Department Store

Ninety-three percent of consumers are starting their back-to-school shopping before classes begin and receipts promise to be strong for stores.   Three-quarters of the 2,000 shoppers surveyed by JLL recently said they planned to spend between $100 and $500 on school purchases, and most of those transactions figure to take place at brick-and-mortar locations. Only 19% said they’d buy supplies online and just 25% figured to look to the Web for apparel.  

When it comes to back-to-school shopping, kids have all the power – and they strongly prefer shopping in-store. A recent study by Citi Retail Services revealed that kids wield extraordinary power over back-to-school purchase decisions, and those decisions include shopping for goods in physical stores.  

Macy’s, Inc. has named Elisa D. Garcia as chief legal officer, effective Sept. 7, succeeding Dennis J. Broderick, who is retiring after 29 years.   Garcia, 58, has served in the same capacity for Office Depot since 2013. She was executive VP/general counsel for Domino’s Pizza prior to that.  

When the new L.L. Bean store opened at Lynnhaven Mall this summer, it did so to lines wrapped around the building as shoppers waited to see the state of Virginia’s third store for the outdoor retailer.   The 17,138-sq.-ft. store in Virginia Beach joins outposts in Richmond and Tysons Corner; it was designed by Cuhaci & Peterson in a former Lord & Taylor space which was renovated by KBE Building Corp.    

A Gainesville, Florida, mixed-use project now features a strategically assembled team to lead the property to its planned fall 2018 opening.   According to Butler Enterprises president Deborah Butler, the team of local, national and international design and construction professionals will work with Butler to create a world-class retail and residential core for Gainesville.   The team consists of:  

Kristin Campbell is executive VP and general counsel for Hilton Worldwide Holdings, but it’s her prior office supply retail experience that motivated Office Depot to proffer a seat on the board.   Prior to joining Hilton, Campbell spent 18 years at Staples, where she was most recently senior VP, general counsel and corporate secretary.  

In its search to find the right financial overseer, Destination Maternity Corp. didn’t have to look any farther than the auto parts industry.   On Monday, the maternity apparel retailer named David Stern, former CFO of Pep Boys – Manny, Moe and Jack, as executive VP and CFO, charged with leading the finance and accounting, real estate, loss prevention and procurement areas of the company.   Stern will report to CEO Anthony Romano.