SPARC: Maybe this acronym for the Simon Property Authentic Brands Retail Concepts was purposely crafted to send a message that many of the withering Simon Properties’ malls, co-owning and leasing spaces to many of the stale and losing brands in the Authentic Brands portfolio, would spark new life into both. I wrote about Simon and Brookfield’s acquisition of the dying JC Penney, Too Big to Fail stating that it was a short-term move to save Simon’s and Brookfield’s butts from a massive exit of not just JCP but also the hundreds of other …
Eat Your Credit Card
What would it take to get you to eat a credit card every week for an indeterminate amount of time? Answer: You’re already doing this voluntarily. When I first heard that there was a massive chunk of plastic in the Pacific Ocean twice the size of Texas and three times the size of France called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, (GPGP), it blew my mind. But that concept is so abstract I just can’t get an in-my-face, personal feeling or tactile sensation. So, it eventually ends up in a part of my brain where I compartmentalize all the horrible …
Retail as It Was, Destroyed in One Decade
There was a meeting at FIT in the Fall of 2009 themed the CEO Roundtable. It was an urgent gathering of many of the major CEOs in the retail industry to discuss the horrific crisis of the financial and economic collapse at the beginning of the Great Recession. Retail leaders were hoping for any help they could get. Calling it a CEO Roundtable was a rather bland title; it should have been called the CEO Crisis Summit, or something like that. The idea for this meeting was created by Gilbert Harrison, founder and former CEO of Financo. This …
Inflation Worries? Not a Chance!
I feel safe aligning my economic view with that of Janet Yellen, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve, then with a bunch of traditional, last century economists who define inflation as it was during the most explosive growth period in U.S. history (1950 to 1980). They envision a post-pandemic economic surge, believing that the trillions of dollars fire hosed into the economy to keep it from collapsing will meet head on with consumers' post-pandemic pent-up demand, with trillions in personal savings …
Is Amazon Awesome…Apocalyptic…or Disruption 2.0?
Amazon as awesome or apocalyptic is a trick question. The answer requires a distinction of Amazon being awesome or apocalyptic to whom and why. If you were to simply answer the question at face value, the answer would be both. Disruption 2.0 refers to Amazon’s latest stealthy (or not) attempt to disrupt the world of physical retailing. But this time, I don’t think they know what they are in for. Maybe that’s why Jeff Bezos opted out of the Chief’s chair. Awesomeness Consumers would say Amazon is awesome for all the obvious reasons. In fact, …
Saks: Unlocking Value, for Whom?
I will state my opinion right up front. I believe Richard Baker's move to split the Saks Fifth Avenue and its ecommerce business into separate companies, which he calls "unlocking value," is simply applying a fancy buzzword, disguising what will ultimately lead to a real estate play. The reality is somewhere, way down deep in his real estate DNA, he clearly sees his personal cash-generating machine where it always has been -- in real estate. So, don't fall for unlocking value in the retail enterprise as a strategy to improve and accelerate the …
Activist Pirates Attack Kohl’s
I've seen this horrible movie before with one notable actor leading the attack on Children's Place in 2015. Johnathan Duskin, CEO Macellum Advisors GP, is apparently leading the sequel, "Activist Pirates Attack Kohl's," along with Legion Partners Holdings, Ancora Advisors and 4010 Capital, (with an equity position of just under 10 percent). They are determined to replace five board seats (down from nine) ostensibly to drive cost cutting, including executive pay packages. The activists also want to boost revenues and margins through better …
Nordstrom’s New Game Plan
I'm commenting on Nordstrom's latest strategic moves: their brick-and-mortar localization and online positioning, the "Closer to You" program and their concession strategy. However, before I do, I want to put these strategic moves into the proper context. They all emanate from a philosophy embedded in the Nordstrom's DNA from day one. And you know what it is. Nonetheless, I will repeat it just to connect the dots from where they started to the evolution of their current strategies. What a Quaint Philosophy: The Customer First How many times …