PLANO, TEXAS — J.C. Penney Co. Inc. will furlough the majority of the hourly associates at its stores beginning Thursday, April 2, a move that coincides with the extended store closures brought about by the spread of the novel coronavirus. The Plano-based retailer will also furlough a portion of its corporate staff, and will continue with furloughs of workers in its supply chain and distribution centers, which began on March 20.
LAKELAND, FLA. — Publix Super Markets is offering two months of rent relief to businesses that operate within Publix-owned shopping centers that have closed due to the coronavirus outbreak. The Lakeland-based grocer is also waiving payments for common area maintenance fees and taxes, regardless of the tenant’s access to other relief or assistance. Publix operates 1,243 stores in seven Southeastern states, including Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and Alabama. A total number of businesses that have closed within Publix-owned centers was not disclosed. Publix owns more than 330 shopping centers.
IRVING, TEXAS — 7-Eleven Inc. has donated 1 million masks to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to be distributed among healthcare workers and patients who are battling COVID-19. The Irving-based convenience store giant has provided all franchisees with masks to be used by employees in their stores, which remain open as essential services. The chain operates approximately 11,800 stores in North America and more than 70,000 worldwide. 7-Eleven is also offering free delivery services for all products through its 7NOW app until April 30.
DALLAS — Dallas-based luxury retailer Neiman Marcus will furlough the majority of its 14,000 employees as it endures another month of store closures, according to reports from multiple news outlets including Reuters, Bloomberg and The Dallas Morning News. Neiman Marcus CEO Geoffroy van Raemdonck made the announcement on Monday, also noting that he would be forgoing a salary during closures, and that employees not impacted by the furloughs would take pay cuts. Neiman Marcus initially announced that it was closing all its stores, including Bergdorf Goodman and Last Call, on March 17, which has since been extended to April 30.
GRAPEVINE, TEXAS — Video game retailer GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) plans to close more than 300 North American stores in 2020, the Grapevine, Texas-based company recently announced during its fourth-quarter earnings call. GameStop did not specify which stores and markets would be affected by the closures, but said that it anticipates the total number of shuttered stores to be equal to or greater than the 320 stores that it closed in 2019. GameStop saw its total comparable stores sales across the globe decrease 26.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 relative to that period a year earlier. Although the company reported a 2 percent increase in global comparable sales in March 2020 relative to March 2019, GameStop executives said that the market disruption caused by the outbreak of COVID-19 has prompted it to move forward with its “global de-densification” plan. In fielding questions from analysts on the call, GameStop CEO George Sherman noted that although “every day brings a new challenge and new information as we navigate this very dynamic environment brought on by COVID-19,” the de-densification plan had been in effect prior to the healthcare crisis. In particular, he said, the plan centered on the transference of revenue …
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA) has launched “Hotels for Hope,” a new initiative that aims to connect participating hotels with the health community struggling to find housing and support as the COVID-19 public health crisis grows. Washington, D.C.-based AHLA has identified more than 6,500 properties nationwide that are can work with the U.S. Department of Health, Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Army CORPS of Engineers to provide access to hotel properties to support the health community and our nation’s first responders and local emergency management and public health agencies. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the hotel industry is seeing vacancy rates soar across the United States, with some markets, including Boston, Seattle and Austin, reporting more than 80 percent vacancy. Markets including Chicago are reporting single-digit occupancy rates. More than 4 million hotel jobs could be lost in the coming weeks, according to AHLA. In mid-March, the U.S. Travel Association and AHLA requested $150 billion from the federal government for economic relief as the travel sector is especially affected by the coronavirus. AHLA is working to establish a national database with the HHS so that local, state and federal officials will be able to …
WEST POINT, GA. — Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia Inc. (KMMG) will temporarily halt production at its West Point facility starting Monday, March 30 and is planned to reopen Monday, April 13 in the face of the worldwide COVID-19 outbreak. While operations are suspended, KMMG will perform additional cleaning and disinfecting processes of workstations throughout the plant. The factory produces 340,000 vehicles annually, including the Telluride CUV, Sorento CUV and Optima midsize sedan. The facility spans 2,200 acres and operates 24 hours per day.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have separately announced nationwide initiatives to provide financial relief for their multifamily borrowers and tenants affected by the outbreak of coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19). The two government-sponsored enterprises are enacting programs that allow their borrowers to defer monthly payments for up to 90 days by showing hardship as a consequence of COVID-19 and by gaining lender approval. Additionally, participants in the program must agree to not evict their renters who are facing financial hardship due to the current health crisis. The agencies anticipate the initiatives could impact more than 54,000 apartment communities across the country. “This program is historic in its size, and it has the potential to provide relief to millions of families in multifamily rental homes financed through a Freddie Mac loan,” says Debby Jenkins, executive vice president and head of Freddie Mac Multifamily, which implemented a similar forbearance plan in 2017 following Hurricane Harvey in Houston. “Countless Americans are facing unimaginable hardships, and Freddie Mac is doing what we can to provide relief as our nation addresses this global pandemic,” says Jenkins. The outbreak of COVID-19 is likely to push the United States into a recession as the …
DALLAS — Texas-based entertainment concept Studio Movie Grill will temporarily close all locations nationwide in an effort to combat the spread of COVID-19. The company, which has 14 venues in Texas, said it would refund pre-purchased ticket sales and suspend billing on all subscription plans until its theaters have fully reopened. The company also pledged to actively maintain health insurance benefits for employees and to create a fund to support team members’ in dire financial circumstances.
BETHESDA, MD. — Marriott International Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) will furlough approximately two-thirds of its 4,000 corporate staff members in the company’s Bethesda office, as well roughly two-thirds of its international corporate staff, according to multiple media sources. A company spokesperson first confirmed the news to The Wall Street Journal, which also reported that most furloughs are expected to last 60 to 90 days. Hospitality and travel blog One Mile at a Time reported the same time frame. The announcement comes on the heels of Marriott’s decision last week to furlough what could ultimately be tens of thousands of employees at its hotels around the world. According to the company’s website, Marriott owned and operated about 7,300 properties under 30 brands in 134 countries. Those properties total more than 1.3 million rooms. Marriott also employs some 130,000 people worldwide. On a conference call late last week, Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson told investors that after seeing strong growth in revenue per available room (REVpar) in its European and North American hotels during the first two months of the year, these properties were now seeing an average occupancy rate of about 25 percent. That figure stood at roughly 70 percent a year ago, …
