Brookfield Properties is renaming retail division to GGP

GGP is back!!!

Brookfield Properties has renamed its retail division to GGP, the name of the quality mall company it acquired in 2018. At the time of the acquisition, GGP owned 122M sq. ft. of U.S. retail, putting it behind only to Simon Property Group. The division now has 101 U.S. retail properties.

The Brookfield retail division, renamed after General Growth Properties, which when public its shares traded on NYSE under the ticker GGP, will continue to be based in Chicago.

General Growth Properties was founded in 1954 by brothers Martin, Matthew and Maurice Bucksbaum in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The company moved its headquarters to Des Moines, Iowa in 1964. In 1995, co-founder and CEO Martin died and Matthew became the sole CEO, who then moved the headquarters to Chicago in 1997.

In 1999, Mathew's son, john bucksbaum succeeded his father as CEO. Both Matthew and John served as chairmen of ICSC, the trade association of the retail real estate industry.

Read more: Brookfield's retail division has a new name — its old one (Crain’s Chicago Business)

Rhoback athleisure apparel brand opened first store in Charlottesville, Va.

Rhoback, a digitally native athleisure apparel brand opened its first store at the Barracks Road Shopping Center in Charlottesville, Va. last month, and cofounder Kevin Hubbard has already set his sight on running Rhoback physical stores nationwide (perhaps even globally) within 10 years, according to an interview with CBS19 News (Charlottesville).

The idea for Rhoback began while co-founders Matthew Loftus and Kristina Loftus studied at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business. In addition to her academic training, Kristina taught herself how to design clothing using Photoshop courses on YouTube.

Rhoback first started as a class project but later with Hubbard, the trio launched a line of upscale activewear and then opened their first warehouse in their hometown of Charlottesville to design and sell men’s and women’s apparel.

Since its founding in 2016, the apparel maker has grown into a 100-person company with over 3 million products sold online. The lifestyle activewear brand designs, manufactures and sells high-performance apparel that blends athletic function with a clean, lifestyle-inspired look. The brand’s logo is modeled after the Loftuses’ dog, Bunker, a Rhodesian Ridgeback breed.

To mass produce its quality products, they partnered with a trusted manufacturer in South Korea that offered standout fabrics and samples.

Rhoback has now partnered with RepSpark to streamline its wholesale operations and accelerate expansion into a variety of retail partners, including golf pro shops, collegiate bookstores and specialty retailers like Alabama Outdoors and St. Bernard Sports.

The brand also has a significant focus on collegiate apparel through its "Rhoback U" program. They currently work with over 50 colleges and universities and plan to add 30 more in 2026. This strategy builds brand awareness in specific regional markets through athlete partnerships and licensed merchandise.

Read more: RHOBACK’s first-ever brick-and-mortar opening at Barracks Road Shopping Center in Charlottesville (Federal Realty Investment Trust - LinkedIn)

Karat Home relaunching Z Gallerie physical stores

It looks like Z Gallerie, the home furnishings darling of lifestyle centers is slowly ramping up its brick-and-mortar strategy by opening pop-up stores.

Along with other disastrous bankruptcies by home furnishings retailers due to the crash in home buying after interest rates jumped in 2022, the popular chain filed for bankruptcy in 2023, its third bankruptcy filing, and closed all its physical stores.

Fortunately, online furniture retailer Karat Home Inc. acquired the chain out of bankruptcy in January 2024 and kept the Z Gallerie brand selling online.

A year later, Karat Home relaunched Z Gallerie physical stores starting with a warehouse outlet in Gardena, California (south of L.A.) in March 2025 and a 2,000-sq.-ft. pop-up location on a temporary license agreement in Galleria Dallas in Nov. 2025.

Reportedly, Scarlett Fan, now CEO of Z Gallerie and founder of Karat Home wants to open more physical locations in 2026 and is looking at sites in Texas and elsewhere.

Read more: Z Gallerie Locations (Z Gallerie)

Dying malls can be converted to data centers

As data centers become larger, more urbanized and in greater demand due to the increasing needs for AI infrastructure, we will likely see more retail-to-data center conversions. And that includes the dying malls, which is nothing new.

For example, as early as 2008, Eastgate Consumer Mall began converting to a an office park and data center owned by Lifeline Data Centers, LLC (Indianapolis, Ind.). Between 2012 and 2013, AiNET converted a former Boscov's Department Store, LLC at Marley Station Mall into its CyberNAP data center. And currently, the Landover Mall property (Prince George’s County, Md.) — demolished years earlier — is under consideration as a data center campus called Brightseat Tech Park with potential groundbreaking in 2026.

Malls work as data center conversion for four reasons:
• They are large (500,000 – 1,200,000 sq. ft.)
• They have large column spacing
• They are located within central utility corridors
• They have ample parking, where one can build power substations and generators

A dead 900,000 sq. ft. mall can support ~40–80 MW traditional cloud data center or ~25–50 MW AI / high-density workloads. Power availability is usually the real constraint.

As of last year, U.S. data center inventory accounted for ~180–200 million sq. ft. Within five years, +100–150 million sq. ft. of additional space for data centers is required.

Data centers of various sizes will be built between 2026 and 2030:
• Small data center: ~50,000–100,000 sq. ft.
• Mid-scale colocation: ~200,000–400,000 sq. ft.
• Hyperscale / AI campus: 500,000–1,500,000+ sq. ft.

However, power availability matters more than square footage, so power generating sources are needed whether data centers are mall conversions or they are built on greenfield.

Stargate Project, a collaboration of OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank Group Corp., with support from the U.S. government in Abilene, Texas (180 miles west of Dallas) is being built on greenfield. It will have a mighty capacity of 1.2 gigawatts with its own gas power plant. The Stargate site—spanning 900 acres is larger than New York City’s Central Park.

Pacsun reopening stores again in the U.S. and abroad

Remember PACSUN, the mall-based specialty store chain formerly known as Pacific Sunwear that hasn’t increased its store count in nearly two decades? Well, that has changed: The youth oriented apparel chain is opening new stores in the U.S. and internationally as the retailer touts its brick-and-mortar expansion plan.

In 2025, Pacsun opened nine new U.S. stores. Looking ahead, the brand plans to add 20–35 new stores over the next three years, with nine leases already signed for 2026 — marking its most ambitious domestic retail expansion in 18 years.

The retailer also signed a lease to open a store at Mall Of The Emirates in Dubai. The debut flagship Dubai store, set to open in early 2026, marks Pacsun's first international location in its 40-year history.

Through an exclusive regional partnership, Majid Al Futtaim and Pacsun plan to open as many as 20 stores across the Middle East over the next five years, including another flagship location in Abu Dhabi.

What’s behind this new resurgence at Pacsun? Brieane Olson, the new CEO, that has been focusing on Gen Z and is now doubling down on a brick-and-mortar strategy.

She rose through the ranks at Pacsun, proving herself along the way. During her tenure at Pacsun, Olson spearheaded innovative collaborations for the L.A.-based lifestyle brand, including working closely with Kanye West and Kendall and Kylie Jenner and launching both men’s and women’s shops inside Selfridges in 2018 with launch parties hosted by Pacsun partner Jerry Lorenzo.

She was promoted to president of Pacsun in 2021 and transitioned to her new role as CEO in April 2023. Pacsun now operates approximately 300-plus stores, so it has the ability to significantly grow its presence without cannibalization of its brand.

Read more: Pacsun Expands Globally: Announces First U.S. Store Count Increase in Nearly Two Decades and Opens First International Store in Dubai (Morningstar)

L.L. Bean announces 2026 brick-and-mortar store expansion

Greg Elder, L.L.Bean's chief retail officer and his team have released plans for continued brick-and-mortar store expansion, which includes eight new L.L. Bean stores in 2026.

Alabama and Tennessee are new states for the outdoor apparel and gear chain with new stores in Huntsville, Ala. at the Bridge Street Town Centre (a Tanger center) and one in Franklin, Tenn., south of Nashville.

The company’s planned 2026 openings will bring its total store count to 76 stores in 21 states. In 2027, it plans to further continue expanding with eight to 10 new stores, including first-time stores in new markets in the Midwest and Southeast.

Read more: L.L. Bean to Open Eight Stores, Unveil Reimagined Flagship in 2026 (Women’s Wear Daily)

N.J. malls converting to mixed use, adding multifamily

Six New Jersey malls are undergoing re-development. The common thread: All are converting to mixed use and adding multifamily apartments.
- Brunswick Square Mall (Paramount Realty)
- The Outlets at Bergen Town Center (Urban Edge Properties)
- Monmouth Mall (Westminster Management Corporation)
- Moorestown Mall (PREIT)
- Voorhees Town Center (Namdar Realty Group LLC)
- Westfield Garden State Plaza (Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield)

Read more: 6 nostalgic malls get sweeping makeovers as expert warns shoppers have ‘stopped tolerating dull stores’ (The U.S. Sun)

Dine Brands Global to grow dual Applebee's / IHOP co-branded restaurants

Come for the breakfast and stay for the after-dinner drinks.

Dine Brands Global is accelerating its Applebee's Neighborhood Grill + Bar and IHOP co-branding restaurant strategy, with plans to grow the dual-concept model from the current 20 units to 80 by the end of next year.

The co-branded restaurants' signage features both concepts prominently and there are themed dining areas for each concept with a shared menu, entrance, kitchen and staff.

Customers can order from either menu regardless of seating area. The cross-brand appeal – such as Applebee's sales in the morning and IHOP sales at dinner – has resonated with guests, with 15% or more of sales for each brand occurring during the other's traditional hours.

Dine Brands Global, headquartered in Pasadena; owns, franchises and operates restaurants under the brands Applebee's Neighborhood Grill + Bar, IHOP, and Fuzzy's Taco Shop. It is one of the world's largest full-service dining companies and has more than 3,500 restaurants in 19 international markets.

Read more: Applebee's and IHOP plan to open a lot more co-branded locations (Restaurant Business)

NYC startup PopUp Bagels to open 300 stores in the next four years

PopUp Bagels, a NYC startup is planning to open 300 stores in the next four years throughout the U.S. using the franchise model.

Franchise openings are planned for nearly all sunbelt states plus Illinois and throughout the East Coast.

PopUp Bagels, which actually started making bagels in a Connecticut house during the pandemic, now has 16 stores, seven of them in the bagel mecca of New York.

Investment firm Stripes took a majority stake in PopUp in 2024, providing capital and the impetus for the expansion. PopUp plans to open 60 to 70 shops by the end of next year. Tory Bartlett, MBA is the company’s CEO.

Shops are barebones, averaging 700 to 1,200 square feet with limited seating, making them speedy takeout operations requiring only a few workers per location.

Read more: PopUp Is Wall Street’s Bet a National Chain Can Actually Make Good Bagels (Bloomberg)

Tractor Supply Company continues rapid store expansion

Tractor Supply Company will open 90 new stores this year and an additional 100 are planned for 2026.

During the retailer's third-quarter earnings call, executives revealed net sales records and noted that a major portion of its expansion is focused on Western states.

Read more: How Tractor Supply broke a sales record without big price increases (The Tennessean)

Bombas, the socks, underwear and t-shirts brand is opening first three physical store locations.

Bombas, the socks, underwear and t-shirts brand sold at Academy Sports + Outdoors, Anthropologie, DICK'S Sporting Goods, DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse, Nordstrom, Target, and other stores is finally opening its first brick-and-mortar retail store in New York City at 345 Bleecker Street.

Following that opening, Bombas will open new physical stores at the Town Center at Boca Raton, Fla. and The Domain in Austin, Texas.

Bombas was founded by entrepreneurs Randy Goldberg and David Heath in 2013, and the next year, they appeared together on the popular TV show Shark Tank where they received funding for growing the company, mostly through direct online selling, then through wholesaling.

The brand has since gone on to become the most successful venture in the TV show’s history, generating over $2 billion in lifetime sales. Former Under Armour and EXPRESS executive Jason LaRose joined the company as president in July 2024, and became CEO in May 2025.

Read more: Bombas Takes Next Big Steps Opening Flagship Store In NYC And Entering Target, DSW (Forbes)

With recent openings, Perigold, Wayfair ’s luxury brand now operates two physical stores.

PERIGOLD, Wayfair ’s luxury brand, opened a second brick-and-mortar location at CityPlace, a lifestyle center in West Palm Beach, according to Rebecca A. Ginns, who heads up the operations for PERIGOLD. CityPlace is owned and operated by Related Ross.

The new store is roughly 30,000 square feet on two levels, about one third larger than the first PERIGOLD store that opened four months ago at Highland Village Shopping Center in Houston. Highlands Village is one of America’s oldest shopping centers built in the 1940s, and is currently owned by Haidar Barbouti's Highland Village Holdings.

Read more: Perigold’s Florida debut provides larger showcase for the luxury brand (Furniture Today)

Fast Retailing continues to expand Uniqlo in the U.S.

UNIQLO, the global retail chain that already operates 78 stores in the U.S. has announced its 2026 new location lineup:

- Williamsburg (New York City)
- Union Square (New York City)
- Bryant Park, 5th Avenue (New York City)
- World Trade Center (New York City)
- 600 N. Michigan Avenue (Chicago)
- Oakbrook Center (near Chicago)
- Downtown San Francisco: 830 Market Street
- Downtown Crossing: 395-403 Washington Street (Boston)
- Annapolis Mall (Maryland)
- Georgetown Park: 3262 M Street NW (Washington D.C.)
- Issaquah Commons (Seattle)

The Japanese fashion apparel chain has more than 2,500 stores worldwide.

Read more: Uniqlo plots 2026 expansion — here's where (Chain Store Age)

Controlling real estate is important for Publix Super Markets and now, Walmart

With the third full shopping center acquisition this year — a shopping center in Norwalk, Conn. — Walmart Inc. seems to have recently discovered what Publix Super Markets has known for many years: that controlling their real estate, creating the optimum tenant mix and collecting rents from tenants is good business with the added advantage of asset appreciation that comes with owning commercial real estate.

Thus far, Walmart’s acquisitions this year appear to be very selective. If Walmart wants to move full throttle into commercial real estate ownership, we would see the company acquiring a national shopping center company along with its underlying real estate assets and the management company to help manage the business. Is that a possibility? Maybe and maybe not.

Walmart keeps nearly $9.4 billion in cash equivalent on hand and could acquire real estate on a massive scale if its board felt this is a way to diversify and grow its holdings. But so far, Walmart’s priorities for investing cash have just included spending on automation, its supply chain, artificial intelligence and technology, improving its Sam’s Club warehouses and remodeling Walmart stores in the United States and abroad.

Time will tell the extent of Walmart’s appetite for being a landlord to other retailers.

Read more: Walmart buys latest shopping center as US chains push to own their stores (CoStar News)

Ross Stores, Inc. continues its rapid expansion with 90 new locations in 2025.

Ross Stores, Inc. continues its rapid expansion. It opened 36 Ross Dress for Less and four DD’s Discounts stores across 17 different states in September and October for a total of 90 new locations in FY2025.

The retailer wants to grow its store count to at least 2,900 Ross Dress for Less and 700 DD’s Discounts locations over time.

Read more: Ross Stores opens 40 new locations, plans to continue expansion (Chain Store Age)

Walmart and Cypress Equities to redevelop Monroeville Mall as a mixed-use site

Walmart, after purchasing Monroeville Mall is planning to redevelop it into a mixed-use site with the help of Cypress Equities. The redevelopment will feature a Walmart store, Sam's Club, retail shops, a skating rink and restaurants.

Read more: Why Did Walmart Buy a Shopping Mall? (The New York Times)

Nike will open first U.S. Jordan-branded “World of Flight” store in Philadelphia

Nike is launching its first U.S. “World of Flight” flagship store dedicated to the Michael Jordan brand. Opening October 10 at 1617 Walnut Street in Philadelphia’s historic district, the store joins a lineup that includes World of Flight flagship stores in Milan, Tokyo, Seoul, Beijing and Mexico City.

The new World of Flight flagship store in Philadelphia is about 7,000 square feet on two-levels.

World of Flight is meant to be a next-gen “destination retail” experience combining culture, story, exclusivity, comfort and artistry in a way that ordinary Nike or other smaller Jordan stores don’t typically attempt. The typical Nike Jordan stores—mostly operating in China and parts of Asia—have broader product range (performance, sport, running, casual) rather than a deep focus on Michael Jordan himself and the basketball culture.

Michael Jordan played his last NBA game in Philadelphia in 2003.

Read more: Nike’s Jordan Brand Lands Its First U.S. ‘World Of Flight’ Store In Philadelphia (Forbes)

Dickey’s Barbecue Restaurants will add 60 new openings in 2025

So far this year, Dickey's Barbecue Restaurants, Inc. has opened 46 new locations across 17 U.S. states and internationally. Two of those are in Canada (Markham, Ontario and Sherwood Park, Alberta) and one is in Manila, the Philippines at Parqal Mall near City of Dreams (Parañaque City).

The new Philippines Dickey’s follows other openings in previous years in Southeast Asia, including Japan and Singapore.

Add the announced openings for the fourth quarter to these new locations already open, and Dickey’s will achieve more than 60 new openings in 2025.

Founded in 1941 by the Dickey family, Dickey's Barbecue Restaurants, Inc. is the world’s largest barbecue concept and continues as a third-generation family-run business.

Roland Dickey, Jr., grandson of founder Travis Dickey, is the CEO of Dickey's Capital Group (DCG). Laura Rea Dickey is CEO of Dickey's Barbecue Restaurants, Inc.

DCG is the holding company that oversees the entire Dickey family portfolio of businesses, including the Dickey’s Barbecue Restaurants chain, as well as other ventures such as retail products, manufacturers, real estate holdings and technology companies.

By year-end, there will be 400 Dickey’s fast casual restaurants worldwide. However, Dickey’s Barbecue Franchise and Dickey’s Restaurant Brands operate more than 866 restaurants across eight concepts in the U.S. and several countries.

Read more: Dickey’s Barbecue Pit Fires Up Expansion with 46 New Openings and Global Momentum (Dickey’s Press Room)

Sprouts Farmers Market plans to grow to 1,400 stores across U.S.

Sprouts Farmers Market continues to expand. It aims to grow from 450 to 1,400 stores across the U.S. The chain is focused on health-conscious consumers, according to CEO Jack Sinclair, who emphasized the need for new distribution centers to support the expansion.

Sprouts has recently opened stores in Maryland, Tennessee, Texas and Utah, among other states and plans to add at least 35 more by year-end.

Read more: Sprouts hopes to grow from 450 stores to about 1,400 (Modern Retail)

DICK'S Sporting Goods opens first House of Sport in New York area

DICK'S Sporting Goods has opened the first House of Sport in the New York area at Simon Property Group's Newport Centre in Jersey City, N.J. At 85,000 square feet, the Jersey City location is the smallest House of Sport store, given that most are larger than 100,000 square feet.

Like other House of Sport stores, the Jersey City location offers a climbing wall, multiple golf bays with TrackMan simulators, and a multi-sport cage that can be used for baseball, softball, lacrosse, soccer and field hockey. Customers can easily get to Jersey City from NYC via the PATH train or NY Waterway ferry.

According to DICK'S EVP Toni Roeller, the Jersey City location is the second urban location for House of Sport after the first one opened in the Pru Center in Boston. It is very difficult to find large available locations in urban areas.

There are 26 House of Sport locations in the U.S. The Jersey City location is one of about 16 House of Sport locations opening in 2025. The other new House of Sport locations that opened so far this year are in Dadeland Mall near Miami, Fla.; Mall at Fairfield Commons in Beavercreek, Ohio (a suburb of Dayton); Polaris Fashion Place near Columbus, Ohio; the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge, La.; Town Center Plaza in Leawood, Kan.; and at a strip center just off the Galleria Dallas mixed-use complex.

Upcoming locations for House of Sport include Frisco, Texas (north of Dallas at Stonebriar Centre’s former Sears site), the Westgate Entertainment District in the Glendale, Arizona (Phoenix area), Cherry Hill Mall in Cherry Hill, New Jersey near Philadelphia, and The Parks Mall at Arlington (south of Dallas) replacing a former Sears store.

Read more: Dick’s Brings Its Massive House of Sport Retail Concept to NYC Area (Women’s Wear Daily)