Supermarket/Grocery

Bedminster, N.J. — Liberty Travel has leased a 1,853-sq.-ft. space at The Hills Village Center in Bedminster, N.J., according to Levin Management, the exclusive leasing and managing agent for the property.

Relocation Realty represented Liberty Travel in the transaction. Liberty’s neighbors in the 109,800-sq.-ft. center include Kings Supermarket, CVS, Starbucks, Great Clips, Cold Stone Creamery, The UPS Store, GNC and Subway.

Yonkers, N.Y. – Unsurprisingly, crowds and long lines are the single biggest consumer dread for the holiday season. According to a new Consumer Reports poll, 61% of consumers dread crowds and long lines, followed by bad traffic (54%).

Boston – Massachusetts retail price scanners reportedly operate at a 99.8% accuracy rate. According to the Associated Press, the Massachusetts Division of Standards checked scanners at 98 different stores of 50 retailers across a wide range of verticals and discovered five overcharges out of about 2,800 individual price scans.

Walmart China CEO Greg Foran reiterated the company’s goal of accelerating Sam’s Club growth in the coming years with several published reports indicating the pace of Sam’s Club openings may eventually reach 10 units annually.

New York -- While retail and consumer organizations have made significant security improvements, they have not kept pace in today’s business environment and are relying on yesterday’s security practices to combat current business threats and risks, according to PwC US’s recently released 2014 Global State of Information Security Survey.

Cheshunt, England – British supermarket and general merchandise retailer Tesco plc has reportedly applied to the Indian government for permission to buy a 50% stake in the Indian hypermarket chain Trent Hypermarket Ltd. According to Reuters, Tesco wants to open stores in western India and would become the first foreign retailer to open a supermarket in India.

Walmart dominated the airwaves this holiday season and the investment paid off, according to advertising measurement firm Ace Metrix which compiled a list of the most effective holiday ads.

Walmart topped the list with a heartwarming spot called Christmas Magic which featuring a selfless child donating a toy he desired to the Salvation Army only to discover he was the recipient of the same toy on Christmas Day. Walmart aired more than 40 unique pieces of holiday-themed creative this season, making it the most prolific advertiser of the season, according to Ace Metrix.

St. Petersburg, Fla. — The Sembler Company is redeveloping the Publix Shopping Center at 3700 4th Street North in St. Petersburg, Fla., on behalf of Publix Super Markets.

Publix will close the store on Dec. 28 to begin the redevelopment of the 50,600-sq.-ft. grocery store and associated liquor store. Improvements will include the construction of new buildings, new landscaping and parking areas. Publix expects to re-open in its new buildings in late 2014.