REAL ESTATE

Macerich installs a mobile promo platform for retailers
Macerich is offering retailers a promotional connection to smartphone shoppers at 22 of its properties. Shoppers will be able to access the StepsAway app via mall Wi-Fi and search for products by category or individual retailer. Macerich tenants can create and deliver promotional offers through a cloud-based platform installed at the company’s headquarters.
Eight out of 10 retailers say they need stores; only half of consumers agree
An international study conducted by Capgemini found 80% of retail executives believing in the sanctity of the physical store. Only 45% of shoppers, however, felt the same way. The consulting company’s Digital Transformation Institute surveyed 6,000 consumers and 500 retailers in the U.S., China, and seven European nations and found a consumer base much more taken up with technology and online shopping than leading merchants were.

Nordstrom to close Santa Ana mall store

After nearly 30 years of doing business in the MainPlace Mall in Santa Ana, California, Nordstrom has announced it will be shuttering the location.
Michigan Mall struggles to fill Macy’s hole

The new owner of the 550,000-sq.-ft. Lakeview Square Mall in Battle Creek, Michigan, finds itself in a common quandary among property owners today -- launching an all-points search for retailers to fill the hole left by a closing Macy’s.
Real estate chiefs assess lay of the land in 2017

Photo: Terry Montesi, CEO, Trademark Property Co. (left), Andrea Olshan, CEO, Olshan Properties (center), and Dave Moore, President, Irvine Company Retail Properties (right)
Teen apparel retailer reopens 500-plus stores

Aeropostale, the teen apparel retailer that most of the industry had written off as dead, has risen like a Phoenix. Starting this week, the company is reopening more than 500 doors across the United States. In February, Aéropostale will kick off its spring 2017 marketing campaign, which is designed to showcase the brand’s trans-formation under its new owners. The campaign will be in the stores as well as online and through social media.
J.C. Penney committed to brick-and-mortar but will still close some stores

Look for J.C. Penney to close some stores as it moves forward. In remarks at the The Weitzman Group’s annual forecast event, Penney CEO Marvin Ellison said the company’s 1,014-store portfolio is too large and that the retailer is analyzing which locations don’t meet its “brand standard,” the Dallas Business Journal reported.
Times Square retail gets a second makeover

Some two decades ago Times Square underwent a radical transformation from New York City’s sin center to its version of Disneyland, a magnet of bright lights of wholesome fare that has become a must-stop for all tourists.
Canadian firm acquires American Apparel — but not all of it

Canadian apparel manufacturer Gildan Activewear Inc. emerged as the winner in the court supervised auction to acquire the bankrupt American Apparel brand and some of its other assets. The company, however, will not be purchasing American Apparel’s 110 retail stores. Gilden’s $88 million winning bid was higher than its initial proposal of $66 million, which was made back in November as part of a stalking horse portion of American Apparel LLC’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing.
Party City acquires 18 locations

Party City Holdco Inc. continues to acquire its franchised locations. The company has entered into an agreement to acquire a master franchise group representing 18 franchise stores in Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida, and with estimated 2016 sales of approximately $34 million. The purchase price is estimated to be $14.5 million to $15.0 million.