News

I-69 (Exit 10): Mall entertains in prime location

When development at Exit 10 along Interstate 69 recently exploded, two companies joined to jump at the opportunity to make the area a destination for travelers and central and east central Indiana residents.

Developers Simon Property Group and Gershman Brown Crowley Inc. built Hamilton Town Center, an outdoor mall complete with large stores, specialty shops and restaurants. The companies also own property around the mall, outlots for more stores, restaurants, banks and other development flowing into the area.

The exit’s infrastructure, with an interchange off a major thoroughfare and recently rebuilt cross street of 146th Street, was important in bringing in Hamilton Town Center. Other considerations included the demographics of the mall’s target area, which extends through Madison County and into Delaware County, Simon public relations manager Les Morris said. Read more...

NBC branches out with ‘Office’ sales

Dunder Mifflin has a Scranton branch. And now the NBC Universal Store does, too.

The store, which sells all official NBC merchandise, including anything to do with the Scranton-set comedy, “The Office,” will install a kiosk on the first floor of The Mall at Steamtown starting Nov. 1 and continuing through Dec. 31.

As one would expect, the kiosk, which will be dubbed The Dunder Mifflin Store, will primarily sell “Office” merchandise, including the Dwight Schrute bobblehead doll, the most popular item in the store’s history. Read more...

Developer unveils plan to remake mall in Billings, Mont.

Billings, MT — Washington state developer Bob McDonald said the West Park Plaza mall is broken and he's the man to fix it.

After unfurling bulky drawings illustrating the remake of Billings' first mall, McDonald pointed to a 150-foot-wide swath he's going to carve out of the middle of the mall, just west of the current Hastings Books Music & Videos.

The interior of the mall will be converted into an old-fashioned "Main Street" where cars can park and pedestrians can sit at tables or window shop. Read more...

Retail developers keep sense of humor about economy

A convention for shopping center developers was a mixture of gallows humor, cautious optimism and announcements of retailers coming soon (really).

The International Council of Shopping Centers Southeast Conference on Monday convened some of the industry’s top local experts to discuss where retail development is going. Read more...

Full of Doubts, U.S. Shoppers Cut Spending

Cowed by the financial crisis, American consumers are pulling back on their spending, all but guaranteeing that the economic situation will get worse before it gets better.

In response to the falling value of their homes and high gasoline prices, Americans have become more frugal all year. But in recent weeks, as the financial crisis reverberated from Wall Street to Washington, consumers appear to have cut back sharply. Even with the government beginning a giant bailout of the financial system, their confidence may have been too shaken for them to resume their free-spending ways any time soon. Read more...

Holiday sales barely predicted to rise; local retailers predict sales will be OK

Beaumont, TX — Christmas has arrived at GiGi's, A Children's Boutique, on Dowlen Road.

And Halloween still is four Fridays away.

Owners Cara Kinchen and Suzette Smith already have received a shipment of Christmas clothes, and they're gearing up for the busiest shopping season of the year.

Kinchen said there hasn't been talk among customers of cutting corners this Christmas or spending less money. And she hopes she won't hear that anytime soon. Read more...

Rookie mistakes still impact shoppers at some retail sites, Forrester says

Just like in a store, if a shopper has a bad experience on a retail web site, there’s a good chance the retailer may never see that customer again—and that customer might relay his bad experience to family and friends.

The importance of a top-notch online experience cannot be stressed enough, and retailers that hone a good online shopping experience can use it to stand out from the crowd, says Bruce D. Temkin, vice president and principal analyst of customer experience at Forrester Research Inc. Read more...

Old make way for new in the chain

There is likely to be a shift toward the secondary market in franchising, writes Julianne Dowling.

The franchise industry is likely to go through a huge ownership shake-out over the next 12 to 18 months and will require a large surge in capital, the head of an advice group says. Adrian McFedries, the head of DC Strategy, which advises clients such as Boost Juice, Fernwood Women's Health Clubs and Mortgage Choice and is expanding into the United States, believes it's the season of the seven-year itch as more franchisees look to sell their businesses and corporate executives, made redundant, seek to find a job through buying a business.

Rod Nuttall, the national account manager of corporate financial services for the Commonwealth Bank, agrees the pressure for funding will increase over the next decade. Read more...

Holidays Loom, Seasonal Job Seekers Find Gloom

Sacramento, CA - With more people unemployed and retailers cutting back, those looking for seasonal jobs are finding slim pickings.

Frank Chavez says he's tried everything he can think of: big box retailers, independent stores, grocery outlets, warehousing. In the past four weeks, the 20-year-old Sacramento college student has filled out 50 applications with no luck so far.

"Either you don't get a call back or they're just not looking for whatever you have to offer, I guess," said Chavez after a job interview at an Arden Fair Mall kiosk stand for Rosetta Stone language software. "A lotta people are looking for jobs, lotta people looking for second jobs. A couple of interviews I've had, they've been group interviews of anywhere from five to probably 20 (applicants)." Read more...

In early holiday push, Wal-Mart cutting toy prices

New York - Wal-Mart Stores Inc is cutting prices on popular toys and ramping up the opening of Christmas shops in its U.S. stores as the retailer tries to win sales from cash-strapped shoppers ahead of what could be the worst holiday season in 17 years.

Wal-Mart said on Wednesday that it will sell ten toys, including certain Barbie dolls and Tonka trucks, for $10 each. It is also putting its Christmas shops on the "fast track" and intends to open the shops, which sell ornaments and holiday decor, in its stores nationwide by October 10. Read more...