Weekly Perl: A Commercial Real Estate News Recap
The Iconic Reel Inn Malibu To Say Goodbye After 36 Years
Plans to resurrect The Reel Inn Malibu after the Palisades Fire have been shelved following a decision by the California Department of Parks and Recreation not to renew the restaurant’s lease, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.
The move effectively closes a 36-year chapter for the 144-seat seafood shack on Pacific Coast Highway, long recognizable for surfboards on the walls, clever signage, chalkboard menus, and the relaxed Malibu customers...
Dollar Tree posts Q2 gains, predicts flat Q3 profits
Dollar Tree on Wednesday reported double-digit gains in second-quarter sales and profits, but the company said tariffs would continue to pressure earnings in the third quarter.
The low-price retailer said it expected diluted earnings per share in the third quarter to be about even with year-ago results, despite forecasts for strong sales growth throughout the year. The flat outlook for Q3 appeared to disappoint investors, who sent the company’s stock down about 8% in early trading on Wednesday...
Trump rewriting federal marijuana regulations could unlock billions for the US economy — what you should know
President Trump recently confirmed that his administration is considering reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug, and that shift could have a massive impact on the U.S. economy.
Currently, marijuana is classified as a Schedule I drug — alongside heroin, LSD and MDMA. These drugs are considered more dangerous and are defined as having no acceptable medical use...
Black Rock Coffee Bar Eyes $860.7 Million Valuation
Black Rock Coffee Bar wants to price its IPO at $16 to $18 per share. This means the chain hopes to raise up to $265 million. It would also mean a valuation of up to $860.7 million.
Black Rock will list on the Nasdaq under “BRCB...”
Wendy's opens 118 new locations worldwide in first half of 2025
An Ohio-based quick-serve hamburger giant is making progress towards its goal of 1,000 new restaurants by 2028.
Wendy’s announced that in the first half of 2025, it opened 118 restaurants globally. The chain says it remains on track to increase global units by 2% to 3% in 2025 while continuously strengthening its long-term development pipeline...
Academy Sports opening 11 stores — here’s where; Q2 sales rise 3.3%
Academy Sports + Outdoors continues to expand its store footprint.
The Texas-based sporting goods and outdoor recreation retailer has 11 new stores (locations at end of article) on tap for the third quarter, with plans to open a total of 20 to 25 new locations this fiscal year. To date, Academy has opened eleven stores in 2025, bringing its total to 306 locations across 21 states...
Net Lease Investment Trends Drive Retail Sector Resilience
Despite economic headwinds, the retail net lease market remained resilient in the first half of 2025, reports GlobeSt. Investors increasingly gravitated toward tenants with strong credit and operational stability. According to Colliers’ mid-year retail review, STNL sales reached $5.7B in the first half of 2025. This marks a 9.6% increase from the second half of 2024. The rise signals renewed confidence in well-leased retail assets...
Wawa opens its first convenience store catering to truckers
Wawa is getting into the truck-stop business.
The mid-Atlantic convenience store chain opened its first store with amenities for truckers near Fayetteville, North Carolina, and started construction on two additional truck stops in Ohio and Indiana...
More retailers seek Chapter 11 redo — but few survive
Bankruptcies aren’t turning out better the second time around for many retailers.
A flurry of U.S. chains have returned to court recently to file for Chapter 11 reorganization within just a few years after first seeking bankruptcy protection. In August, tween retailer and mall staple Claire’s filed a second time. While it has found a buyer for up to nearly 1,000 of its stores, it will still be closing hundreds of its locations. And it’s not alone...
After Years of Silence, Smashburger Plots Comeback Under New CEO
It’s time for Smashburger to wake up.
That’s the message Jim Sullivan, who was promoted to CEO in August, wants to send to restaurants, franchisees, employees, and the whole system. In prior years, the fast casual has been relatively silent—”virtually invisible,” Sullivan says, except for a rebranding back in September 2024 that involved removing many core items from the menu. The 206-unit Smashburger did augment with some replacements, like the All-American Smash, Bacon Stack Smash, and Chicken Smash Burger, but then the brand stopped innovating...
Americans Keep Spending But They See Clouds on Horizon
Never underestimate the American consumer. That’s a lesson economists keep learning.
The labor market has been slowing, inflation is still biting and consumer sentiment remains subdued. But none of those things stopped Americans from boosting their spending by the most in four months in July, according to a Bureau of Economic Analysis report out today...
