STORE SPACES

Milwaukee -- Goodwill Industries said Thursday it has teamed with Prolitec to introduce fragrance technology to 44 of its stores in southeastern Wisconsin and metropolitan Chicago.

The rollout was preceded by a four-store test, and now the 44 locations, which include four under construction or in the process of opening, will utilize a signature scent featuring hints of sweet orange and honeysuckle, custom-designed by Milwaukee-based Prolitec.

Satellite Beach, Fla. -- General Nutrition Centers has installed high performance, energy efficient LED bulbs from Lighting Science Group bulbs at select corporate-owned locations.

The Energy Star-approved LEDs are 80% more efficient than the halogen bulbs they replaced, are fully dimmable and have about 50% light output than competing products, according to the company.

Austin -- H-E-B, Walmart, Sam’s Club and Denny’s are among the companies that will host some 103 electric vehicle charging stations in Austin, Texas., allowing customers to plug in while they shop. The stations are part of Utility Austin Energy’s Plug-In EVerywhere network.

The charging stations are available for use by everyone with an electric vehicle. Austin Energy offers a $25 six-month subscription swipe card for unlimited charging at any network location. Otherwise, a credit card can be used for $2 per hour of charging.

New York City -- Safeway is embarking on an extensive renovation project to build or extensively revamp 13 stores in the Bay Area, the Sacramento Bee reported.

The company is moving into three former Mervyn's department stores at shopping centers in Pleasant Hill, Campbell and Petaluma.

To read the story, go to sacbee.com/2011/08/03/3814684/safeway-to-revamp-build-stores.html
 

El Segundo, Calif. -- Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market has added 25 compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles to its distribution fleet as part of a partnership with Ryder System. The new vehicles produce 20% to 30% less emissions than comparable diesel vehicles and are part of the company’s ongoing efforts to reduce emissions.

New York City -- A Thursday report by Crain’s New York Business said that Lord & Taylor has signed a two-year contract with Green Mountain Energy Co. to provide the department store retailer with 100% of its electricity needs at two stores, including the Fifth Ave. flagship location.

The move has garnered the attention of the Environmental Protection Agency, which places Lord & Taylor, effective August, as No. 17 on the its Green Power Partnership list of Top 20 retailers embracing clean energy.

Grand Rapids, Mich. -- Grocery retailer Meijer announced it will open a 14th Chicago-area store, this one under its Meijer Marketplace banner designed to bring a smaller-size localized concept to the Melrose Park neighborhood.

Meijer Marketplace spans 96,000 sq. ft. – about half the size of the grocer’s supercenters – and features a tailored offering as well as a variety of general merchandise items.

Seattle -- AccessVia announced Tuesday that Casual Male DXL is printing color shelf-edge product signs using AccessVia Web dSignShop.

Signs are printed in the store on an as-needed basis, allowing the retailer to produce full-color sign designs immediately on-site.