Mass Merchant

Owings Mills, Md. — Towne Centre at Laurel in Laurel, Md., has announced leases for 14 new retailers and restaurants. The $130 million, 400,000-sq.-ft. mixed-use redevelopment of the former Laurel Mall is now 85% leased and under construction. The first phase is scheduled to open in March with the reopening of a new 70,000-sq.-ft. Burlington Coat Factory.

The remainder of the project will open this fall, featuring Regal Cinemas, Sports Authority and the first Harris Teeter in Prince George’s County, along with the following 14 new tenants:

Minneapolis – Target has won a case against non-profit group Canvass for a Cause in the Superior Court of the State of California, San Diego. Target sought and received the right to prohibit groups or individuals from using its property for expressive activity, as well as a judgment for trespass alleging that Canvass for a Cause and individuals associated with it have come onto Target property without authorization to do so and have refused to leave.

Kozy Shack, a 50-year-old pudding brand, is hiring a spokes-grandma to represent the brand nationally in online, broadcast and print advertisements.

The call for applications has been put out coast-to-coast: Pudding-loving grandmas can submit their applications at KozyShack.me/Grandma now through Jan. 31. More information can be found in job postings on Monster, Careerbuilder and LinkedIn.

Target plans to carry on its Canadian expansion this year with nine additional stores, the majority of which will open in Ontario, although the retailer plans to open single stores in Quebec, Manitoba, Alberta and B.C.

Los Angeles — CBRE’s national retail investment group has arranged the sale of Oak Grove Plaza, a 120,491-sq.-ft. retail center anchored by Kroger Signature, to Chicago-based LaSalle Investment Management.

CBRE marketed the property, which is located in the Dallas suburb of Sachse, Texas, on behalf of Invesco Advisers.

New York -- Testifying Wednesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder confirmed that the Justice Department is investigating the consumer data breach at Target Corp.

"While we generally do not discuss specific matters under investigation, I can confirm the Department is investigating the breach involving the U.S. retailer, Target," Holder said in his statement to senators,.”

The retail and consumer packaged goods industry fared poorly in a recent global ranking of corporate sustainability leaders with the handful of standouts being Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson, Staples and Campbell Soup Company.

The ranking of 100 companies compiled by Corporate Knights, a media, research and investment advisory company, included only17 U.S. companies and only two retailers. Sweden’s H&M was ranked 64th and Staples was ranked 72nd.

Crest has launched Be, a new line of toothpastes that features three new flavors: Mint Chocolate Trek, Vanilla Mint Spark and Lime Spearmint Zest.