RCS secures lease agreements to keep Claire's stores open

Features

RCS secures lease agreements to keep Claire's stores open
 
Published Wednesday, October 1, 2025 11:00 am
by Zachary Russell

This is a summary

"With Claire’s acquisition by private equity, RCS Real Estate Advisors has been selected to guide the chain’s retail footprint.

The real estate advisory firm will oversee the tween and teen accessories retailer’s new "sustainable" store footprint. After its selection by Ames Watson, which acquired Claire’s for $104 million in cash and a $36 million seller note, RCS secured preliminary lease agreements from hundreds of property owners across the U.S. and Canada. The company then finalized agreements for more than 800 stores, with the potential to reach 950, including key stores in California, New York, Florida, Illinois and other major markets."

Read the original on Chain Store Age

RCS secures lease agreements to keep Claire's stores open | Chain Store Age

Image credit to Chain Store Age


Send this page to a friend

RCS secures lease agreements to keep Claire's stores open | Chain Store Age

Recent News

How real estate intelligence is redefining retail growth

Retailers are expanding again—but with far more discipline. Today, it’s not about opening the most stores, but choosing locations that can truly win. Real estate intelligence is reshaping decisions by tying together customer movement, store performance and financial impact, allowing brands to validate formats faster, negotiate smarter and align real estate strategy with bottom-line results. The retailers who treat data as a daily habit—not a quarterly report—are the ones building portfolios that can flex with consumer behavior and stay future-proof.

Retail roulette: How Trump’s tariffs altered buying

Tariffs under the Trump administration have become so unpredictable that retailers are struggling to keep up, with costs shifting faster than buying teams can plan. Because orders are usually placed months—sometimes nearly a year—in advance, the on-again, off-again tariff changes have disrupted long-standing vendor relationships, forced last-minute capacity bets, and pushed buyers to reorder their entire sourcing strategies. Big names like Best Buy and Ikea have already shifted production away from China, while smaller retailers face far greater pressure as they juggle longer lead times, unreliable suppliers, and tighter holiday deadlines. As experts point out, this volatile trade environment is accelerating a major industry shift: retailers must evolve from lean, efficiency-focused supply chains to more flexible, resilient ones—or risk being left behind.

Ikea profits take a hit from tariffs, affordability effort

IKEA's net profit fell nearly one-third to 1.5 billion euros from 2.2 billion euros in fiscal year 2025, as the company absorbed the impact of U.S. tariffs and rising commodity prices while maintaining lower prices for franchisees and customers. Total revenues remained essentially flat at 26.3 billion euros, with total IKEA sales declining 1% to 44.6 billion euros due to lower wholesale prices introduced in 2024. Despite the profit decline, sales volumes grew 2.6% and store visits increased nearly 2%, reaching 915 million, as the company opened 66 new locations globally. IKEA plans to maintain current wholesale price levels in fiscal 2026 to ensure stability and affordability despite continued pressure on profitability.