Mass Merchant

New York -- Target is testing a registry program designed specifically for students heading off to college, according to a report by TheStreet. The college registry, available in some 40 stores, offers a variety of categories, including furniture, storage & organization, electronics, décor, bedding and bath.

The new service is high-tech and student friendly, using iPads instead of in-store kiosks. To select items throughout the store, the customer uses an iPod Touche instead of the typical scanning gun.

Walmart added to its collection of Silicon Valley acquisitions with the purchase of mobile fashion app Stylr.

New Delhi, India – Wal-Mart Stores In. has reportedly opened an e-commerce site to serve the small retailers that shop at its members-only cash-and-carry stores in India. According to Bloomberg, Wal-Mart is piloting the site for small retailers located in the cities of Hyderabad and Lucknow, with full rollout across India planned in January 2015.

Chicago -- Chile is the number one destination for emerging market retail expansion, followed by China, where retail sales totaled a whopping $3.7 trillion in 2013, according to the 2014 A.T. Kearney Global Retail Development Index.

With Uruguay, Brazil, Peru, Panama, Colombia, Costa Rica and Mexico also in the index of top emerging economies ready for retail expansion, Latin America continues to show strength as a regional retail growth market.

Toronto - Sears Canada Inc. has entered into a binding agreement with Concord Pacific Group of Companies to pursue the development of the 12-acre Sears site located at the North Hill Shopping Center in Calgary, Alberta. Closing under the agreement is conditional upon satisfaction of conditions such as site investigations and obtaining the approval from the city of Calgary for the project, which are expected to take some time.  

Houston - Elaine D. Crowley, 55, was appointed to the Stage Stores Inc. board of directors. Her appointment brings the board’s membership to 10 directors.

New York -- In a long-awaited ruling  handed down Monday by the New York State Supreme Court, J.C. Penney have been found to have "tortiously" interfered with Macy’s 2006 contract with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, when Penney entered into its own contract with Martha Stewart in 2011.

San Diego - Retail Opportunity Investments Corp. has completed the acquisition of Fallbrook Shopping Center, located in West Hills, California. ROIC acquired the property for $210 million in cash funded by a borrowing under its unsecured credit facility.