June 15, 2022
Wayfair opened its first brick-and-mortar store under its AllModern banner in Lynnfield, MA. A second location, in Dedham, MA, is expected to open this fall. The Company first announced plans to open physical stores across all of its banners in December, starting with the two AllModern locations and one Joss & Main store in Burlington, MA. At the 10,000 square-foot AllModern store, customers can shop furniture and communicate with expert professionals in person, while also accessing online product options curated for each shopper on the AllModern app. The design studio offers free services, and the store features free delivery, assembly, and installation. The adjacent map shows home furnishings retailers within a ten-mile radius of the new AllModern store, including Bed Bath & Beyond (three stores), Crate & Barrel (two stores), The Container Store, West Elm, Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Jordan’s Furniture, and Bernie & Phyl’s Furniture. Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn each operate a location within the same shopping center.
Looking ahead to mid-2023, Wayfair plans to open a namesake store in Chicago, IL; it has a lease for more than 152,000 square feet of retail space.
SpartanNash announced it has acquired Shop-N-Save Food Centers (SNS), a three-store grocery chain in northwest Michigan. Terms were not disclosed. The stores in Benzonia, Fremont and Ludington, MI were converted to SpartanNash's Family Fare brand and all employees were retained. Founded in 1973 by William "Bill" DeVries, SNS had been a food distribution customer of SpartanNash for nearly 25 years. With the acquisition, SpartanNash now operates 86 Family Fare stores throughout the Midwest; it operates a total of 149 supermarkets primarily under the Family Fare, Martin's Supermarkets and D&W Fresh Markets banners.
Franchise Group (FRG) has made an official $60 per-share offer (nearly $8 billion) to acquire Kohl’s, and the two have entered into a three-week exclusive negotiation period. FRG plans to finance the deal with $1 billion of borrowings, with the remainder financed using Kohl’s real estate. Kohl’s owns 410 stores, leases 517 and ground leases 238; it also owns all but two of its 15 distribution centers. The per-share price is a decent premium from the low to mid-$40 range Kohl’s has recently been trading but below the $70 management targeted just weeks ago, before it reported disappointing results (the stock breached $80 pre-pandemic). This deal would far exceed any other completed by FRG, which has annual sales of $3.80 billion that pales in comparison to Kohl’s $18.70 billion; it’s unclear what value or synergies FRG will bring to the table, as its current stable of brands operate in the furniture/home goods, pet and nutritional supplements industries. Click here to request more info.
Apollo recently announced an agreement to acquire Cardenas Markets from KKR. Financial terms were not disclosed, but the transaction is expected to be completed by 3Q22. Upon completion of the transaction, Apollo will combine Cardenas with Tony’s Fresh Market, a specialty grocer with 18 stores in the Chicago metropolitan area that Apollo acquired in April 2022. The combined Cardenas-Tony’s organization will operate just under 80 stores with about $1.80 billion in annual revenue.
Separately, Cardenas announced its acquisition of six Rio Ranch Market stores, which will expand the Company’s footprint in Southern California. Cardenas will take over the stores in Banning, Chino, Fontana, Perris, Riverside and San Bernardino. The deal is expected to close by mid-July. Cardenas currently operates in California, Nevada and Arizona, with 51 stores under its namesake banner, seven under the Los Altos Ranch Markets banner, and one store under the Cardenas Ranch Markets banner.
BJ’s Wholesale Club is expanding its footprint across four states, including its entrance into Indiana (its 18th state). As part of the next phase of its 2022 development plan, the Company will open four new locations in Noblesville, IN; New Albany, OH; Wayne, NJ; and Midlothian, VA. Click here to request a sample list of future store openings.
Last week, Amazon opened its largest Fresh store, at 45,000 square feet, in Manassas, VA. The location will soon be joined by two others slated for Northern Virginia later this month — a Lorton store is set to open on June 23 and a Crystal City store will open “in the coming weeks.” The Company’s grocery presence in the Greater Washington D.C. area has grown quickly since the first Fresh location opened in May 2021 in Franconia. Other Fresh stores that have since opened include Logan Circle, Chevy Chase and, most recently, in Fairfax in April.
Meanwhile, the Company recently opened a new 40,000 square-foot Fresh store in North Riverside, IL its eighth in the state. Click here to request a sample list of Amazon Fresh future openings.
Amazon will launch drone delivery in Lockeford, CA, making it among the first areas in the U.S. to use the Prime Air service. Thousands of items will be eligible for drone delivery when it starts later this year. The Prime Air drone will deliver to customers’ backyards, hovering to release the items and then flying away. The drones can reach speeds of 50 mph and fly at a 400-foot altitude, carrying packages at a weight maximum of five pounds. Walmart has also made a push into drone delivery, with plans to add four million households to its service by the end of the year.
Five Below faced a tough comparison to 1Q21, when sales and comps were up triple digits. Still, the Company managed a 7% sales increase; comps, however, turned negative. Comparing to pre-pandemic results paints a better picture. Sales were up 75% compared to 1Q19, and comps (the same stores that were open in 1Q19 and 1Q22) were up 17%. Both the sales growth and the (3.6%) comps came in close to Company guidance. Five Below remains focused on its “triple-double” strategy, aimed at tripling store count to 3,500 and doubling sales and earnings over the next four years. Part of the strategy is remodeling stores to its new “Five Beyond” concept, which offers merchandise at higher price points. Remodeling plans call for 750 conversions to the new format over the next four years. Still, such growth remains to be seen, as the Company has never expanded at such a rapid pace before. Click here to request a sample list of future store openings.
J.Jill’s 1Q22 sales exceeded expectations, increasing 22% to $157 million, with comps up 23.7%. Comp growth was driven by the store channel, while direct-to-consumer sales (46% of total revenue) were down 1.8% from 1Q21, primarily due to lower markdown sales. During 1Q22, J.Jill closed four stores, ending the quarter with 249 locations. The Company still anticipates 10 net closures in FY22. Management is reviewing store opening opportunities, with a plan to add up to four new stores, most likely in 4Q22. The Company further noted that it is working to identify the top potential locations for new store unit growth over the next three years, and feels there is an opportunity to open stores in 20 to 25 locations in the near to midterm.
Our report takes a closer look at the Company’s operational and competitive status, including market position, real estate and sales trends, and provides visual competitive analyses as well as key real estate metrics like store count, average sales per square foot, and the new Real Estate Intelligence analytics solution. Click here to request a copy of the full report.
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet struggled again in 1Q22, marking the fourth consecutive quarter of sales and comp declines. The 10% sales decline was driven by the cycling of last year’s stimulus and cooler weather, which hurt seasonal sales. Comps were off 17%, as the Company was up against a tough 19% gain last year. Management indicated it is not yet seeing much consumer trade-down to discounters like Ollie’s as it has seen in past inflationary environments. The Company bolstered inventory, up about 45%, with roughly one-third due to inflation, and the remainder from higher store count and earlier receipt of inventory.
Management indicated it is comfortable with the higher level of inventory and does not see markdown risk just yet. Inventory is up 31% on per-store basis compared to last year, which was unusually low due to sell through. It is up only 10% compared to pre-pandemic 1Q19. Management also indicated 2Q is off to a good start and despite the challenging results, Ollie’s is maintaining its plan to open about 46 stores this year, though some may be delayed. Click here to request a sample list of future openings.
Academy Sports + Outdoors will open its first two locations in Tampa Bay. The stores, located in Pinellas Park and Wesley Chapel, will mark Academy’s 14th and 15th locations in Florida as the brand continues to grow within the state; a Panama City, FL store slated to open next month will be the 13th in the state. The Pinellas Park location will open in The Shoppes at Park Place in Winter 2022, and the Wesley Chapel store is slated to open in Cypress Creek Town Center in 2023. Academy operates 260 stores primarily in the Southeast. Click here to request a sample list of future openings.
Signet Jewelers’ 1Q23 sales rose nearly 9%, with same-store sales up 2.5%, primarily driven by strong international performance. North America comps declined 0.9% on a lower number of transactions. E-commerce sales accounted for 17.4% of 1Q23 sales, down from 20.5% in 1Q22. Operating income rose 10.6% for the quarter. Signet closed 13 stores and opened 14 in North America, ending the quarter with 2,507 stores in North America; and closed two stores and opened one in its International segment, ending the period with 347 international locations. The Company reaffirmed its FY23 guidance.
Ahold Delhaize’s Stop & Shop division will continue its store renovation program, investing $140 million to upgrade its New York City locations, with a focus on enhancing the shopping experience and increasing product selection to cater to a diverse urban market. At the center of the updates is a “significantly expanded assortment” that will add thousands of new items across departments. The Company recently reopened the first remodeled NYC store, located in Bay Plaza in the Bronx. Stop & Shop has 25 stores in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island boroughs.
Ahold Delhaize’s Giant is set to open two new stores in Pennsylvania this summer — a 54,000 square-foot supermarket in Philadelphia on June 24 and a 49,800 square-foot unit in Richboro on July 1. The new stores build on Giant’s recent growth in the greater Philadelphia area, which included four new stores in 2021. To meet the growing demand for online grocery service across the city and in southern New Jersey, the Company also opened a Giant Direct e-commerce fulfillment center in Philadelphia.
Demoulas recently closed a Market Basket store in the Billerica Mall (Billerica, MA) at the decision of its landlord. The Company said it was “extremely rare” for it to close a store, adding it has opened seven new stores in the past two years and plans to open two others this year. Market Basket also plans to expand and remodel a nearby Billerica store (about 1.5 miles away) with upgraded amenities like a new Market’s Kitchen and Café with seating, a full-service butcher case, and sushi area.
Little Caesars signed several multi-unit U.S. franchising deals in 2021 and is expected to double its rate of new restaurant commitments this year. Three deals were signed with multi-unit operators in 1Q22, and these operators plan to open at least 24 new Little Caesars restaurants. The Company is growing its footprint by pursuing partnerships with larger operators, military veterans and first responders. Click here to request a sample list of future openings.
Kroger is now offering its Kroger Delivery rapid online fulfillment service to customers in South Florida, with the opening of a new spoke location in Miami. The 60,000 square-foot spoke facility, which collaborates with an existing high-tech customer fulfillment hub in Groveland, FL, will serve as a last-mile cross-dock location. This enables Kroger to expand its delivery reach without opening brick-and-mortar stores.
Our Hot Market Report takes a closer look at the Minneapolis, MN real estate landscape, and provides visual competitive analyses as well as key real estate metrics such as future openings, store count, market share, digital insights, and demographics. Click here to request a copy of the full report. Click here to request a copy of the full report.
Camping World inked a deal to acquire Anthem RV in New River, AZ, as well as a site to be built in Surprise, AZ. The acquisition is anticipated to close next month, at which time the New River location will convert to the Camping World banner and join existing Camping World locations in Avondale, Mesa, and Tucson, AZ.
Camping World anounced 11 locations it plans to open this year, on top of the eight units it acquired last month from Richardson’s RV Centers, and individual openings/acquisitions that occurred earlier this year in Rochester, NY; Ottumwa, IA; and London, KY. Camping World currently operates 190 units in 42 states (see the adjacent map for store concentration). Click here to request a sample list of future openings.
Beginning July 5, Costco will restrict gasoline sales at its 17 New Jersey locations only to people who are members. Until now, Costco locations in New Jersey have been unique for their open lines and lack of membership requirements to fill up a vehicle. The Company did not clarify the cause of the new regulation, but prices have continued skyrocketing across the country. Click here to request a sample list of future openings.
Panera Bread recently opened its first Panera To Go, a pickup and delivery-only location, in Chicago, IL. It is the first of three Panera to Go test units scheduled to open this year. The remaining two will open in California and Washington, D.C. The digital-only locations are designed for densely populated markets that can’t accommodate dine-in cafés. The Company is also testing Next-Gen bakery-cafes, which include dual drive-thrus with a pickup lanes, and ghost kitchens. Panera currently operates five ghost kitchen units, with more planned. Click here to request a sample list of future openings.
The Associated Supermarket Group’s (ASG) Met Fresh Supermarket banner recently opened a new location in Brooklyn, NY. ASG, which provides retail solutions to independently owned grocery stores in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic regions, has a retail network of more than 250 stores.
QuikTrip announced the opening of new Remote Travel Centers in Calera, AL and Bellmead, TX. The store model used in both locations was created specifically for highly traveled areas of the country that are also within a reasonable proximity to a QT Distribution Center for access to fresh food. Click here to request a sample list of future openings.
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