Mass Merchant

Paramus, N.J. -- Ripco Real Estate has leased the former Fortunoff Building at 150 Route 17 northbound in Paramus, New Jersey, to Bob’s Discount Furniture.

Without a permanent tenant since July 2009, Ripco was hired in mid-October 2014 to lease the property.  Five months later, through the efforts of Ripco’s New Jersey team, lead by Ira Kerner and Alison Horbach, the landlord has executed a lease with the discount retailer.

New York -- Toys "R" Us is not going to renew the lease of its Manhattan flagship, according to various reports. The lease for the massive 110,000-sq.-ft. retail space, at 1514 -1530 Broadway, between 44th and 45th Streets, is set to expire at the end of January 2016. The ground floor of the prime space, in the heart of busy Times Square and with access to Broadway, commands a whopping $2,500 per foot per year in rent, with the second and third floors costing considerably less, according to CNN Money.

Target Corp. has agreed to pay $10 million in a proposed settlement of a class-action suit related to the company’s 2013 data breach, according to court documents filed Wednesday.

The Path to Purchase Institute this week bestowed Effie awards to top retailers and brand for their marketing effectiveness.

Winners of the 5th annual Shopper Marketing Effie Awards were celebrated at the Path to Purchase Institute’s 2015 Shopper Marketing Summit. The awards honor work that showcases the best utilization of shopper insights that lead to effective engagements and activations with shoppers along their path to purchase.

Seattle –  Amazon.com is upping the competition with brick-and-mortar stores by expanding its one-hour Prime Now delivery service to Baltimore and Miami. The service, which was previously available only in Manhattan, offers one-hour delivery on tens of thousands of items through a mobile app.

New York -- Cindi Marsiglio,  VP of U.S.manufacturing for Walmart, shared new details about the company's  first-of-its-kind event, which is designed to advance the retailer’s $250 billion domestic sourcing agenda.  The event is planned for early July in Bentonville, Arkansas.

During a fast-paced presentation Thursday morning organized by a group called Doing Business in Bentonville, Marsiglio shared wide-ranging insights regarding the company’s 10 year, $250 billion domestic sourcing commitment unveiled in January 2013.

Value-oriented food retailer Smart & Final Stores Inc. plans to accelerate its expansion plans after posting double-digit sales growth in the fourth quarter.

Wayne, N.J. -- Toys “R” Us announced that it has named Reg McLay as senior VP, Babies “R” Us business, effective March 30.
     
McLay will lead the Babies “R” Us merchandising team in the U.S. in driving product innovation, as well as differentiation in services and offerings across its stores nationwide. He will report to Hank Mullany, president, Toys “R” Us, U.S.