News Briefs

Yesway is seeking to raise as much as $321 million in its initial public offering, 

The Fort Worth, Texas-based convenience store retailer is selling nearly 14 million shares for $20 to $23 each. The shares are expected to trade on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under ticker symbol "YSWY."

Yesway said it plans to grant underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 2,093,023 shares at the IPO price, minus underwriting discounts. At the top of the price range, Yesway would have a market value of about $1.4 billion, reported ttnews.

Founded in 2015 by real estate-focused private equity firm Brookwood Financial Partners, Yesway has grown rapidly through acquisitions— including its 2019 purchase of Allsup’s — and new builds. It currently operates 449 stores across nine states in the Midwest and Southwest. In a recent filing with the SEC, Yesway said it intends to open 130 new stores by 2031, most of them new‑to‑industry builds.

Morgan Stanley is acting as lead book-running manager for the offering. J.P. Morgan and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC are acting as active bookrunning managers. Barclays, BMO Capital Markets, KeyBanc Capital Markets, Guggenheim Securities, and Raymond James & Associates, Inc. are also acting as bookrunners.

The new mayor of New York City is moving along with one of his signature campaign promises.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani said that New York City will open a city-owned grocery store by the end 2027. Plans call for the store to be located at La Marqueta, a city-owned marketplace in Manhattan's East Harlem neighborhood, which is home to a diverse community challenged by affordability issues.

Mamdani announced the news at a rally in Queen, N.Y., over the weekend celebrating his first 100 days in office. 

“We’re going to make it easier for New Yorkers to put food on the table,” he told the crowd. “At our stores, eggs will be cheaper. Bread will be cheaper.”

The Mamdani administration plans to open the location at La Marqueta by the end of 2027, with a goal of having all five of the mayor's promised city-run grocery stores (one in each borough) up and running by end of his first term (close of 2029).

According to a report by wnbc, the city-run supermarket will feature select core foods that will be sold at a cheaper price compared to other supermarkets in New York City.

"The city will subsidize a core set of food staples," Mamdani said in the report. "A private operator will run the store, but will answer to the standards the city will set. These standards include requirements that at our stores bread will be cheaper. Eggs will be cheaper. Grocery shopping will no longer be an unsolvable equation. And workers will be treated with dignity."

Fitness “community” and athleticwear apparel brand Gymshart is diving into a new market.

The U.K. brand, which debuted its first U.S. stores in 2025, will open its first ever gym, in Miami’s Wynwood district. The new Gymshark Lifting Club is expected to open its doors this summer.

The opening comes as Gymshark has been expanding its retail footprint. Founded online in 2012, the brand opened its first store in 2022, on Regent Street in London. Other stores followed, with locations in Manchester (U.K.), Amsterdam and Dubai. It opened its first permanent U.S. store in November at Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City, N.Y. In December, the company opened a 13,000-sq.-ft. flagship in New York City’s Soho area.

Gymshark regularly holds community fitness events. In a release announcing the planned gym, Gymshark noted that it has held some of its biggest-ever “lift” events in the city, with more than 20,000 fitness fanatics coming down to lift, meet their heroes, and set personal bests with fellow trainers. 

[READ MORE: Dick’s to open in-store spaces for popular U.K. brand Gymshark]

“The question I’ve been asked the most over the past 13 years is ‘when is Gymshark going to open a gym?,'" stated Gymshark founder and CEO Ben Francis. “Our community has been crying out for it, and it’s something I’ve always dreamed about, but the timing and location had to be right. I’ve visited Miami many times, but even from the very first visit, I knew this would be the only place to open Gymshark’s first gym. The fitness culture, the lifting legacy, the insatiable appetite for health meant it could only ever be Wynwood.”

Batteries Plus is continuing its aggressive growth strategy to start 2026.

In the first quarter alone, the specialty retailer sold 14 new units to seven new franchise owners, expanding its footprint across Texas, Florida, Minnesota, California, Georgia and Illinois. Batteries Plus credits its “recession-resistant, essential retail concept” as fuel for the continued store expansion plans.

In 2025, Batteries Plus signed 24 franchise deals totaling 63 new units, and opened 30 new locations across 13 states. The retailer also reached a key milestone last year by establishing a retail presence in all 50 U.S. states. It currently has more than 800 locations open and in development.

"This momentum goes beyond development numbers," said Victor Daher, VP of franchise development at Batteries Plus. "We've built a business that meets everyday needs, adapts with changing consumer demand, and gives franchisees the support they need to grow with confidence."

In addition to growing its development pipeline, Batteries Plus also recently announced a leadership change. Jon Sica has been promoted from chief operating officer to president, which the company says reflects its focus on “strategic growth with a strong leadership.”

Sica was named president in January after being promoted to COO in 2024. He has spent more than seven years at Batteries Plus, also serving as chief business officer and chief strategy and development officer.

[READ MORE: Batteries Plus e-commerce site upgrade includes online learning hub]

Headquartered in Hartland, Wis., Batteries Plus offers batteries, specialty light bulbs and phone repair services for the direct-to-consumer and commercial channels. It also offers key programming, replacement and cutting services.

Pacsun’s dedicated online resale shop is making its "real world" debut.

The teen-oriented specialty apparel retailer is making its curated resale concept, "PS Vintage," available in select stores across the U.S. Pacsun initially launched PS Vintage, featuring thousands of one-of-a-kind pieces for men and women, online in December 2025.

[READ MORE: Pacsun launches curated resale shop]

The retailer hand-selected the assortment, which includes graphic tees, hoodies, denim, jackets and more, by size, era and style in collaboration with online secondhand retail platform Springy.

Pacsun plans to continuously refresh PS Vintage assortments, creating a rotating in-store experience designed to drive discovery and repeat visits, the company said. Items are labeled using the Springy system by size, year and category. 

"Vintage shopping has become central to Gen Z's sense of individuality, alongside a growing focus on sustainability and self-expression," said Richard Cox, chief merchandising officer of Pacsun. "At the same time, we're seeing renewed interest in intentional, in-person retail. PS Vintage brings these behaviors together, offering discovery, community, and one-of-a-kind product in a way that feels relevant to this generation."

PS Vintage is available in 16 Pacsun store locations at launch, with plans to expand to additional stores. The collection was developed with direct input from the retailer’s core Gen Z consumer base through Pacsun's Youth Advisory Council.

There's been a change in leadership at one of the country's leading intimate apparel brands.

Wacoal America, part of Wacoal International Corp., said that CEO Mitchell Kauffman will retire, effective immediately, following six years of leadership and a distinguished 40-year career in the intimate apparel industry. James Wheatley, who has served as president of Wacoal America for the past year, was named president and CEO. 

The transition comes at a pivotal moment for the brand. Wacoal America recently completed its acquisition of direct-to-consumer plus-size intimates brand Glamorise, The company has also opened new retail locations in Columbus, Ohio, and Hilton Head, S.C., with further expansion planned.

In addition, Wacoal said it is launching a newly redesigned website that signals a broader brand evolution, “one centered on meeting women where they are, serving them across all life stages, and deepening the fit education and inclusive access that have long set the brand apart.”   

Wheatley brings nearly four decades of retail and intimate apparel experience to his expanded role. He spent 13 years with JCPenney before moving into the intimate apparel industry, where he has built his career over the past 26 years. His background includes leadership roles at Vanity Fair and Maidenform, followed by his six-year tenure as VP of sales at Wacoal America.

"We are entering a moment of real change in retail and our industry, and I see it as an opportunity to lead," Wheatley said. "I am deeply committed to the culture Mitch and his predecessors have built here, and equally committed to pushing Wacoal America forward into what comes next."

Kauffman, who joined Wacoal America in 2016, will remain on board as an advisor to support the transition and new initiatives.