Francesca’s to Close Half of Store Fleet Following Bankruptcy Sale Approval

Footwear News
Francesca’s Holdings Corp. will permanently shutter about half of its brick-and-mortar fleet as it exits bankruptcy proceedings. . . more

This Popular Clothing Store Is Closing at Least 200 Locations

Yahoo! Life
The economic effects of the COVID pandemic are continuing to wreak havoc on some of the biggest names in retail, and the latest one to suffer is American Eagle. . . . more

Vaccination megasites pop up in empty malls

CNN Business
Now that Covid-19 vaccination efforts are ramping up, local health officials are on the hunt for locations that can quickly be converted into vaccination clinics, and malls across the country, battered by declines in in-person shopping, are starting to play a role. . . . more

The evolution of the shopping mall: What consumers want

Retail Dive
On Cyber Monday, the retail industry achieved a new milestone — the single largest e-commerce day on record with $10.8 billion in sales. According to a report from Creditntell, this represented over a 200% increase from 2016 Cyber Monday sales. Sensormatic Solutions shared that physical store traffic declined 49% for the four-day holiday weekend. Black Friday weekend confirmed that traditional brick-and-mortar retailers face an uphill battle as they enter the new year. . . . more

American Eagle Outfitters’ new strategy focused on Aerie growth

CSA
American Eagle Outfitters is focused on growing its Aerie banner as it plans for the future. . . . more

Considering rampant spread of COVID-19, December mall traffic was surprisingly high

CSA
Traffic statistics at American malls in the early days of this year’s expanded holiday shopping season fell in step with the volume of COVID-19 cases being reported—except during gift-buying crunch time in December. . . . more

Sears is dying a quiet, invisible death

CNN Business
Sears has made it through another holiday shopping season. Just barely. . . . more