Austin, Texas — Whole Foods Market has opened its 35,000-square-foot store at Saltillo, a mixed-use development in East Austin by Endeavor Real Estate Group. The new store was originally slated to open as one of the Austin-based grocer’s 365 concepts. When the pandemic set in, Endeavor Real Estate Group pivoted to have the store serve as a fulfillment center for other regional stores. It has served as a fulfillment center during most of the COVID-19 pandemic. The store now offers fresh produce from 75 different growers, full-service meat and seafood …
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Riverside, Calif. — Farmer Boys®, the fast-casual concept known for its award-winning burgers and exceptional service, has promoted John Lucas to vice president of brand consistency. Previously, he was director of franchise operations. In this new role, Lucas is responsible for ensuring that Farmer Boys maintains consistent operational standards across every element of the brand and delivers a high quality, reliable guest experience in every restaurant. Lucas joined the Farmer Boys team in 2017 as a franchise business consultant and has served the company as director of franchise operations since …
Irvine, Calif. — Juice It Up!, one of the nation’s leading handcrafted smoothie, açaí bowl and raw juice chains, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2020, is opening the brand’s flagship “new store prototype” location this summer in Costa Mesa, Calif. This corporate-owned location will be the first to feature the brand’s new store design and will serve as an innovation kitchen for R&D, as well as a training and test center to continually share best practices with franchisees systemwide. The flagship location is opening on Costa Mesa’s 17th …
Scottsdale, Ariz. — PXG, a company that develops high-performance golf equipment and apparel, recently opened its sixth brick-and-mortar location in the United States. The 3,900-square-foot boutique is located at the Westgate Entertainment District in Glendale, Ariz. The center is a hub for dining, retail and entertainment for the Phoenix area’s West Valley. During a time when many traditional stores are struggling, PXG is continuing to expand its retail footprint. Unlike many golf companies, PXG is not sold in big box stores and instead focuses on personalized customer service. “PXG is …
New York City — Shake Shack Inc. and licensee Maxim’s Caterers Limited have expanded their partnership, with plans to open a minimum of 15 Shacks in South China by 2030, including locations in Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Fuzhou and Xiamen. The Shenzhen location is slated to open next year. Together, Shake Shack and Maxim’s Caterers Limited plan to operate 55 Shacks in mainland China by 2030. Maxim’s currently operates Shake Shack locations in Shanghai and Hong Kong, with Beijing and Macau in development with goals to open later in 2020. As a …
Downers Grove, Ill. — Sevan Multi-Site Solutions, Inc., a global leader in innovative design, program management, construction services and data analytics, has reached a major milestone and completed refreshing its 21,000th retail space. For 9 years, Sevan has provided solutions for the world’s largest brands while accelerating development programs across the United States and Canada for multi-site clients. Sevan has partnered on retail programs with many Fortune 500 companies including Ahold, Albertsons, Hallmark, Jiffy Lube, Kroger, Safeway, Sheetz, Walmart, Army & Air Force Exchange Service (Exchange) and many others in …
New York City — For the first time in the company’s 80-plus-year history, Paul Stuart is heading to the beach this summer with a brand new, full-service store at 50 Main Street in Southampton, N.Y. The 1,900-square-foot store will open on July 1 and will feature styles for men and women from the sportswear, tailored clothing, accessories and footwear collections the company is well known for. “We couldn’t be happier to make this exciting announcement,” says Paulette Garafalo, CEO of Paul Stuart. “After closing our stores in March due to …
Hauppauge, N.Y. — BOSS Facility Services’ Robert S. Keingstein lost his battle with cancer on June 20, 2020. He was 68 years old. Bob was a true industry professional with a passion and knowledge of the HVAC industry for over 51 years. Bob started his career as an HVAC apprentice for Forman Air Conditioning at the age of 17 and instantly fell in love with the trade. At the age of 23 he started his first HVAC company and never looked back. He became involved with ACCA (Air Conditioning Contractors …
Lexington, Ky. — A&W Restaurants is expanding from California to New York and from Louisiana to Minnesota, the result of agreements signed with 10 new franchisees. The latest multi-unit deal, signed this month, will bring three locations to Lafayette, La. The popular fast food chain has opened 12 restaurants in the last 18 months. It now has 16 in development, with four being built by current franchisees. The new locations will be in major cities, such as Chicago and St. Louis, as well as mid-size and smaller communities. Seven will …
Pittsburgh — Global health and wellness company GNC Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GNC) has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. GNC and all of its subsidiaries will remain open for business during the process. Pittsburgh-based GNC expects to use the bankruptcy process “to improve its balance sheet and capital structure while continuing to advance its business strategy, right-size its corporate store portfolio and strengthen its brands to protect the long-term sustainability of its business,” according to a press release from the company. Over the past year, the company has executed a strategy to close …