Seattle; Boise, Idaho; and Salt Lake City — JLL Capital Markets has secured $274.4 million in financing for a six-property portfolio of core-quality retail centers totaling 2.7 million square feet across Seattle, Boise and Salt Lake City. The borrower is a joint venture between CenterCal Properties, a large pension fund and its advisors Principal and PCCP. The financing includes five separate 10-year, fixed-rate, non-recourse CMBS loans provided by JP Morgan Chase. Loan proceeds were used to retire existing debt and rebalance leverage across the portfolio. The portfolio consists of four grocery-anchored shopping centers, one power …
Walla Walla, Wash. — Newmark has arranged the sale of a single-tenant, net-leased retail building located at 450 N. Wilbur Ave. in Walla Walla. A Hawaii-based buyer acquired the asset from a publicly traded REIT for $16.2 million. A national grocer occupies the 60,026-square-foot building, which is situated within Eastgate Marketplace Shopping Center, under a long-term lease. Matt Berres, Samer Khalil, Billy Sleeth and Paul Sleeth of Newmark represented the seller in the deal.
Seattle — Starbucks Coffee reports that global comparable-store sales fell 9 percent in the fiscal fourth quarter on a year-over-year basis, but the company’s performance still beat economists’ expectations. Total revenue for the Seattle-based coffee chain reached $6.2 billion in the fiscal fourth quarter, which ended Sept. 27. Economists had expected the total to be $6.06 billion. “I am very pleased with our strong finish to fiscal 2020, underpinned by a faster-than-expected recovery in our two lead growth markets, the U.S. and China,” says Kevin Johnson, president and CEO of …
Issaquah, Wash. — Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) has reported a 12.5 percent increase in quarterly net sales in its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended Aug. 30. Costco’s sales jumped to $52.9 billion from $46.4 billion last year. Costco also experienced a 91 percent jump in quarterly e-commerce sales, resulting in a 50 percent increase over the previous year. The company’s net income for the fourth quarter was $1.4 billion, compared with $1.1 billion last year, even though this year’s fourth quarter was negatively impacted by $281 million in costs …
Seattle — Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) has announced plans to hire an additional 100,000 full- and part-time employees throughout the United States and Canada. This plan is in addition to the 33,000 new corporate and technology jobs announced last week. The roles offer a starting wage of at least $15 per hour, and in select cities, Amazon is offering sign-on bonuses up to $1,000 to new hires. The new employees will staff the 100 new operations buildings that Amazon is opening this month across its fulfillment centers, delivery stations and other …
Seattle — Seattle-based Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX) reported that the company’s U.S. comparable store sales declined 40 percent, with comparable transactions down 52 percent through its 13-week fiscal third quarter ending June 28. Additionally, the company reported a consolidated net revenue of $4.2 billion, representing a 38 percent decline from last year primarily due to lost sales related to the COVID-19 outbreak. Despite decreased sales and a decline in net revenue, Starbucks opened 130 net new stores in the third quarter, resulting in 5 percent year-over-year unit growth and ending …
Seattle — Privately held kitchenware retailer Sur La Table has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The Seattle-based company is set to close 56 of its 121 stores, according to reports by The New York Times, making it the latest retailer to struggle under strain caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Following store closures and bankruptcy proceedings, Sur La Table has entered into a stalking horse agreement — or an initial bid on the assets of a bankrupt company — to affiliates of New York City-based Fortress Investment Group. The private …
Seattle — Starbucks Coffee plans to accelerate the transformation of its store portfolio across the United States amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Over the next 18 months, the coffee chain will increase convenience-led formats in company-operated locations with drive-thru and curbside pickup options, as well as Starbucks Pickup location. In a letter to shareholders, released through an SEC filing, Starbucks announced that it plans to close approximately 400 company-operated U.S. stores over the next 18 months as part of this new focus on drive-thru and pickup. In that same letter, …
Seattle — Nordstrom plans to permanently close 16 of its 116 full-line stores, with the company incurring the non-cash impairment charges associated with the closures. The clothing retailer hopes the closures will better position it for the long-term retail landscape at the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. The list of stores was not released. “We’ve been investing in our digital and physical capabilities to keep pace with rapidly changing customer expectations,” says Erik Nordstrom, CEO of Nordstrom Inc. “The impact of COVID-19 is only accelerating the importance of these capabilities …
Seattle — This week, Seattle-based Starbucks started re-opening its company-operated stores across the United States. Operating under modified operations and hours, including heightened safety protocols, the company plans to have more than 85 percent of stores opened by May 9 and expects to have more than 90 percent of stores open by early June. The company is using its experience in China, where more than 98 percent of its store are open and operating under revised protocols, as the foundation for its re-opening in the United States amid the continued …