News Briefs

U.S. inflation accelerated for a third-straight month in May, climbing above 4% for the first time in three years, amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

The Consumer Price Index rose at a seasonally adjusted 0.5% in May, putting the annual inflation rate at 4.2%, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It’s the highest level since April 2023. 

Taking out energy and food, consumer prices rose 0.9% for the month, and 2.9% year over year, the biggest increase since September. Energy prices accounted for more than 60% of May’s spike.  The BLS reported that the energy index in May rose  23.5% from last year, with gasoline prices climbing 40.5%. On the positive side, the monthly pace of grocery inflation slowed, with the food-at-home index up by only 0.1% in May. 

The findings come amid a new survey from EY-Parthenon in which 90% of consumers said they were concerned about transportation and gas costs, making it the top near-term pressure on household budgets. As a result, more than 30% were already reevaluating leisure and entertainment spending ahead of the summer travel season, while nearly two-thirds said they believe a recession is likely.

“Financial confidence has softened as consumers reassess their outlook and make more deliberate, trade-off-driven spending decisions amid ongoing economic and geopolitical uncertainty,” said Mark Chambers, EY Americas retail sector leader. “This shift toward intentional spending signals to retailers that leading with value is critical, alongside refining pricing and promotion strategies in order to meet shifting demand.”

[READ MORE: NRF: Retail sales grow in April]

According to EY-Parthenon’s Consumer Sentiment Survey, financial confidence has declined 12% over the past six months, even as most households report stable finances month-to-month. Only 25% feel very confident in their current financial situation.

A Canadian direct-to-consumer furniture brand has selected the Windy City as the site of its next pop-up location.

Cozey will open a temporary location in Chicago’s affluent Gold Coast neighborhood on June 18. The 5,345-sq.-ft. pop-up will showcase a curated mix of Cozey’s most popular and newest products, ranging from the brand’s signature modular seating and new modular bed system to washable rugs, storage options and more.

Cozey says the Chicago pop-up comes as the brand continues to invest in storefronts that “complement” its fast-growing e-commerce business and deepen customer engagement.

[READ MORE: DTC furniture brand Povison to open its first physical store]

Founded in 2020, Cozey designs and sells “modern, modular” home furnishings, including sofas, beds, dining room furniture and more. The brand currently operates four stores across Canada, in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal.

Earlier this spring, Cozey opened a temporary 5,000-sq.-ft. Venice Beach showroom that will serve customers in the Los Angeles area until December. Cozey plans to open its first permanent U.S. store in New York City, within a nine-story mixed-use building in Manhattan’s Flatiron District on Fifth Avenue.

“Opening in Chicago is an exciting next step for Cozey,” said Cozey CEO & Founder Frédéric Aubé. “We’ve seen incredible momentum for the brand so far this year, and as we continue to scale, physical retail remains an important part of our growth and how we connect with customers. As with all our locations, we follow where the demand is and so we’re very excited to bring the Cozey experience to the city and its residents.”

A rapidly growing specialty battery retailer is creating a leading-edge artificial intelligence environment.

For the past several years, Batteries Plus has been modernizing its enterprise architecture with the goal of transitioning core systems to a scalable, cloud-enabled and data-driven infrastructure that will support next-generation AI solutions.

As part of this transformation, Batteries Plus has delivered enhanced capabilities across key areas of the business including e-commerce, POS, payments, product information management, enterprise search, and partner integrations. The company is now building on this foundation with a series of AI-driven initiatives focused on improving decision-making, streamlining operations, and delivering more personalized customer interactions. 

According to Batteries Plus, its new AI-enabled capabilities have so far achieved a 35–40% customer inquiry containment rate, reduced failed searches by 25% and delivered incremental sales uplift.

In addition, the company's modernized cloud infrastructure, built on a highly available multi-region architecture, has improved system availability and recovery performance and reduced production incidents by 65%. Software delivery and time-to-market have accelerated from months to days through automation, according to Batteries Plus.

“Our focus has been on building a strong, future-ready foundation that allows us to move faster and deliver with confidence,” said Karthik Jambulingam, senior director of enterprise architecture, Batteries Plus, who has led this initiative. “Enterprise AI is only as effective as the architecture behind it. Our investment in enterprise architecture is what makes scalable AI possible. We've built the foundation, and now we're accelerating what we can deliver on top of it.”

In 2023, Batteries Plus developed a group called the Center of Excellence to explore the possibilities of utilizing the latest AI platforms, with a focus on generative AI, in its business model. 

[READ MORE: Batteries Plus dedicates initiative to generative AI]

Batteries Plus has over 800 locations open and in development across the U.S.

Georgia’s second-largest mall will be replacing its standard food hall to make it a gathering place as well as a convenient eatery.

The redesigned concept called Perimeter Eats will be relocated away from the busy corridor that was the home of the food hall to eliminate a long-standing congestion point at the 1.5 million-sq.-ft. center.

“Dining is a big part of why people come to Perimeter Mall, and evolving the traditional, tired food court will create a better overall experience, which is always a top priority for us,” said Adam Tritt, GGP’s executive VP of development.

GGP plans to repurpose the square footage of the existing food court space to create room for a new, elevated retail mix. 

“With many new leases underway, the Perimeter Eats project is really opening the door for what is to come next at Perimeter Mall,” said Josh Deckelbaum, GGP’s executive VP of leasing. “We continue to see strong demand for brands like Zara, Lego and Pop Mart, and we look forward to Aritzia and Alo opening this year.”

Perimeter Eats is expected to open in early 2027 at Perimeter Center, which is located in the Atlanta suburb of Dunwoody near the interchange of Interstate 285 and Georgia State Route 400. 

Lima Center, a 174,000-sq.-ft. property in Lima, Ohio, that is anchored by Kohl’s and TJ Maxx, has been acquired by an unnamed buyer.

The sale was announced by Eastern Union, a commercial real estate brokerage that arranged $13 million in financing for the $19.5 million acquisition. 

Located off Interstate 75 in the western quadrant of the state, Lima Center’s big draws are the 86,000-sq.-ft. Kohl’s and the 30,000-sq.-ft. TJ Maxx. 

“This top-tier retail asset meets every benchmark for quality and stability,” said Jack Beida, Eastern Union’s managing director. “Lima Center has 100-percent occupancy and is 98-percent leased.”

Other key tenants include Five Below and Dollar Tree.

Lima, a town of 35,000 residents, is the county seat of Ohio’s Allen County.

Levin Management Corporation (LMC) has added a new retail property to its management portfolio.

The New Jersey-based firm has been awarded the management and leasing assignment for Tysen Park Shopping Center, a 154,000-sq.-ft. retail property in New York City, located along Staten Island’s heavily traveled Hylan Boulevard corridor. Anchored by Stop & Shop and HomeGoods, the center is currently 97% occupied, with national tenants that include Wendy’s, Dunkin’, Paris Baguette, Club Pilates, CITYMD, Santander Bank and Northfield Bank.

"This assignment represents an exciting opportunity to bring our integrated platform to a well-positioned Staten Island asset,” said Joseph Lowry, senior VP of acquisitions and business development for LMC. “Tysen Park Shopping Center has strong fundamentals, an established market presence and a tenant mix well-aligned with today's retail demand.”

[READ MORE: Centennial tapped to take over management of Connecticut’s SoNo mall]

Tysen Park attracts approximately 2.9 million visits annually according to Placer.ai, and serves a dense, affluent trade area with more than 166,000 residents and average household incomes exceeding $140,000 within a three-mile radius. Tysen Park is the third retail property assignment LMC has secured this year.

"LMC's integrated approach to property management, leasing and asset positioning continues to resonate with property owners seeking experienced operating partners," said Matthew K. Harding, CEO of LMC. "Assignments like this reflect the confidence owners place in our team and our ability to create long-term value for retail assets."

LMC’s portfolio includes approximately 125 properties totaling 16 million square feet across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. Its assets primarily include grocery-anchored open-air retail centers.