eCommerce

Developers of a 350,000-sq.-ft. outlet mall in Staten Island’s burgeoning St. George district have looked across the New York Narrows to enlist the help of one of Manhattan’s most noted real estate brokers.  

Avison Young has bought a Raleigh, North Carolina-based leasing and property management company and, in the process, added 65 shopping centers to its listings in the Carolinas.   The acquired company, Hunter & Associates, was founded in 1989 by Banks Hunter when he took over management of the historic Professional Building in downtown Raleigh. Hunter focused its efforts on the leasing and management of neighborhood and community centers to become the largest, locally-based retail brokerage in the region.  

Jeff Gordman, the former CEO of Gordmans, plans to submit a bid for the bankrupt 106-store chain that would rescue it from liquidation. But he isn’t the only interested party.   

Håkon Helgesen, analyst at GlobalData Retail, comments on Francesca’s fourth quarter and full year results:  

The nation’s largest retailer is delving deeper into e-commerce and evolving technology with its newest investment.   Walmart has formed Store No. 8, a technology incubator that will be based in the Silicon Valley. (The new initiative is named after an early Walmart store that company founder Sam Walton used to try out new retail strategies.)  

Costco Wholesale Corp. is making it easier for customers to shop for groceries.   Shipt, a membership-based delivery service for online groceries, has partnered with Costco to deliver groceries orders placed by Costco customers directly to their homes.      The service will launch initially in the Tampa area, with plans to expand to 50 markets and more than 30 million households by the end of the year.  It is limited to grocery, and does not include apparel, furniture or electronic

A move to a more fast-fashion model helped Francesca’s to outperform many of its peers in the fourth quarter, with sales and income that topped expectations.       The retailer reported better-than-expected profit of $14.6 million, or 39 cents a share, for the quarter ended January 28, compared to $14.7 million profit, or 35 cents a share, in the year ago period.  

eBay is preparing to connect with each of its individual consumers — starting from the first minute they visit the site.   The company plans to do so with a new homepage that is “designed to inspire and engage with relevant, personalized content and highlighted deals,” according to the company.