eCommerce

Houston – The Mansour Group has arranged the sale of the 99% leased, 223,223-sq.-ft. Almeda Crossing Power Center located in Houston, for more than $30 million. The seller was a Texas-based developer and The Mansour Group was able to deliver the property to a national REIT.

The center is leased to an array of national tenants including Ross, Marshall’s, Staples, PetSmart, Conn’s, Party City, Show Carnival, Dollar Tree, Anna’s Linens, Aaron’s and many others and is shadow anchored by a Walmart supercenter.

San Francisco – EBay Inc. reportedly plans to begin running advertisements within its mobile app during fourth quarter 2014. According to Reuters, the Geico insurance company will be one of the first advertisers.

Foot Locker has enlisted crowdsourced delivery service Deliv so it can offer online customers same-day delivery.

Deliv's Application Programming Interface (API) connects directly to Footlocker’s website, allowing shoppers to select same-day or next day delivery for $5.

IBM and Apple announced a strategic partnership earlier this year that promises to transform enterprise mobility through a new class of business apps. The companies plan to leverage their respective strengths in technology, business intelligence and user experience to create solutions that address some of the retail industry’s most pressing challenges. To better understand what that means, Retailing Today spoke with Jill Puleri, VP and global retail industry leader for IBM Global Business Services.

Washington, D.C. --  August retail sales – excluding automobiles, gasoline stations and restaurants – increased 0.5% seasonally adjusted month-to-month and 2.7% unadjusted year-over-year, according to the National Retail Federation. When combined with revisions to July, August sales indicate a consistent improvement in consumer confidence and spending.

Atlanta - Overall retail spending growth in August 2014 was the strongest in more than a year. According to the First Data SpendTrend report, retail dollar volume growth reached 2.8% in August (compared to 2.6% in July), as back-to-school shopping propelled spending growth in several retail categories. (SpendTrend tracks same-store point-of-sale data by credit, signature debit, PIN debit, EBT, closed-loop prepaid cards and checks from nearly 4 million merchants locations serviced by First Data in the United States.)

Ulta Beauty reported a 22.2% boost in second-quarter new sales and drove its best comps since the secondquarter 2012 thanks in large part to successful new products and brands as well as growth in e-commerce. Meanwhile, the beauty retailer continues to forge ahead on its new strategic plan.

Charlotte-based Belk has teamed up with Project Runway season 12 winner Dom Streater. The exclusive collection designed by Streater, "Dom," offers classic, premium designs in modern prints and is now available in 30 Belk locations, including belk.com.