Convenience Stores

Shoppers in Charlotte, Columbus, Portland, Fresno, Norfolk and New Orleans are gaining access to a new alternative for food and consumables, as Target’s PFresh prototype arrives in those markets through a combination of recent remodeling activity and upcoming store openings.

A 400,000-sq.-ft., Wal-Mart Supercenter- and Lowe’s-anchored, regional shopping center opened on March 15 in Hamburg, Pa.

Tilden Ridge Shopping Center, owned by West Conshohocken, Pa.-based Ironwood Property Group and leased by Metro Commercial Real Estate, was almost six years in the making, and features a site that shares a traffic signal with a 250,000-sq.-ft. Cabela’s store.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores announced Sunday that it will re-open 12 of its Seiyu stores in Japan, which were affected by the earthquake. A company spokesman added that the retailer is hoping to open the remaining 12 impacted stores as soon as possible.

Wal-Mart has 371 stores and 43 deli outlets in Japan, of which 24 were affected by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

Of Wal-Mart's affected stores, two were severely hit and were completely covered by mud, according to the company.

New York City -- TF Cornerstone said it recently signed a 15-year, 2,800-sq.-ft. lease with Potbelly Sandwich Shop at 2 Gold Street, a 650 unit luxury residential building.

The location is the chain’s first in New York. Potbelly joins existing tenants Pret-A-Manger, Goodburger and Hot Clay Oven.

Neptune Beach, Fla. -- Jacksonville, Fla.-based Regency Centers said it has started construction on an additional 9,100-sq.-ft. building at Seminole Shoppes, located in Neptune Beach, Fla., for six new side shops.

Leases have already been signed with Hurricane Grill & Wings for 2,940 sq. ft. and TCBY for 1,400 sq. ft. in the new building, slated for completion in late spring.

It seems like this kind of stuff only happens at Walmart. A female employee at a Walmart store in Naples, Fla. bit off the tip of a co-worker’s ring finger during a fight over an alleged affair, the Associated Press reported this week. Collier County Sheriff’s deputies said they charged 43-year-old Clodia Coicour with aggravated battery stemming from the incident that took place outside the store where they both worked.

Walmart’s small format desires certainly haven’t gone unnoticed by the folks at Dollar General, a company that appears bent on saturating the marketplace with small discount stores. Last year, Dollar General opened 600 new stores and remodeled or relocated 504 other stores to end its fiscal year with 9,372 stores. This year, more of the same is planned with the expansion figure getting a bump to 625 new units, while the number of remodels and relocations expands to 550 units.

Memphis, Tenn. -- Fred's reported Thursday that net income for the quarter ended Jan. 29 rose 48% to $8.6 million, compared with $5.8 million in the year-ago period.

The discount retailer cited a better merchandise selection and store upgrades for the improved performance, which topped Wall Street expectations.

Revenue rose 3% to $485.6 million from $473.1 million, missing analysts’ forecast of $487.3 million in revenue. Same-store sales rose 2.3%.

Bentonville, Ark. -- A comprehensive waste reduction program has resulted in Walmart eliminating more than 80% of the waste that would go to landfills from its operations in California. Walmart’s results exceed both the national average landfill diversion rate of 45% and the California rate of 65%. The program is now being implemented across all of the company’s 4,400 U.S. locations, including Sam’s Club units and distribution centers.

LA JOLLA, Calif. — Kashi has added an entree and pizza to its line of all-natural frozen foods.

The new spicy black bean enchilada single-serve entree features red skin potatoes, roasted red peppers, corn and spinach, all wrapped in a seven whole grain and corn tortilla, which is topped with a vibrant tomatillo, cilantro and jalapeno salsa. The entree also includes a side of Kashi seven whole grain pilaf. The entree will retail for $4.09, the company said.