Department Store

New York -- Target Corp. plans to lay off about 550 headquarters employees as the company winds down its Canadian operations, the Star Tribune reported Wednesday. The retailer is also eliminating 170 positions at its tech operations in India that supported the Canadian venture.

About 350 of the headquarters job are being eliminated Wednesday, with the remaining employees to be let go after Target’s stores in Canada are liquidated.

Procter & Gamble Co. has added the former CEO and chairman of Home Depot Inc. to its board of directors.

Francis Blake, 65, joins the board efefctive immediately.

The move comes just a few days after his retirement as chairman of Home Depot. He stepped down from the CEO position in November.

Lafayette, Indiana -- Mid-America Real Estate Corporation’s Investment Sales team recently brokered the sale of Lafayette Pavilions Shopping Center located in Lafayette, Indiana. The 348,531-sq.-ft. regional shopping center was acquired by a real estate investment trust sponsored and managed by Phoenix-based Cole Capital for $54 million.

Lafayette Pavilions Shopping Center is located at the southwest corner of State Road 26 and Creasy Lane; it is anchored by Gordmans, Hobby Lobby, Gander Mountain, and TJ Maxx.
 

 Indianapolis -- Simon announced that Krystal Zell has been named senior VP of marketing. In this newly created role, Zell will oversee the field marketing organization for all Simon Malls, The Mills and Simon Premium Outlets.

Zell served as VP of Starwood Preferred Guest at Starwood Hotels & Resorts where she led the loyalty strategy, business development and operations for its Starwood Preferred Guest and B2B loyalty programs.





 

One of the interesting retail real estate trends I’ve been seeing pick up steam in the last couple of years is the willingness of many retailers to look beyond the traditional mall locations. Many are choosing locations on “hot streets,” bustling avenues within major communities that happen to be the retail hub, or in the downtown/village center area of the market.

Livermore, Calif. -- Simon announced today that Livermore Premium Outlets, the Bay Area's premier outlet shopping center, will be rebranded and named San Francisco Premium Outlets in conjunction with its major expansion.

The 512,000-sq.-ft. center opened in 2012 and is currently undergoing a significant expansion to add 185,000 sq. ft. to be populated by leading designer brands, opening on August 13, 2015.

New York -- For the third consecutive year, Chain Store Age will select 10 individuals in retail real estate as “retail stars;” all will be featured in the May 2015 issue with bonus distribution to the International Council of Shopping Centers’ RECon show in Las Vegas in May.

The award recognizes people under the age of 40 who are making an impact in retail real estate – whether from the tenant (retail) or the landlord (shopping center company) side.

The Finish Line is looking to upgrade its customer experience capabilities with the addition of a new chief omnichannel officer and executive vice president.

The company announced that former Sears executive Imran Jooma has joined the company as chief omnichannel officer and executive VP. He will be responsible for all of the Finish Line brand’s customer facing touch points including digital, store operations, the customer care center and brand marketing.