REAL ESTATE

Destin, Fla. — Charming Charlie and Icing by Claire’s will open at Destin Commons in Destin, Fla., next summer as part of the Northwest Florida center’s 100,000-sq.-ft. expansion.

H&M and Uncle Buck’s Fish Bowl & Grill will anchor the expansion wing.

Charming Charlie, a fashion accessories retailer, will occupy more than 6,000 sq. ft. next to Uncle Buck’s.

Oak Brook, Ill. — Retail Properties of America has appointed Matthew Beverly VP, director of investments — east region. In his new post, Beverly will lead investment activity through the evaluation and execution of acquisition and dispositions for all markets east of the Mississippi River.

Los Angeles, Calif. — CIM Group has acquired a seven-asset portfolio that includes an office tower with ground floor retail and an enclosed regional shopping mall.

Atlanta — Flip Flop Shops has announced plans to develop 25 shops throughout South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mauritius. The new shops stem from a master franchise agreement with Barefoot, regional retail group. The first new shop is expected to open by mid-year, with additional shops following over the next 10 years.

Flip Flop Shops has nearly 100 locations globally plus more than 150 shops in the development pipeline, not including those within this new franchise agreement.

 

New York -- For the second consecutive year, Chain Store Age will select 10 individuals in retail real estate as “retail stars;” all will be featured in the April/May 2014 issue with bonus distribution to the International Council of Shopping Centers’ RECon show in Las Vegas in May.

The award recognizes people under the age of 40 who are making an impact in retail real estate – whether from the tenant (retail) or the landlord (shopping center company) side.

Ankeny, Iowa -- Casey’s General Stores announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire 24 Stop-n-Go locations. Twenty of the stores are located in North Dakota and four are located in Minnesota.

Chicago — Jones Lang LaSalle has announced the appointment of Josh Burmeister as executive VP and Gulf Coast retail brokerage lead and Ms. Buff Teague as VP. They will cover Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and the Florida Panhandle, partnering with John Bemis, Southeast retail market lead and John Lambert, Fla., retail market lead.

Burmeister and Teague join JLL from SRS Real Estate Partners.

While at SRS, Burmeister served as market leader for operations in Mobile, Ala., and co-market leader for Birmingham Ala., operations.

Toward the end of January, the Wall Street Journal reported that Wal-Mart has given itself two years to match the online service and delivery speed of Amazon.com.

In an interview at the World Economic forum in Davos, Switzerland, Neil Ashe, Wal-Mart’s global e-commerce CEO told Journal reporter Dennis Berman was building new warehouses across the country dedicated to handling online orders.