Department Store

Los Angeles -- CBRE Group announced that Andrew Turf, a high street luxury retail real estate expert, will join the company’s Retail Services team as senior VP. Turf will also act as tenant representative on the West Coast and beyond and collaborate with capital markets teams on a variety of real estate projects.

For the retailing industry, 2015 was another year of seismic shifts as merchants continued to keep pace with the evolving digital landscape. It was also a busy year of executive comings and goings. Here is my pick of industry executives — all new to their positions — to keep an eye on in 2016.

RANDOM NOTES: The North Face puts its passion for adventure and the great outdoors front and center in its new flagship in London. Designed to inspire customers to explore the world, the 4,300-sq.-ft. store features skylights, live greenery, tree trunks that extend through the ceiling windows, and such tech enhancements as a virtual reality experience that takes viewers on a journey through Nepal. Digital screens (“sky windows”) set in the ceiling have imagery that reflects outside weather conditions.

Starwood Retail Partners debuted Oh, So Simple, a first-of-its-kind rewards program that offers consumers a revolutionary way to earn credit for their purchases at stores across an entire mall. The program piloted at four properties in 2015 and will roll out to all 29 Starwood centers this year. The one-step process links an existing Visa, MasterCard, or personal American Express credit or debit card to an Oh, So Simple Rewards account. Members can connect as many of their cards to the account as they wish.

Nordstrom Rack is coming to New Orleans.

The Bon-Ton Stores is back with a popular promotion that increases store traffic, generates sales, saves customers money and benefits the communities where it operates 270 department stores.

The resounding priority among retailers has been accelerating their integrated omnichannel offering – which has meant everything from merging online and store teams to measuring the in-store impact of digital campaigns. Recent innovations include mobile app and in-store technologies, multichannel fulfillment solutions, and coordinated cross-channel promotions. These kinds of initiatives will continue to be top of mind in 2016, particularly as consumer expectation for a seamless and personalized experience – and deep discounts – continues to grow.

How will retailers fare in 2016? Very well, according to experienced market watchers.

“We expect core retail sales to grow 5.3% in 2016,” says Scott Hoyt, senior director of consumer economics for Moody’s Analytics, a research firm based in West Chester, Pennsylvania. (Core retail sales exclude volatile revenues from auto sales and gas stations.)

That is notably faster than the 4.2% rate anticipated when 2015 sales are finally tallied. The 2015 experience was, again, slightly better than that the 3.9% growth of 2014.