Mass Merchant

Dunhill Partners has acquired The Center at Pearland Parkway in Houston, which houses T.J. Maxx and Ross Dress for Less and is shadow-anchored by an HEB grocery store. Seller Stream Realty Partners did not disclose the sale price.   "Due to the ideal spacing between the two closest major retail nodes, the Center at Pearland Parkway offers tenants the ability to capture this under-served community with limited competition," said Stream managing director Mark Sondock.  

A new Marshalls location will co-anchor the Shoppes at Apple Greene in Dunkirk, Maryland, along with Harris Teeter, according to center owners Echo Realty and Marrick Partners.   The 21,000-sq.-ft. location will be Marshalls’ first in Calvert County, due south of Baltimore, where Marshalls operates two stores.   The 48,000-sq.-ft. Harris Teeter store is under construction at Apple Greene, a new 100,000-sq.-ft. center with an additional 30,000 sq. ft. available for lease.   

Amazon is working with government officials to head off a lengthy deal investigation.   Amazon will re-file documents this week seeking government approval of its planned purchase of Whole Foods Market for $13.7 billion. The move will restart the process, giving U.S. antitrust enforcers more time to complete an early review of the retailers’ planned tie-up, according to the Wall Street Journal.  

More Walmart stores are adding those massive vending machines that cater to online order in-store pickup.    The retailing giant will expand its automated online order pickup kiosks to 80 more locations across the country over the next several months, according to Business Insider. The pickup vending machine, which was introduced in a single store in Bentonville, Arkansas last year, is currently available in 20 stores,   

The hottest trend in the apparel market may be at risk of over-supply.    While athleisure remains popular with consumers, too many retailers have entered the category, reported CNBC.  

Prime Day 2017 was Amazon’s biggest event yet. But the shopping marathon took a significant toll on brick-and-mortar traffic.   

Formula. Format. Familiarity. The retail recipe is tried and true, based on brand dress and standards developed over years and, often, decades. Standards meticulously define everything from the logo to the physical layout of stores. Storefronts, where the visual expression of the brand identity is most evident and most essential, is especially prescriptive. A Barnes & Noble in Miami looks the same as a Barnes & Noble in Minneapolis.   

Greg Portell, lead partner in the retail practice of global strategy and management consulting firm A.T. Kearney: