Discount Store

Goodlettsville, Tenn. — Dollar General on Monday named Todd Vasos as COO with responsibility for store operations, merchandising and supply chain. The company also said David D'Arezzo has joined the chain as executive VP and chief merchandising officer.

City of Commerce, Calif. — 99¢ Only Stores has leased 18,728 sq. ft. in Fairmeadows Shopping Center on East Camp Wisdom Road in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. The Fairmeadows tenant line-up includes Dollar

General, Popeye’s, Firestone and Dental Republic. The Weitzman Group, the exclusive leasing agent for the center, handled negotiations for the landlord.

Shopko continues to make good on its growth initiative with the opening of five new Shopko Hometown stores in November.  

The retailer opened the doors Monday to three Shopko Hometown stores in Ellsworth, Wis.; St. Peter, Minn.; and Winneconne, Wis. Two more openings are planned on Nov. 11 for Afton, Wyo., and Tomahawk, Wis. Shopko operates 330 stores in the Midwest, North Central, Mountain West and Pacific Northwest regions, including — with the five new locations — 180 Shopko Hometown stores.

Green Bay, Wis. -- Shopko continues on its growth path with the opening of five new Shopko Hometown stores in November. The new stores are located in: Afton, Wyo.; Ellsworth, Wis.; St. Peter, Minn.; Tomahawk, Wis., and Winneconne, Wis.

Hingham, Mass. – Building #19, a closeout retailer with 10 stores in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, is reportedly planning a giant closeout sale of its own. According to the Boston Business Journal, Building #19 filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Nov. 1 and requested permission to obtain the services of liquidation sale specialist Gordon Brothers.

A desire to improve operational efficiency and capitalize on scale were cited as reasons for several senior level executive moves at Dollar General.

The retailer recently surpassed 11,000 units and chairman and CEO Rick Dreiling said the enhanced management structure involving Todd Vasos and David D’Arezzo would align the company for continued future growth.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears and Kmart stores joined the growing list of national retailers whose stores will open on Thanksgiving Day.

Kmart, which has opened Thanksgiving Day for 22 years, this year will be open for 41 straight hours, starting at 6 a.m. Thanksgiving Day to 11 p.m. Black Friday.  Sears will open at 8 p.m. Thanksgiving Day.

New York -- Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th plans to open a new store in Pearl, Miss., (metropolitan Jackson) on Nov. 14.

The 17,000-sq.-ft. store will be located in the Outlets of Mississippi in Rankin County, one of the fastest growing areas in the state. The outlet is developed by Spectrum Capital, an affiliate of the Yates Companies.