Convenience Stores

In the wake of acquiring Houston-based RediClinic, Rite Aid reported revenues of $6.6 billion for the fourth quarter ended March 1, resulting from a 2.2% lift primarily attributed to an increase in pharmacy same-store sales.

For the full year, Rite Aid reported $25.5 billion in revenues, up 0.5%.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Walmart, a pioneer in the use of LED lighting in its freezer cases and parking lots, is now extending its use of LEDs to the sales floor. The retailer plans to install energy-efficient LED ceiling lighting from GE in its new supercenters in the United States, along with stores in Asia, Latin America, and the United Kingdom.

Dallas -- Corner Bakery Café has signed a new multi-unit development agreement with Holm Bake, LLC, headquartered in Winter Park, Fla., which plans to open its first of 17 restaurants in the Orlando, Fla., area next year and the remaining sites over the following six years.

Covington, La. — Stirling Properties has announced the development of a new full-service Walgreens drug store in Metairie, La., in the Barlon Plaza Shopping Center. The new store will be a ground-up relocation of an existing Walgreens currently within the center.

At 14,000 sq. ft., the larger store will feature a drive thru window and full-service pharmacy.

Compton, Calif. -- Ralphs will open a new Ralphs Fresh Fare store in Sherman Oaks, Calif., on April 10. The new 72,000-sq.-ft.store replaces an older Ralphs that operated for 42 years from the same location before it was closed in 2012, and will employ about 240 full- and part-time workers.

Dayton, Ohio – Walmart is the most valuable retail brand in North America, with a brand value estimated at $131.8 billion, according to Interbrand's "Best Retail Brands" report. The retail powerhouse maintains its number one spot and, even with a 6% decline in brand value, it retains an enormous margin over its closest competitor Target, whose brand value is put at $27.1 billion, an 8% increase over 2013.

Bentonville, Ark. – Wal-Mart Stores Inc. reportedly plans to open an additional 40 to 50 wholesale cash-and-carry stores in India during the next four years and also launch an Indian e-commerce operation. According to the Wall Street Journal, Wal-Mart will begin e-commerce sales in India during summer 2014 with one wholesale store offering goods online and delivering them for pickup at other local retailers up to about 25 miles away.

Alameda, Calif. — Bagel Street Café and The Best Lil’ Porkhouse have signed into South Shore Center on the waterfront in Alameda, Calif. Jamestown, a national real estate investment and management firm, owns the center.

Bagel Street Café has signed a 10-year lease for 2,323 sq. ft. and plans to open this summer. SRS Real Estate Partners represented Bagel Street.

The Best Lil’ Porkhouse signed a 10-year lease for 3,639 sq. ft.

ECRM compared retail circular advertising in March 2013 versus March 2014 and noted trends occurring across top retail chains. H.E.B. and Publix topped the charts in circular page change, with increases of 27.8% and 41.2%, respectively. The massive increase at Publix was attributable to the release of an additional circular this March (five versus four in 2013), while H.E.B. simply ran more pages in each of its five March circulars (eight to 12 pages each this year, as opposed to six to eight last year).

Ankeny, Iowa -- Casey’s General Stores has selected Softeon’s warehouse managements ystem (WMS), as well as its load planning, yard management, and labor management applications, to improve efficiency and accuracy of its DC operations and drive additional throughput from existing DCs to enable them to support addition of new retail stores in the same physical footprint.