Department Store

Retail sales in September decelerated from August at many of Walmart’s competitors, but overall demand remained positive judging from the shrinking number of companies who continue to report monthly results.

Discounters The TJX Cos. and Ross Stores reported September same-store sales that rose 6% and 5%, respectively. The figures exceeded both companies’ expectations and shoppers continue to respond to their brand of apparel retail.

Brentwood, Calif. -- RED Legacy and a fund managed by DRA Advisors have acquired The Streets of Brentwood, a 350,000-sq.-ft. lifestyle center on 60 acres in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area.

Tenants include a 14-screen Rave Imax Brentwood 14+ImaxTheater, DSW, REI, Loft, Banana Republic, Victoria’s Secret, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse, Ulta and more. In addition, Charming Charlie will open a 7,500-sq.-ft. store in November.

Killingly, Conn. -- Brixmor Property Group announced that Kohl’s has opened a new store at Killingly Plaza, located in Killingly, Conn.

Kohl’s will take 55,068 renovated sq. ft. of the 66,000-sq.-ft. center, which was previously home to Stop & Shop and a Blockbuster video store.

Brixmor, based in New York City, is the owner of Killingly Plaza.

Dallas -- Davaco announced that the company offers shop-in-shop solutions for soft and hard-line brands that are implementing nationwide programs involving new or existing shops within department or big box stores. Davaco provides clients with a fully integrated approach to shop-in-shop rollouts that can include fixture manufacturing, site surveys, logistics/consolidation, as well as installation and merchandising after installation.
 

Total U.S. shopper traffic in retail stores and malls for September 2012

The end of back-to-school shopping in the U.S. led to a significant drop in foot traffic this past month. September saw a 13.1% decrease in retail foot traffic compared to August. However, this past month continued a streak of year-over-year improvements. September 2012 foot traffic increased 12.9% when compared with the same month last year.

Toronto -- Ann Taylor announced it opened its first international store on Oct. 4, in the Toronto Eaton Centre, Toronto.

A second international store set to open this November in Toronto at the Yorkdale Shopping Centre.

NEW YORK — Costco Wholesale Corp. reported a better-than-expected 6% rise in September same-store sales, helped by higher gasoline prices and a stronger dollar. Excluding the impact of gasoline prices and foreign exchange, comparable September same-store sales rose 5%.

Net sales rose 8% to $9.31 billion in the five weeks ended Sept. 30. Costco, which currently operates 608 warehouses, said it plans to open up to 14 new warehouses prior to the end of calendar year 2012.

New York -- Apparel retailers and department stores reported monthly revenue results for September that were mixed, as Gap Inc. and Limited Brands posted gains that beat Wall Street estimates, while Macy's and Kohl’s missed expectations.

However, many analysts said spending was fairly strong for the month.