STORE SPACES

Rodney Fitch dies
New York -- Retail design guru Rodney Fitch, 78, died on Oct. 20 at his home in Wiltshire, England, following a battle with cancer. Fitch founded the design firm of the same name in 1972, and was appointed Commander of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1990 for his ‘influence on the British Design Industry’. He left Fitch, which is now owned by WPP, at the end of 2009.
Action Services Group to provide Hancock Fabrics lighting maintenance
Aston, Penn.-- Actions Services Group, a national lighting maintenance, sign maintenance and electrical services company, will provide scheduled lighting maintenance for Hancock Fabrics, a specialty retailer of crafts and fabrics. The lighting maintenance program will include quarterly inspections and service to all 266 Hancock Fabrics store locations across 37 states and will cover interior store lighting and exterior canopy lighting maintenance.

Sleepy’s opens 1,000th store

Hicksville, N.Y. --Sleepy's announced that with the grand opening of its new location in Joliet, Ill., the privately-owned mattress retailer's store count reached a landmark 1,000 stores. "It is with great pride that we announce our thousandth-store milestone," said Sleepy's president, David Acker. "Sleepy's has been around since 1957, and we are very proud of this latest accomplishment. It won't stop here."
Intel opens in-store “experience” shops in 50 Best Buy locations

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Intel debuted “The Intel Experience” in-store shops in 50 Best Buy locations nationwide. The hands-on “experience zone” gives shoppers the opportunity to try, explore and play with the latest, cutting-edge technologies from 3-D printing to digital disc-jockey remixing.
West Elm to open in El Paso

Brooklyn, N.Y. -- Home furnishings retailer West Elm will open a store in El Paso, Texas, on Thursday, Oct. 16th. Located in The Promenade of The Fountains at Farah, the more than 22,000 square foot store will feature a curated selection of products made in Texas, part of West Elm’s Local initiative.
Nordstrom opens in Jacksonville, Fla.

Seattle -- Nordstrom on Friday opened the doors to its first store in Northeast Florida, at St. Johns Town Center in Jacksonville. "We're thrilled to open our first full-line store at such an outstanding mall as St. Johns Town Center," said Brandy Jefferson, Nordstrom St. Johns Town Center store manager.
Overstock.com opens new corporate campus in 2016

Salt Lake City – Overstock.com is building a new corporate campus, referred to as the "Peace Coliseum," which is anticipated to open during summer 2016. Overstock officials have said that from the ground level, the building will look like a corporate glass-and-concrete version of the Roman Coliseum, but from the air, the three-story building will appear as a peace sign.
Ikea expanding its Detroit-area store with help of Clark Construction Company

Conshohocken, Pa. -- Ikea has begun significant demolition of a 30,145-sq.-ft. building adjacent to its Detroit-area store in Canton, Michigan. Razing of the vacant retail building will make room for the Swedish retailer’s planned expansion of its Canton location. The 311,000-sq.-ft. store, which opened June 2006, will grow nearly 44,000 sq. ft., with the project’s completion by summer 2015.
Study: Mobile rich media drives expansion, engagement

New York - Mobile rich media advertising drives high expansion rates and secondary engagement for retail brands. According to internal retail industry mobile ad performance analyses conducted by predictive mobile advertising provider AdTheorent Inc. across its network during the second quarter of 2014, rich media drove a strong expansion rate across the retail category, delivering at a rate 125% higher than the industry average.
Global Facility Management hires Lennox exec as sales manager

Melville, N.Y. — Global Facility Management & Construction has hired Jaime Trujillo, a former member of the sales team at facilities services provider Lennox, to its sales team. In his new role as sales manager, Trujillo will be instrumental in developing new business and expanding existing accounts.