Mass Merchant

A red-hot real estate market and sky-high property values have some retailers, including Macy’s and more recently, McDonalds, feeling the pressure to cash in on the value of their real estate assets. How? By spinning off store properties and/or land assets into a REIT and entering into a lease-back deal.

New York – Front-running Republican presidential contender Donald Trump continued his war of words with Macy’s Inc. during a Sunday morning interview on the CBS program, "Face the Nation."

Trump singled out Macy’s as an example of companies where the CEO places their friends on the board and receives inappropriately high pay.

Minneapolis – Target Corp. is reportedly bringing a sunny approach to energy at its store in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

According to the Fayetteville Observer, Target will install solar panels that can generate 432 KwH of electricity per year on the store’s roof. There is no firm launch date yet for the store’s solar panels, which will likely generate 15%-30% of its total electricity needs.   

Kohl’s is bringing the fashions of London to its stores with its latest designer collaboration.

The retailer has teamed up with designer Thakoon on a fashion collection now available at Kohl’s stores nationwide and Kohls.com called Thakoon for DesigNation. The one-of-a-kind, limited-edition, limited-time collection features Thakoon Panichgul’s signature style inspired by one of his favorite cities, London.

In another indication of its growth aspirations, 99 Cents Only named a former high ranking Kroger executive president and CEO just months after the retailer tapped former Walmart executives to fill the head merchant and CFO roles at the 389-store retailer.

New York -- In another indication of its growth aspirations, 99 Cents Only named a former high ranking Kroger executive president and CEO. The hiring comes just months after the retailer tapped former Walmart executives to fill the head merchant and CFO roles at the 389-store retailer.

Former Kroger and Procter & Gamble executive Geoffrey Covert, 64, was named president and CEO at 99 Cents Only on Sept. 11, filling a position that had been held on an interim basis the past four months by board chairman Andrew Giancamilli.    

Bentonville, Ark. – Five Walmart stores in central Florida are reportedly getting ready to serve the needs of hungry customers.

Dependent on Target for 43% of its revenue, licensed apparel company Cherokee Global Brand saw its market value obliterated after disclosing Target would not renew a decades old relationship.