WAYNE, PA. — Pet Valu Inc., a specialty retailer of pet food and supplies, has opted to wind down its U.S. operations. The retailer will close all 358 stores in the Midwest, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, as well as its warehouses and its U.S. headquarters office in Wayne. No timeline for closures was disclosed, but Pet Valu is currently doing final liquidation sales for all its merchandise. Additionally, the retailer is marketing all of its store fixtures, furniture and equipment for sale. Pet Valu Inc. licenses its name from Pet Valu Canada, which is a separate, unaffected entity that will retain its 600 Canadian stores and corporate headquarters office in Markham, Ontario, as well as its e-commerce site. Roark Capital, an Atlanta-based private equity group, purchased Pet Valu in 2009 and merged the retailer with Pet Supermarket in 2016 to form Pet Retail Brands, though the combined company continued to operate its stores under the original brand names of Pet Valu and Pet Supermarket. Pet Valu cites severe impact from the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States in its decision to wind down operations. According to Johns Hopkins University, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases since March has totaled nearly 9.5 …
By Addison Fairchild, Baird Holm At its onset nearly nine months ago, the novel coronavirus forced federal, state and local leaders to consider measures necessary to prevent the virus’s inevitable spread. Those leaders imposed measures they calculated to balance minimizing the spread and harm of coronavirus to the national and local economies. Whether those measures were effective in achieving those goals is a question for another day. However, now that coronavirus is currently a part of daily life, businesses have been considering what measures they must take. Like political leaders, they must also consider balancing the potential liability they may face for the spread of the coronavirus or other illness, the harm to their patrons and clients, and the harm to their bottom lines. Commercial landlords are not exempt from considering the coronavirus or other pandemics in future leasing. It is unlikely a court would find a commercial landlord liable for the spread of a pandemic in their leased properties, except in rare circumstances. However, tenants may require landlords to provide upgrades to properties to ensure the safety of the leased premises. This article considers whether landlords may be liable for the spread of a pandemic in their leased premises. …
The Houston Retail Outlook— How is the Houston Market Responding to the Pandemic? webinar, hosted by Shopping Center Business and Texas Real Estate Business, covers the impacts of COVID-19 and how retail experts are bringing creativity to challenging situations. Houston boasts a dynamic retail and restaurant scene that has been a requisite landing spot for new shopping, dining and entertainment users over the last few years. With a plethora of new mixed-use destinations in development or coming on line, can the market continue to absorb the new retail space despite pandemic-related restrictions and reduced occupancies? See a list of some topics covered below: What initiatives have retail landlords and operators taken to mitigate the disruption brought on by COVID-19? What is the outlook in terms of leasing for the Houston market over the next six months? What kinds of retail deals are capital sources targeting right now, and what is the Houston market seeing in terms of deal velocity and volume? How will broader expectations for the Houston economy impact the performance of the retail market in the coming months? Panelists: Jake Donaldson (moderator), Method Architecture Emily Durham, Waterman Steele Real Estate Advisors Lacee Jacobs, Midway David Luther, NewQuest Properties Jonathan Hicks, …
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — California-based home furnishing retailer Living Spaces has opened a 150,000-square-foot showroom at 8640 Tehama Ridge Parkway on the north side of Fort Worth. The space will showcase various designs and furniture arrangements for living rooms, dining rooms, bedrooms, home offices and outdoor areas. The space also features a playroom and climbing complex for children. About 100 people have been hired to staff the store, which is the company’s 27th overall.
HOFFMAN ESTATES, ILL. — The first two tenants have signed leases at Bell Works Chicagoland in Hoffman Estates. CPA Group Advisors is the first office tenant and Fairgrounds Craft Coffee and Tea is the first retail tenant. Bell Works Chicagoland is the redevelopment of the 1.6 million-square-foot former AT&T headquarters from developer Somerset Development. Fairgrounds will operate a kiosk at Bell Works beginning in December with plans to open a permanent location with a full cocktail bar in early 2022. Boutique full-service accounting firm CPA Advisors will occupy one of the property’s “ready-to-wear” office spaces. These pre-built office suites offer immediate occupancy for small- to medium-sized businesses. The $200 million Bell Works Chicagoland mirrors Somerset’s Bell Works New Jersey. Plans call for 1.2 million square feet of office space; 60,000 square feet of conference facilities, storage and amenities; and 60,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space. Despite COVID-19, interior renovations remain on schedule and construction is slated for completion this week. Colliers International and The Garibaldi Group are the leasing teams marketing office space at the property.
URBANDALE, IOWA — DealPoint Merrill LLC has acquired a 103,906-square-foot former Kmart shopping center in Urbandale near Des Moines. The property sits on 12 acres near I-35 and I-235. DealPoint Merrill plans to redevelop the asset into a 131,000-square-foot project with two outparcels. DealPoint Merrill’s CEO David Frank negotiated the transaction and President Sterling McGregor handled the due diligence and financing. The seller and purchase price were undisclosed.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Retail sales have been increasing month-over-month and year-over-year for every month since June, according to the National Retail Federation’s (NRF) Monthly Economic Review. Retail sales in October were up 1.9 percent over September, which beat expectations from economists surveyed by Dow Jones. Additionally, October retail sales were up 8.6 percent since January 2020, according to research from Harvard University’s Opportunity Insights Economic Tracker. NRF’s chief economist Jack Kleinhenz notes in the monthly report that the rebounding sales were a positive indicator for retailers that are hoping for a robust sales performance this holiday season. “Strong growth in retail sales during the last few months points to the resiliency of consumers even in this disruptive pandemic environment,” says Kleinhenz. The economist also pointed to additional stimulus money could help keep the U.S. economy on track. NRF’s report pointed to increasing retail sales stemming from an uptick in disposal personal income, which was up 5.4 percent year-over-year as of August, and a savings rate of 14.4 percent that has remained in double digits for six straight months. Clothes and accessories sales jumped by 11 percent, while sales of sporting goods, music and books grew 5.7 percent. Also in the …
SANTA MONICA, CALIF. — ValueRock Realty has purchased Mel’s Drive-In, an iconic restaurant building in Santa Monica, for $6.2 million. The name of the seller was not released. Situated on a 22,344-square-foot land parcel on Lincoln Boulevard, the 4,717-square-foot building offers on-site parking and is considered a historic landmark within the Santa Monica community. Restaurant and dental office tenants have occupied the property since 1959.
WILBRAHAM, MASS. — FIC Restaurants Inc., which operates the Friendly’s brand, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and entered in an agreement to sell all of its assets to Amici Partners Group LLC. Nearly all of Friendly’s 130 corporate-owned and franchised restaurant locations, known for burgers, sandwiches and ice cream, are expected to remain open subject to COVID-19 limitations. Friendly’s stated that it has sufficient cash on hand to continue operations, meet its obligations to employees, franchisees and vendors. Upon the sale closing, Amici expects to retain most employees at Friendly’s corporate-owned restaurant locations. Amici is an affiliate of BRIX Holdings, an owner-operator whose brands include Red Mango Yogurt Café Smoothie & Juice Bar, Smoothie Factory Juice Bar, RedBrick Pizza Kitchen Café and Souper Salad.
CHATTANOOGA, TENN. — Against headwinds brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, CBL Properties Inc. (NYSE: CBL) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Sunday, Nov. 1. Chattanooga-based CBL owns and manages a portfolio of 107 properties totaling 66.7 million square feet across 26 states, including 65 enclosed, outlet and open-air retail centers and eight properties managed for third parties. The company entered into an Restructuring Support Agreement in August with a group of bondholders in hopes of restructuring its balance sheet. In its bankruptcy filing, CBL listed its estimated assets and liabilities in the range of $1 billion to $10 billion, according to reports by CNBC. “With an aggregate of approximately $1.5 billion in unsecured debt, preferred obligations eliminated and a significant increase to net cash flow, upon emergence, CBL will be in a better position to execute on our strategies and move forward as a stable and profitable business,” says the company’s CEO, Stephen Lebovitz. As of Sept. 30, CBL had approximately $258.3 million in unrestricted cash on hand and available-for-sale securities. This cash position, combined with the positive cash flow generated by ongoing operations, is expected to meet the company’s operational and restructuring needs. Weil, Gotshal & Manges …