Supermarket/Grocery

West Milford, N.J. -- Inserra Supermarkets has been granted final site plan approval for the renovation and expansion of West Milford Shopping Center, which includes a 65,925-sq.-ft. ShopRite.

The 100,000+-sq.-ft. retail center’s tenant roster includes Wells Fargo Bank, Rite Aid, Frank’s Pizza and Just a Buck, and adjoins a free-standing McDonald’s restaurant.

New York -- Sales of Halloween candy, decorations and other items may not reach the $8 billion mark anticipated earlier by the National Retail Federation as Hurricane Sandy turned consumers’ attentions elsewhere.

Covington, La. -- Stirling Properties announced that Sam’s Club has opened at its River Chase shopping center, the largest open-air retail center in St. Tammany Parish.

The 136,000-sq.-ft. Sam’s Club features a fuel station and pharmacy, and joins anchors Target, Belk and J.C. Penney at the master-planned, mixed-use development.

London -- Barnes & Noble said Monday that its subsidiary Nook Media will partner with U.K.’s largest supermarket chain Asda to sell the Nook reader in 300 Asda stores across the U.K.

Barnes & Noble said it plans to expand the expected number of U.K. retail outlets to over 2,500 and include various online retail platforms as well. Terms of its deal with Asda weren’t disclosed.

Sunbury, Pa. -- Weis Markets Inc. reported Friday that net income for the third quarter increased 1.2% to $17.2 million.

Sales for the period dipped 1.5% to $668.4 million and same-store stores decreased 1.7%.

Weis Markets operates 162 stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, New Jersey and West Virginia.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced the completion of its increased investment in Yihaodian, a fast-growing Chinese e-commerce company. The chain now holds an approximate 51% stake in the Yihaodian holding company.

"This investment demonstrates we are committed to the development of e-commerce in China and bringing the best possible shopping experience to Chinese customers," said Neil Ashe, president and CEO of Wal-Mart's Global e-commerce division in a statement.

As we continue to witness the battle of brick-and-mortar versus online shopping, it’s interesting to see Walmart’s latest ploy to “one-up” their online competition. Their new Walmart To Go service is offering customers same-day delivery of online orders for just $10. While the initial test period is expected to last only through the holidays, the possibility that this could stick makes me think that Walmart To Go might ultimately have some huge implications for brick-and-mortar retail. The big question, of course, is will it work? Can Walmart pull it off?

New York -- Results of the 16th annual Brand Keys Loyalty Leaders survey released Friday revealed that Apple, Amazon, Samsung, YouTube and Twitter have the most loyal followings.

Austin, Texas -- Whole Foods Market said Friday it will acquire six leases from Johnnie's Foodmaster, a family-owned grocery chain based in Chelsea, Mass. The transaction is expected to close Nov. 30.

Johnnie's Foodmaster will close all six locations prior to the closing date, but Whole Foods said it has guaranteed interviews to all Johnnie's Foodmaster employees at the six acquired locations with the goal of hiring as many as possible.

In its eighth year, the annual Top Redevelopers survey continues to underscore the country’s emphasis on refurbishing and repositioning over building anew. Just as in the prior seven years, shopping center owners are concentrating on existing assets — sometimes tweaking, sometimes refreshing, sometimes razing sections and rebuilding. For all, however, the goal is to maximize exposure and returns for all the tenants involved.