News

Simon has opened the doors on a new 155,000-sq.-ft. wing at its King of Prussia Mall that connects the five-anchor Plaza and two-anchor Court. The Pennsylvania mega-mall’s footprint now encompasses 2.9 million sq. ft.   Longtime tenants Burberry, Hermes, Louis Vuitton, and Tiffany relocated to the new addition. Some 50 new stores will populate the space, led by high-fashion and luxury brands such as Calligaris, David Yurman, Jimmy Choo, CH Caroline Herrera, and Diane von Furstenberg.   

Macy’s recently announced plans to close some 100 stores could do more than leave developers looking for a new anchor.   Nearly $30 billion of bonds backed by commercial mortgages are exposed to the retailer, reported Bloomberg, citing a note by Morningstar Credit Ratings. And more than $3.6 billion in loans would be affected by the closing of 28 stores that Morningstar identified as being most at risk, the report said. 

Cole Haan has opened a global flagship at the just-opened Westfield World Trade Center in lower Manhattan. And the retailer is making it easy for shoppers to get there by linking up with Uber.  

Fresh produce comes out on top as the most important feature to customers in their grocery store experience.   That’s according to a new report by Acosta, a full-service sales and marketing agency in the CPG Industry, in which fresh produce (89%) ranked as a more important feature than competitive pricing (86%) and product selection (84%).   

It appears that American Apparel may be looking to start a new chapter.   The retailer, which emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection some six months ago, is now said to be looking for a buyer, Women’s Wear Daily reported.   Click here to read more.

The Bon-Ton Stores reduced its loss in the second quarter amid fewer markdowns and inventory controls, but sales fell as mall traffic remained soft.   The retailer posted a loss of $38.7 million in the quarter ended July 30, compared with a net loss of $39.6 million in the year-ago period.   Total sales fell 2.4% to $542.4 million, compared with $555.4 million last year. Same-store sales were down 2.0%.  

Wal-Mart Stores surprised the industry on Thursday with better-than-expected profit and revenue for the second quarter. The chain raised its full-year outlook in the wake of its strong performance.    The retailing giant reported that its net income rose 8.6% to $3.8 billion in the quarter ended, up from $3.5 billion in the year-ago period.    Total revenue rose 0.5% to $120.85 billion in the quarter, slightly above analysts' projection.   

Apple has opened its 10th store in New York City, inside the shopping area at the new World Trade Center Transportation hub in lower Manhattan.   The store draws inspiration from the surrounding structure, which was designed by Santiago Calatrava, to create a seamless space. The interior design is fairly standard for Apple, with the exception of a huge video wall and seating area.   

The Rite Aid Foundation announced Monday a $50,000 donation to the American Red Cross Louisiana Capital Area to help the victims, families and communities across the greater Baton Rouge area that were affected by the historic rainfall and flooding over the weekend.   

Customer experience remains at the hub of all retail strategies, including technical strategy. Whether it’s global inventory availability, mobile payment or loyalty apps, e-commerce and call center integration, or ubiquitous points-of-sale, infrastructure that uses all assets while integrating suppliers and consumers continues to define a retailer’s network design. Further, in highly competitive retail segments, managing the costs of digital fluidity is not only vital to capturing profitable share; it can also distinguish competitive advantage.