Retail news: mall and brand expansion

<p> The brand new Towne Centre Laurel development has now been formally opened in Laurel, Maryland.  </p>

<p> The development of the historic New Covent Garden Market site in London has now been given the green light by Wandsworth Council and it is expected that work will start in a few months time.</p>

<p>Music legend Neil Young, long known for his activism on behalf of family farms and local produce, is asking his fans to boycott Starbucks coffee and coffee shops during the busy holiday season.</p>

In the UK the surprisingly warm weather for the time of year is adversely affecting some clothes retailers’ sales, but Ted Baker has seen sales rises in the 3 months to 8 November.

<p>Beleaguered retailer Sears Holdings Corporation announced that it was investigating the possibility of initiating a REIT transaction that would involve between 200 and 300 of its existing properties.  </p>

<p>The Gateway shopping center in Salt Lake City, UT, a property holding of Retail Properties of America, Inc., has been experiencing an increasing downturn in performance, leading its parent company to write down the property’s carrying value to $75 million, a reduction of 35 percent.   </p>

<p>The Sears Holdings Corporation has recently announced its intent to redesign and recreate its property holding at the Aventura Mall in Aventura, FL, one of the largest and most successful malls in the United States.</p>

<p>Amazon.com has announced plans to open a sizable retail order fulfillment center in the Chicago area in the upcoming year.  </p>

How does the current year in the world of commercial real estate compare to 2007?

<p>Through the fiscal year 2016, Walmart has a new strategy plan in place.  </p>

<p>British luxury shoe brand Kurt Geiger is planning the opening of a flagship store in London after the brand enjoyed a sales increase of 13% in the third quarter of 2014.  </p>

Westfield’s Stratford City Shopping Center received advice for £750m commercial mortgage-secured refinancing package.