Department Store

Canadian outwear brand Canada Goose is continuing its expansion, both offline and online.      The company will open two flagship stores this fall, in London and Chicago. It also plans to expand its e-commerce channel to seven new markets including Germany, Sweden, Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium, Luxembourg and Austria.   

Macy’s reported disappointing earnings for its first quarter, as its sale continued to slide.    Macy's posted a first quarter profit of $71 million, or 23 cents a share, down from $116 million, or 37 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding some costs, Macy's adjusted per-share profit fell to 24 cents from 40 cents, below analysts' expectations for 35 cents.   

Shoppers at Saks Fifth Avenue’s Manhattan flagship can now take a fitness class taught by ex-cons in addition to shopping for the latest fashions. They can even learn how to meditate.   The luxury department store has transformed its second floor into a health and fitness hub dubbed The Wellery. The 16,000-plus-sq.-ft. space is comprised of 20 individual spaces offering everything from fitness classes and exercise equipment to athleisure apparel and specialized beauty treatments. It will be open through October 2017.

Kohl’s Corp. posted mixed results for its first quarter, as sales continued to decline but profit jumped amid expense control and more careful inventory management.    The retailer reported net income of $66 million, or 39 cents per share, in the quarter ended April 29, up from $17 million, or nine cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. The gain, much better than expected, came as the company cut general expenses by $33 million.   

Canada’s Aritzia Inc. is expanding its Chicago footprint as it targets both brick-and-mortar and online expansion.    The fashion retailer will open a flagship on Rush Street in Chicago this fall. The Vancouver, British Columbia-based company already operates a store in the Windy City, at Water Tower Place.    

When shoppers talk about brands, they usually do it offline.   That’s according to a study by Engagement Labs that measured the performance of 60 brands with respect to social media and word of mouth conversations. Amazon came out on top in the retail and apparel category, followed by Nike and Nordstrom.   

CEO Joe Coradino and PREIT are serious about recapturing vacant department store space and refilling it with new customer experiences.   Just weeks after the opening of a Legoland Discovery Center at its Plymouth Meeting Mall in the Philadelphia suburbs, PREIT announced it had executed a lease at that property with 5 Wits, a live-action entertainment concept that immerses people into one of three adventures: Tomb, Deep Space, or Drago’s Castle.  

Shopping center owners added fewer centers in 2016, but demonstrated that less is more

As physical shopping centers battle furiously for customer share, more developers are realizing that bells and whistles aren’t just optional; they’re essential. No matter the size or scope, new shopping centers have to offer something extra to an increasingly discerning consumer — and the group of owners highlighted here is doing just that.