The Michaels Cos. reported Thursday its net income rose 18% to $157 million in the fourth quarter, up from $133 million in the year-earlier period. But the retailer gave a soft outlook for the year, citing, among other things, unfavorable Canadian exchange rates and the impact of the West Coast port slowdown.
 
Sales for the fourth quarter increased 3.4% to $1.61 billion. Same-store sales increased by 1.4%

Value-oriented food retailer Smart & Final Stores Inc. plans to accelerate its expansion plans after posting double-digit sales growth in the fourth quarter.