Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/331061
10 S C T / J u l y 2 0 1 4 Online presence is key to department stores' market share Department store chains are ramping up their online busi- nesses in order to safeguard their market share from a pleth- ora of competitors online and in shopping centers, accord- ing to a report from Fitch Ratings. "Total sales from the top 10 department stores in aggregate have remained essentially flat since 2001, while square footage has grown approxi- mately 18 percent, indicating a meaningful decline in sales productivity," wrote analyst Isabel Hu in the report. Hu says she expects to see store closings and restructurings at some of the midlevel department store chains over the next 36 months and that those closings will hurt traffic and tertiary malls. Macy's, Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus are actively growing their web businesses, while midtier players such as The Bon-Ton Stores, JCPenney, Kohl's and Sears are strug- gling to adjust to a shifting landscape, she says. Fitch reports that only about 5 percent of U.S. sales at Bon-Ton, Dillard's and Sears is derived from web sales. This is significantly behind Macy's (10.7 percent of sales), Nordstrom (13.3 per- cent) and Neiman Marcus (23 percent). T H E C O M M O N A R E A ICSC Foundation teams up with NextGen to raise money ICSC members have a strong track record of investing in retail real estate education. Since 2007 the ICSC Founda- tion has awarded some $800,000 in scholarships and fel- lowships to about 250 recipients. Now some of those who have been beneficiaries of these programs are seeking to give back. ICSC's Next Generation program, which aims to get peo- ple new to the industry more involved in the organization, has kicked off a campaign called Next GENerosity. The idea here is to raise $75,000 for the foundation by the end of October through fundraising at Next Generation events, culminating in a strong push the week of Oct. 20 with contests, raffles and similar activities. "It seemed to be a perfect opportunity to integrate Next Generation and the ICSC Foundation, because the ICSC Foundation essentially gives back to the next generation with scholarships and education," said Peter Eisenberg, a principal of Chicago-based Clark Street Development, an ICSC Foundation director and board member, and a co-founder of Next Generation. He is also serving the new program as a mentor. Jordan Claffey, a vice president and director of New York City–based RFR Realty, is chairman of Next GEN- erosity, and Adam Moschin, vice president of leasing at Highland Park, Ill.–based Tucker Development Corp., is co-chairman. "Next Generation benefits [from the Foun- dation], but it's also important for the next generation to realize that it's never too early to start giving back," Eisen- berg said. "It's really important for the next generation to recognize that and [to] continue the strong legacy that the industry has." S C T Brick-and-mortar Online 23% 77% Neiman Marcus annual sales 6-10_SCT_JUL14_Common Area.indd 10 6/13/14 12:09 PM