Mass Merchant

Dublin, Calif. -- Ross Stores recently opened a total of 30 Ross Dress for Less and seven DD’s Discounts stores in 14 different states. These openings are part of the off-price retailer's 2014 expansion plans for about 95 new stores, which will include continuing to build presence in existing markets and grow in the newer markets initially entered in 2011.

Ross believes that long-term expansion opportunities include 2,000 Ross Dress for Less stores and 500 DD’s Discounts stores.

Plano, Texas – Two major J.C. Penney Co. Inc. executives who left the company in April 2013 did so without receiving severance pay. According to a regulatory filing from Penney, neither former CEO Ron Johnson nor former chief talent officer Daniel Walker were paid any severance when they left the retailer.

Phoenix — An eight-screen Cinemark Movie Bistro will open at Rayzor Ranch Town Center, a new open-air retail and entertainment destination set to break ground later this year in Denton, Texas.

The state-of-the-art cinema will join a 126,000-sq.-ft. Dillard’s in anchoring Rayzor Ranch. Both are planning grand openings for summer 2015.

Houston -- Mattress Firm Holding Corp. has entered into an agreement to acquire the outstanding equity interests of Sleep Experts Partners L.P., which operates Sleep Experts retail stores in Texas. In addition, Mattress Firm completed the acquisition of substantially all of the assets and operations of Yotes, Inc., which operated stores under the Mattress Firm brand in Colorado and Kansas, as well as the Virginia retail operations of Southern Max LLC.

New York — An ~exhale MINDBODYSPA has leased 3,027-sq.-ft. location in Manhattan’s Flatiron District, where Flatiron and Chelsea meet. It is a strong retail neighborhood with national fashion and specialty retailers along Fifth Avenue including Anthropologie, J.Crew, Club Monaco, kate spade, Nike, Intermix and Sephora. There are larger format retailers in the area, too: Bed Bath & Beyond, The Container Store, Sports Authority, Staples, Men’s Wearhouse, Trader Joe’s and Marshalls along Sixth Avenue.

The buzz and hype surrounding 3D printing can make it hard to separate fact from fiction, but one thing is for sure: 3D printing has the potential to transform shopper expectations and retail supply chains.

Columbus, Ohio — Lane Bryant has opened a new store at The Shops at Pembroke Gardens, a lifestyle center in Pembroke Pines, Fla.

The grand opening celebration will take place March 7 – 9. Lane Bryant, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ascena Retail Group, owns and operates 805 stores nationwide.
 

Beachwood, Ohio — DDR has signed a letter of intent to sell its 50% ownership interest in Sonae Sierra Brazil BV Sarl, a Luxembourg company, to Alexander Otto and his affiliates for $343.6 million. DDR’s interest in SSB BV Sarl represents the company’s entire investment in Brazil. The gross proceeds of $346.6 million include $283 million from the negotiated price of R$26.00 per share of SSB, a 67% premium to the closing price on the IBOVESPA as of March 7, and DDR’s stake in Parque Dom Pedro, valued at $60.7 million.