Phoenix, AZ – CBRE has been awarded the marketing assignment for the ±1 million-square-foot mixed-use Esplanade complex, including buildings I, II, IV and V. The landmark office and retail development is located at the southeast corner of Camelback Road and 24^th Street.

LBA Realty, who purchased Esplanade I, II, IV and V from MetLife in late December 2015, has tapped CBRE broker Jerry Roberts to oversee the marketing and leasing of the property’s office space, while LeDonna Spongberg and Traci Russell, also with CBRE, will oversee the retail portion.

“The Esplanade is considered the most iconic office complex in all of metropolitan Phoenix and already boasts an impressive tenant roll, including Gallagher & Kennedy, Merrill Lynch, CBRE, UBS Financial Services, DLA Piper, and AEON Financial, among others,” said CBRE’s Roberts. “LBA is a sophisticated owner/operator with a keen sense of what modern office users want, and CBRE is excited to play a part in the next evolution of the Esplanade.”

LBA Realty is currently implementing a refresh of the property, including renovations to the outdoor people places and retail space, as well as the internal common areas and lobbies.

“The Esplanade is one of the few true mixed-use developments in the Camelback Corridor, and it’s Main and Main location at the 24^th Street intersection makes it the most high-profile,” said the CBRE retail brokers. “LBA has a lot of experience with this type of development and they understand the nuances that will be key to its success. We’re looking forward to bringing in restaurant and retail uses that will complement existing tenants and make the Esplanade a world-class, amenity-filled environment for both the immediate office users and the surrounding residential and office projects.”

The five building complex was originally developed over the course of just over ten years with the first building coming online in 1989 and the last in 2002. Located on East Camelback Road in Phoenix, the Esplanade benefits from proximity to a wealth of amenities, including Biltmore Fashion Park with its myriad of iconic retailers and restaurants. Offering office tenants a vibrant community in which to work, shop and dine, the Esplanade epitomizes the “lifestyle” type of work environments modern office users want.

The big news this week was Macerich Co. turning down a $22.4 billion takeover bid by rival Simon Property Group, using some of the state’s premier shopping centers referred to as Arizona trophy malls a reason for rejection of the offer.

The proposed deal would have greatly expanded Simon’s presence and influence in Arizona, offering an incentive for the Indianapolis-based giant. Another enticement was the quality of the properties, which are more upscale than Simon’s centers, Arizona Mills and Phoenix Premium Outlets.

In a statement, Macerich this week said its board determined that the bid of $91 a share “substantially undervalues” the company and would not be in the best interests of its shareholders. Macerich said its real estate portfolio “contains trophy assets of a kind that rarely become available for sale and cannot be replicated. Most could not be built today and substitutes do not exist.”

In an investor presentation Tuesday, Macerich highlighted 10 of its trophy malls including three in Arizona. The company included average sales generated per square foot at these locations:

The company’s top property is Queens Center in Queens, N.Y., with sales per square foot of $1,088. In Arizona the highest sales generating properties were:

• Biltmore Fashion Park, Phoenix, $865/square foot
• Tucson La Encantada, Tucson, $733/square foot
• Scottsdale Fashion Square, Scottsdale, $732/square foot

Many of Arizona’s most prominent shopping centers are owned by real estate investment trusts, or REITs — special stockholder-owned companies that typically pay sizable dividends. Here are some examples:

(Source: Arizona Republic research)

Macerich does have a hefty stake in Arizona, with 16 malls and shopping centers plus three office parks and other properties. Simon Property Group has only three Arizona properties.

The company also said it generates 17% of its net operating income from Arizona, behind only California (29%) and New York (18%). Macerich actually has more malls and office developments in Arizona than California, with New York third.

Macerich also highlighted some changes to its board structure that could make a hostile takeover more difficult. The company’s stock closed down $3.29 a share at $91.60 in heavy trading volume of 5 million shares. The stock has surged from under $70 a share in November, when Simon first announced that it had accumulated 3.6% of Macerich’s stock.

“Our board recognizes that, as a competitor, these trends present a challenge for you on multiple fronts,” Macerich’s Coppola wrote.

Coppola also accused Simon Property of not providing transparent performance results for the company’s malls and outlets and said a side deal between Simon and General Growth Properties, a third mall operator, “is problematic and not only stockholder-unfriendly but also raises questions of legality.” As part of its bid, Simon said it would sell certain Macerich properties to General Growth, seen as a way to ease anti-competitive concerns.

Coppola’s letter follows one issued a week earlier by David Simon in which he outlined the acquisition proposal and complained about not receiving a response from Macerich.

Simon responded immediately, in the latest response, Indianapolis-based Simon Property said it has “outpaced Macerich in virtually every operating and financial category.” Macerich is headquartered in Santa Monica, Calif.

Macerich, an S&P 500 company, currently owns 54-million-square-feet of real estate consisting primarily of interests in 51 regional shopping centers. Macerich specializes in successful retail properties in many of the country’s most attractive, densely populated markets with significant presence in the Pacific Rim, Arizona, Chicago and the Metro New York to Washington, DC corridor.

Macy’s to acquire Bluemercury

Cincinnati, OH In its first acquisition in 10 years, Macy’s announced this week it has signed an agreement to acquire luxury beauty products retailer Bluemercury for $210 million in cash. The privately held Bluemercury, based in Washington, D.C., currently operates about 60 specialty stores in 18 states, primarily in prime street-level locations and urban lifestyle centers. Most locations include in-house spas. The company also operates an online business.

“Beauty is a core signature business for Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s and a continued platform for our company’s profitable sales growth. With Bluemercury, our company can access a new channel to reach additional customers, add new dimensions to our product offering and apply our expertise in omnichannel retailing,” said Terry J. Lundgren, Macy’s chairman and CEO.

The Macy’s chief said the company plans to operate and significantly expand Bluemercury stores as a standalone business with an enhanced omnichannel component that provides for a seamless customer experience across stores, online and mobile.

“Concurrently, we also plan to add selected Bluemercury products and boutiques to Macy’s stores nationwide,” Lundgren said.

“With the full weight of Macy’s resources, we will be able to accelerate our store penetration across the United States, bringing our specialty store format to urban and suburban markets throughout the country,” said Barry Beck, Bluemercury’s COO. “We are thrilled to team up with Macy’s in this next chapter of our growth and we especially want to thank The Invus Group who has been a great partner since 2006.”

The only Bluemercury store in Arizona is located at La Encantada specialty center at 2905 E Skyline Dr. Ste 283, in Tucson. The transaction is expected to be completed in Macy’s, Inc.’s fiscal first quarter (which ends on May 2, 2015) and be accretive to Macy’s, Inc.’s earnings in its first full year (fiscal 2016).
 

Caché Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

New York — Caché on Wednesday said it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after running out of capital and time to complete its turnaround. The women’s apparel retailer will continue to operate its business, but intends to continue to reduce its store count and sell and renegotiate some of its leases.

Caché chairman and CEO Jay Margolis said the company filed Chapter 11 with the goal of “securing Cache’s future.”

“Our team has been working tirelessly to implement a turnaround,” Margolis stated. “In a short period of time, we upgraded key stores and closed unprofitable ones; launched a more vibrant and robust e-commerce site where conversion has doubled; and have seen same store comp sales from our 2014 holiday season increase 9.5%, with this positive momentum continuing through January. However, the depressed brick and mortar retail market, the continued growth of online shopping, and rapidly changing consumer tastes and habits thwarted our efforts. Ultimately, we have not had the time or capital to realize all of the benefits of our hard work.”

The retailer has secured up to $22 million in financing from Salus Capital Partners to keep operating during the Chapter 11 proceeding, with the financing subject to court approval.

Caché also will seek a so-called stalking horse buyer for its assets.

In December, Caché said it had decided to explore strategic alternatives that include a possible merger or sale.

Caché closed 14 stores in 2009 while also opening other new stores. The La Encantada store was closed since then and The Tucson Mall store is still open. There are currently only four Caché stores in Arizona, including the Tucson Mall, Biltmore Fashion Park, Kierland Commons and Scottsdale Fashion Square.

RadioShack Reaches Asset Purchase Agreement to Sell up to 2,400 Stores

RadioShack Corporation announced Thursday several actions intended to maximize value for the Company’s stakeholders

A subsidiary of RadioShack’s largest shareholder has agreed to buy 1,500 to 2,400 of the company’s U.S. stores. As part of the bankruptcy plan, Sprint may open mini-shops in as many as 1,760 of the acquired RadioShack stores.

The Fort Worth, Texas Company said Thursday that it has filed a motion to proceed with closing the rest of its 4,000 U.S. stores. It is also having discussions to sell all of its remaining assets.

RadioShack Corporation announced today several actions intended to maximize value for the Company’s stakeholders.

RadioShack has signed an asset purchase agreement with General Wireless Inc., an affiliate of Standard General L.P. (“Standard General”). General Wireless has agreed to acquire between 1,500 and 2,400 of RadioShack’s U.S. Company-owned stores. To effectuate this transaction and an orderly sale of the Company’s remaining assets, RadioShack and certain of its U.S. subsidiaries have filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. As part of this process, other parties will have an opportunity to submit offers for RadioShack’s assets in a court-approved process. The sale agreement is subject to court approval and other conditions. RadioShack’s foreign subsidiaries and its franchisee-owned stores are not included in the filing.

General Wireless, the entity formed to acquire the stores under the asset purchase agreement, has agreed in principle on terms with Sprint to establish a new dedicated mobility “store within a store” retail presence in up to 1,750 of the acquired stores. This agreement-in-principle is subject to negotiation of definitive documentation as well as court approval.

In addition, the Company has filed a motion with the Court to proceed with the closure of the remaining company-owned stores under an agreement with Hilco Merchant Resources. A list of the stores slated for closure will be posted in the near future on the restructuring information section of the company’s web site at www.radioshackcorporation.com. Stores that are closing are expected to sell remaining inventory.

RadioShack currently has approximately 4,000 company owned stores in the U.S. Its more than 1,000 dealer franchise stores in 25 countries, the stores operated by its Mexican subsidiary, and its Asia operations are not included in the Chapter 11 filing or the agreements announced today.

Discussions are underway with interested parties to sell all of the company’s remaining assets.