The Week In News, But Shorter
May 26 – June 1, 2025

Last week, we focused on how AI is reshaping the demands retailers place on physical space. This week, we’re turning the spotlight inward—because AI isn’t just transforming tenant operations, it’s starting to revolutionize how property owners operate. A new use-case gaining traction? Document and contract management. From lease abstractions to contract review, AI is taking on the tedious, time-consuming paperwork that bogs down deals and drains resources. Adoption is still ramping up, but forward-thinking landlords, developers, and brokers are already seeing major efficiency gains. Are you experimenting with AI for paperwork or other admin tasks? What aspect of AI should we explore next? Let us know over on LinkedIn.

This week brought some full-circle retail real estate moves: one mall developer picked up a former department store, while a big-box retailer scooped up an entire mall. The lines between asset types keep blurring—and the opportunities are everywhere if you know where to look. And in case you missed it, we recently shared some of our insights in Retail People Magazine—be sure to check it out!

Digital Meets Physical

Transforming Retail: Smart Strategies for Tomorrow’s Shopping Centres [Retail People Magazine] Retail is dead. Shopping malls are obsolete. Stop me if you have heard this before. But what is really going on? The truth is that the global retail and shopping center industry is undergoing a seismic shift. David Blumenfeld and Kyle Spencer discuss the latest in shopping mall technology and what the future holds.

DoorDash: AI, social media play roles in delivery [Chain Store Age] Artificial intelligence-aided delivery orders, viral food items and low- and no-alcohol beverages are among the consumer trends that DoorDash users are taking part in this year.

Wayfair to expand retail footprint with third large-format store [Chain Store Age] Wayfair Inc. is bringing its new large-format store concept to the New York metro area. The online home furnishings giant will open its third brick-and-mortar Wayfair store, in Yonkers, N.Y., in early 2027. At approximately 114,000 sq. ft., the store will be located in the Ridge Hill open-air lifestyle center, which is about 18 miles from New York City.

AI for Real Estate Documents: Are Lawyers’ Days Numbered? [Commercial Observer] Unsurprisingly, the tedious business of real estate legal document reading, vetting and abstracting is becoming easier, faster and more accurate through greater use of artificial intelligence. However, the road to reducing lawyers’ roles in untangling the Gordian knot of real estate documents remains bumpy, even as landlords, developers and brokers steadily, if somewhat slowly, embrace AI to speed workflow and to lower costs.

Why GenAI And Visual Search Are The Future Of Fashion Retail [Forbes] Lacking inspiration for your next fashion purchase or unsure which clothes might suit you best? There’s an app for that.

Donatos to open autonomous airport restaurant in June [Chain Store Age] A pizza chain is bringing a high-tech franchise location to John Glenn Columbus International Airport in Ohio. Donatos Pizza and its sister company, smart kitchen technology developer Agape Automation, are partnering with robotic food tech provider Appetronix to open the pizza chain’s first robot-operated restaurant.

PropTalk

GCC retail sector to reach over $390 billion by 2028 amid digital transformation [Middle East Economy] The GCC retail sector is undergoing a sweeping transformation. Once dominated by traditional models, the sector has now emerged as a key enabler of economic diversification, technological innovation and consumer-centric growth.

Canadian mall developer snaps up more than 2 dozen Hudson’s Bay leases [RetailDive] More than two dozen Hudson’s Bay Company stores are slated to be acquired by Ruby Liu Commercial Investment Corp, the companies said last week. As part of its restructuring under Canada’s equivalent of bankruptcy, the department store has entered into a definitive agreement to shift up to 28 leases in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia to Ruby Liu Commercial Investment Corp.

Walmart purchases Bethel Park Shopping Center for $39.6 million [CBS News] A spokesperson for Walmart tells KDKA that the company wants to continue to operate in Bethel Park and that purchasing the store gives Walmart the best opportunity to continue serving their customers in a long-term timeframe.

Walgreens rekindles micro-fulfillment center strategy [SupplyChainDive] Walgreens opened a new micro-fulfillment center in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, reviving its push to expand the use of the automated facilities. The facility is the 12th of its kind in Walgreens’ network and will service almost 200 Midwest stores while processing roughly 13 million prescriptions annually.

Talking Buildings: Why Commercial Real Estate Needs Conversational Interfaces [Commercial Observer] Picture this. A tenant walks into a building and asks, “What’s the air quality like on the third floor today?” Or a new member of the building staff mutters under his breath, “When was the last time this rooftop AC unit was serviced?” Then, building answers. Thanks to recent advances in large language models and natural language processing, this is no longer just a futuristic idea.

How to fill centers with fun [Chain Store Age] There’s a funny word that entered the retail real estate lexicon over the past decade: “Activations.” At most centers it defines things like farmer’s markets and yoga classes in green spaces. At American Dream, they stage some 800 of them a year.