eCommerce

The Neighborhoods at Butler

Location: Gainesville, Fla.

Size: 2.1 million sq. ft. (1.75 million sq. ft. with an additional 350,000 sq. ft. under development)

Developer/Owner: Butler Enterprises

Grocery anchor: Publix (West), Publix (Central), Trader Joe’s, Aldi, plus sizeable food components in Walmart, Sam’s Club and Target. Adding Whole Foods to anchor Butler Town Center (under construction with a planned opening winter 2018).

Enough of the “retail is dying” narrative that has dominated so many headlines the past few months. It’s way overplayed.

Brick-and-mortar is evolving, not dying. And it’s full of exciting new players — many of them digitally native — that are infusing the industry with something it can always use: new blood. Here’s a quick rundown of some of these newcomers to the physical space:

Neiman Marcus is making moves to offset its debt and improve its capital structure.   The luxury department store’s first step was to eliminate 225 positions. Affected employees — which span all brands and operating divisions — will receive severance packages, and also be considered for other job openings within the company, according to the Dallas News.  

Investors at the nation’s largest rent-to-own company are their losing patience.   Activist hedge fund Marcato Capital Management LP demanded in a letter on Tuesday, July 25, that Rent-A-Center start the process of selling itself. If the company doesn’t, the hedge fund threatened to throw out board members up for re-election at next year's annual meeting, according to Reuters.  

Walmart has found a way to make the digital shopping experience even faster.   The discounter launched a new service on Tuesday that streamlines how shoppers reorder merchandise via their desktop or Walmart app. Called Easy Reorder, the service integrates shoppers’ purchase histories —a list that is comprised of merchandise purchased both in-store and online. The service curates the customer’s most purchased items — including brands and sizes.   

Amazon is making good on its promise to hire 130,000 workers by 2018.   The online giant announced Wednesday that it plans to fill more than 50,000 roles across its fulfillment network in the United States. Amazon is hiring “tens of thousands” full-time associates who will pick, pack and ship customer orders from its fulfillment centers. It will also fill supporting and managerial roles within its facilities, including human resources managers, IT specialists, and operations leaders, among other positions, the retailer said.

BJ’s Wholesale Club just made a big move within its digital transformation plan.    The warehouse club operator introduced a mobile site that is integrate within its omnichannel strategy. In addition to using the site to browse, research and purchase items, members can also manage their memberships through their smart device.  

A specialty retailer continues to expand its breadth.   See’s Candies plans to open nearly a dozen new or relocated stores by the end of 2017. All new locations will set up shop in California.    The new stores will be located in San Jose, Castro Valley, Manhattan Beach, Paso Robles, Laguna Hills, Glendale and Calabasas. The new locations come on the heels of new shops that have previously opened or moved this year into new or larger locations in Escondido, Windsor and Pleasant Hill, California.