Sales & Marketing

Dallas —
 SRS Real Estate Partners has hired Danielle M. O'Hara Murphy as a senior associate in the Orlando office. She will primarily focus on providing tenant representation for national retailers, as well as acquisitions, dispositions, investment properties and landlord representation.

O’Hara Murphy previously worked with CBRE, The Staubach Company and JLL.

The shopping habits of today’s consumers have changed; retailers must be able to provide the product information they want through one or more of the marketing channels they may frequent — and all of those communications must be consistent with the physical in-store experience. That means new merchandising tactics are being embraced by industry leaders who are turning to digital signage to enhance the shopper experience and achieve competitive differentiation.

New York -- Aldi was recognized as the nation's low-price grocery leader for the fourth year in a row, according to a recent consumer survey conducted by Market Force Information. Aldi announced in December 2013 that it intends to open 650 new stores across the country during the next five years.

When asked to rank the top grocers offering low prices, the 6,200 consumers who participated in the study ranked Aldi first, followed by Costco and Walmart third.

Houston — JLL announced it has expanded its retail capabilities into Houston with the addition of Mark Raines as a senior VP. Partnering with Dallas retail brokerage lead Clay Smith and Austin and San Antonio market lead Todd Wallace, Raines will focus on JLL’s retail business including tenant representation and agency leasing and will serve as Houston’s retail brokerage leader.

Atlanta - Global Payments Inc. has signed a referral agreement with BitPay, a provider of business solutions for the Bitcoin digital currency. This relationship allows Global Payments to incorporate the cryptocurrency into its product suite and to offer Bitcoin payment acceptance to its worldwide merchants.

Walgreens has exercised its option to complete the second step of its strategic transaction with Alliance Boots ahead of the original option period, which was between February and August 2015. The transaction, subject to shareholder and various regulatory approvals, would fully combine the two companies to form the first global pharmacy-led, health and well-being enterprise.
 

London - Nook Media LLC, a subsidiary of Barnes & Noble Inc., has launched its new Nook GlowLight e-reader in the U.K. The new Nook GlowLight features perfectly-lit pages, sharper text and advanced display technology, and can hold up to 2,000 books.

The Nook GlowLight will be available starting Aug. 6 at Argos, Asda, Blackwells, Foyles, John Lewis, Sainsburys and Very.

Juvenile products manufacturer Bendon, Inc., has entered the premium craft market following a recent acquisition that also creates the potential for expanded distribution.