eCommerce

Long Beach, Calif. – A former state office building near City Hall in Long Beach, California, is reportedly being torn down to make way for a seven-story, $53 million mixed use retail and residential complex. According to the Long Beach Press-Telegram, the vacant property was bought in foreclosure for $10 million in 2010.

London -- Natalie Berg, global research director at Planet Retail, commented:

“As a branding expert, Lewis’ first task will be to define Tesco. Philip Clarke himself has admitted that the brand has baggage. It doesn’t stand for value, yet it doesn’t stand for quality, and without a clear proposition we fear that Tesco will continue to lose customers to more relevant and better-defined channels.

Facebook is testing a new “buy” button designed to help businesses drive sales through Facebook in News Feed and on Pages. With this feature, people on desktop or mobile can click the “Buy” call-to-action button on ads and page posts to purchase a product directly from a business, without leaving Facebook.

San Francisco - GameStop customers can now exchange gift cards online for a GameStop e-gift card. The new offering is part of a partnership with Cardpool, a gift card exchange platform.

With three steps, a consumer will be able to trade in plastic and e-gift cards online by filling out his or her individual gift card. Upon verifying the information and completing the transaction, a GameStop e-gift card is emailed and the recipient can either redeem the e-gift at a Game Stop store or the company’s e-commerce site.

Loblaw, owner of the Joe Fresh brand, has promoted Mario Grauso to president of Joe Fresh. He was previously chief operating officer of the brand.

Grauso will continue to report to Joe Mimran, president of Joseph Mimran & Associates and creative director of Joe Fresh. In his new role, Grauso oversees business strategy, operations, marketing, international development, merchandising, sourcing and design functions at Joe Fresh.

Amazon found another way to endear itself to customers with a new service called Kindle Unlimited that provides access to 600,000 books for a flat monthly fee.

San Francisco - PBteen opens its first Arizona-based PBteen store at Kierland Commons in Scottsdale, Arizona on July 18. It will serve as a combined location with Pottery Barn Kids, and this will be the 18th PBteen location in the U.S.

New York – Uniqlo will open a store at Great Mall in Milpitas, California, on Sept. 12. The store will be the first Uniqlo location to feature a 100% eco-friendly design, with LED lighting, greener materials and high-efficiency elements throughout.

The new Uniqlo also include specialty shopping vignettes that will create a store-within-a-store feel in the women and children’s departments. In-store display materials will also include updated digital screens.