REAL ESTATE

Ross to open two new stores in Houston market
Dublin, Calif. -- Ross Dress for Less will open two new stores in the Houston area on March 7.

The stores are located in the Center at Pearland Parkway in East Pearland, 15 miles from downtown Houston; and Ravenwood Village Shopping Center in Huntsville. With these new locations, Ross will operate 170 stores in Texas, its second largest state.

Together, Ross Dress for Less and dd’s Discounts currently operate over 1,300 off-price apparel and home fashion stores in 33 states, the District of Columbia and Guam.
Tenant mix expanding at Shoppes at Blackstone Valley
Millbury, Mass. -- Douglas Wine & Spirits, Visionworks and DSW are opening in early 2015 at The Shoppes at Blackstone Valley, in Millbury, Massachusetts.

Douglas Wine & Spirits opened February 1st and occupies a 5,400-sq.-ft. space between Sleepy’s and Guitar Center. Visionworks will be in opening in March in a 2,700-sq.-ft. space between Sephora and Feng Asian Bistro.

DSW will be making its appearance in early April in a 15,000-sq.-ft. space adjacent to Marshall’s.

Red Wing Shoes to open at Arbrook Square

Arlington, Texas -- Red Wing Shoes will open a 1,500-sq.-ft. store at Arbrook Square Shopping Center in Arlington, Texas. The center is located at the southeast corner of Arbrook Boulevard and Matlock Road.

Cynthia Bailey of WindStar Properties represented the landlord, Arbrook Square Investors, L.P. The tenant was represented by Cameron Haddad of NAI Robert Lynn Company.
YellowKorner joins The Galleria at Fort Lauderdale

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. -- The Galleria at Fort Lauderdale, a premier regional mall in Broward County, Florida, has added France-based YellowKorner, a limited edition photo gallery, to its mix of more than 100 specialty retailers. YellowKorner is located across from Dillard’s upper mall entrance and next to Natuzzi in the nearly one million-sq.-ft. mall.
Tile Shop adds two more stores in Tampa area

Minneapolis -- The Tile Shop has expanded its presence in the Tampa, Florida market, opening a location at the Dale Mabry Shopping Center in Tampa, and another at in Brandon.

The new locations join the growing family of Tile Shop stores in Florida, including a location in Jacksonville and an Orlando location to open this spring.
Orchard Supply Hardware opens three new stores

San Jose, Calif. -- Orchard Supply Hardware announced it has opened three new stores, including a location in Portland, Oregon, and two in California (Irvine, and Cerritos).

In addition to the 300 jobs these new stores have created, the retailer plans to hire an additional 1,000 associates as it prepares for the busy spring season, and to support its continuing growth.
Customer understanding key to retailer success

New York -- Customer analytics is a key component to retail success; CSA talked with Buxton's Bill Stinneford at NRF's Big Show in New York City about tech trends and the importance of understanding exactly who your customer is.

Watch video here.
Academy Sports + Outdoors moving Eastward with four stores in Orlando area

New York -- Academy Sports + Outdoors will celebrate the simultaneous opening of four stores in the Orlando, Florida, area in March.

The new stores will be located in Kissimmee, Waterford, Lake Mary and Melbourne and will open simultaneously at 8:30 a.m. on March 6. The openings mark the Katy, Texas-based company’s furthest expansion eastward to date.

The $4 billion sporting goods retailer has entered into a multi-year partnership with the Orlando City Soccer Club beginning with the team's inaugural 2015 season.
Sears leases two mall stores to Primark

Hoffman Estates, Ill. – As part of a 2014 announcement in which Sears Holdings Corp. said it had entered into lease agreements with European fashion retailer Primark for seven standalone stores in the Northeastern United States, the retailer said that two of these seven locations will be at Danbury Fair in Danbury, Connecticut; and Freehold Raceway Mall in Freehold, New Jersey.
Sembler closed year with deals in new markets, increased occupancy rates

St. Petersburg, Fla. -- In 2014, The Sembler Co. said it saw increased activity across business segments, from more than 700,000 sq. ft. of new and renewed leases, to expanding the company’s geographical reach.