News Briefs

Ikea is continuing its expansion in New York City.

Ingka Investments, the investment arm of Ingka Group (the largest Ikea retailer in the world), said it has acquired a "prime retail and office property" on Broadway at Spring Street in Manhattan. The site, in the heart of SoHo, will be the future home of Ikea's second store in Manhattan. It is currently home to a Nike flagship.

Ingka is buying the building from Jeff Sutton, Wharton Properties. Reuters put the purchase price at $213 million.

Ingka Group will operate the entire building, comprising of five and half floors plus a lower level, for a total of 53,000 sq. ft. Built in 2016, it is one of very few newly constructed properties in SoHo. The Ikea store will occupy the first and second floors, with the lower level used for storage and other back-office facilities, covering approximately 25,000 sq. ft. The upper four floors will be renovated for premium office use.

“This marks Ingka Investments’ fourth acquisition of prime commercial real estate to support Ikea’s growth in the world’s leading cities," said Peter van der Poel, Managing Director of Ingka Investments. "Through property ownership, we can secure Ikea presence at the most important retail hubs while keeping affordability at the core."

The acquisition follows the company's 2024 investment in 570 Fifth Avenue, a retail and office tower being developed by Extell Development Company. It will house the first Ikea store in Manhattan. 

[READ MORE: Ikea to invest over $2.2B in new U.S. stores, pick-up sites during next three years]

Total Wine & More has gotten closer to its goal of operating 300 stores by the end of 2025.

The nation’s largest independent retailer of wine, beer, and spirits will serve as an anchor at the North Village Shopping Center in North Brunswick, N.J. in a 32,000-sq.-ft. space at the 124,000-sq.-ft. property.

“Total Wine & More’s strong brand identity, broad consumer appeal, and focus on delivering an exceptional shopping experience make it a perfect fit for this location,” said Ed Vasconcellos, the Levin Management Corp. (LMC) executive who represented the landlord in the lease negotiations. “Total Wine’s strong brand identity and it’s exceptional shopping experience make it a perfect fit for this location”

Total Wine will join co-anchor Trader Joe’s at North Village, whose other tenants include Michaels, Staples, Ulta Beauty, Panera Bread, Smashburger, Chili’s, and Mattress Warehouse and more. 

According to Placer.ai, the center draws more than 2.5 million visits a year. Situated along Route 1, one of central New Jersey’s busiest retail corridors, the property a densely populated trade area that is rife with shopping options.

“North Village Shopping Center has always been part of the North Brunswick community and reaching full occupancy with Total Wine & More is a proud milestone,” said Matthew K. Harding, chief executive officer of LMC. “Together, Trader Joe’s and Total Wine will attract shoppers from well beyond the local area and strengthen the center as a regional destination.”

A fast-growing chicken tenders chain is piloting drone delivery in a major market.

Dave’s Hot Chicken has partnered with urban drone delivery company Matternet to launch its debut drone delivery program. The pilot will take place in Northridge, a northwestern Los Angeles suburb, where eligible residents will be able to order food through the Dave’s app and receive it directly to their homes via Matternet’s autonomous M2 drones.

“Innovation is part of our DNA at Dave’s Hot Chicken,” said Leon Davoyan, chief technology officer at the chain. “By using drones, we’re delivering our food in a way that takes it straight from the kitchen to our loyal customers’ hands.”

[READ MORE: Placer.ai: Raising Cane's, Dave's Hot Chicken top QSR, fast-casual sectors in Q1]

Orders will be prepared at Dave’s Northridge Reseda location and delivered to approved homes in Northridge. The partnership builds on Matternet’s home delivery service in Silicon Valley, which has been operating since October 2024.

“Each day, more than 10 million food deliveries move through our cities in 2-ton cars, adding traffic and pollution,” said Andreas Raptopoulos, founder and CEO of Matternet. “Drones will replace millions of those trips – delivering meals faster, cleaner, and with no human contact beyond the restaurant and the customer.”

Founded in 2017, Dave’s Hot Chicken has become one of the fastest-growing restaurant chains, with more than 400 restaurants expected to be open worldwide by the end of the year. The company says it has sold the rights to more than 1,000 franchise locations in the United States, Canada and the Middle East.

In June, Roark Capital acquired the chain for approximately $1 billion, which the company says will allow the Dave's Hot Chicken to enter its “next phase of growth and innovation.”

Walmart is making a big change to the ingredients in its private label food collection.

The Arkansas-based retail giant has announced that it is moving to eliminate synthetic dyes and the use of an additional 30 ingredients, including certain preservatives, artificial sweeteners, and fat substitutes from its private brand food products. The change, which includes all Walmart U.S. food private brands such as Great Value, Marketside, Freshness Guaranteed and Bettergoods, is a “significant step forward” in providing customers with affordable, high-quality private brand products, said the retailer.

Walmart noted that according to a recent survey of its customers, 62% want more transparency when it comes to food products, and 54% say they review food ingredients. Walmart says that about 90% of private label food products are currently free from synthetic dyes.

[READ MORE: Survey: Consumers spending more time making grocery product choices]

“Our customers have told us that they want products made with simpler, more familiar ingredients – and we’ve listened,” said John Furner, president and CEO, Walmart U.S. “By eliminating synthetic dyes and other ingredients, we’re reinforcing our promise to deliver affordable food that families can feel good about.”

Walmart said it is working with its suppliers to adjust formulations and source alternative ingredients, while preserving the same taste customers have come to expect. Walmart customers will begin to see the reformulated products rolling out over the coming months, with longer lead time changes planned to wrap up by January 2027 at the latest.

“This commitment demonstrates how Walmart is responding to changing customer preferences, while also setting the standard for providing exceptional quality and innovation at an outstanding value,” said Furner.

Walmart operates more than 10,750 stores and numerous e-commerce websites in 19 countries.

Finance leaders are remaining cautious about the economy with 2026 around the corner.

Deloitte’s latest CFO Signals survey, which captures insights from finance chiefs in North America and around the globe, revealed that the overall level of confidence in current and future business conditions edged up in the third quarter of 2025, coming in at 5.7. The previous quarter, the score stood at 5.4, and one year ago, it was at 5. 

Despite the slight increase, CFOs appear to be on the fence about the current status of the North American economy. Only 20% of the respondents think the region’s present economy is “very good” or “good.” Only 8% think it's “very bad” or “bad,” while the rest are neutral.

CFOs remained risk averse in the third quarter, according to Deloitte’s survey. Only 36% of respondents said they think now is a good time to be taking on greater risk. This figure is just slightly above the reading last quarter, and on par with the two-year average of 39%.

[READ MORE: Survey: Tech challenges for retail execs include…]

When it comes to business concerns, cybersecurity, inflation, and interest rates topped the list (50%) of CFOs’ most worrying external risks in the third quarter. Talent (hiring, retention or skills gap) was the most cited internal risk (51%), followed by efficiency and productivity (50%).

CFOs’ increasingly see borrowing as a favorable way to raise funds. More than half (53%) of respondents said debt financing is attractive, which is a considerable increase from the responses just a year ago (18%).

[READ MORE: 7-Eleven Japan tracks digital signage metrics with AI]

7-Eleven International master franchises and/or licenses approximately 48,000 stores in 16 countries and regions. Seven-Eleven Japan Co. Ltd. operates and franchises more than 21,000 stores in Japan.