Merchandise Roundup 7/16/22: Obi-Wan Apparel, Merchandise, Water Bottles and More

We found many new items in World of Disney and Star Wars Trading Post at Disney Springs. The Aurebesh phrases on most of the apparel read “The Dark Times” and “Jedi vs. Sith.” Many have Darth Vader and Obi-Wan are battling on the front.

Hulu Releases New Merchandise for San Diego Comic-Con 2022

Hulu is launching new and exclusive merchandise for many of your favorite Hulu Originals and shows, including Solar Opposites, The Orville: New Horizons, Koala Man, and The Great North.

You’ll be able to shop all of them at either shop.hulu.com or Booth #4229 during San Diego Comic-Con.

Solar Opposites

You can celebrate the release of season three with brand new gear, including:

https://sdccblog.com/2022/07/hulu-releases-new-merchandise-for-san-diego-comic-con-2022/

Mall owners say retailers are still opening stores in spite of recession fears

The biggest shopping mall owners in the United States say retailers are still forging ahead with plans to open new stores in spite of growing recession fears and decades-high inflation that’s squeezing shoppers’ budgets. The country’s largest mall owner, said the pipeline of businesses slated to open up at its properties remains strong. The company reported an occupancy rate at its U.S. malls and outlet centers of 93.9% as of June 30, up from 91.8% a year earlier.

“Even with with what’s going on in the world, we really haven’t seen anyone back out of deals,” Simon Property Chief Executive Officer David Simon said on an earnings conference call Monday.

“We’re seeing a big rebound in Vegas, Florida is on fire … California is finding its legs,” he added.

Fueling the openings are a mix of factors, including retailers pushing to snap up limited space and popular online brands looking to expand by opening up brick-and-mortar locations. Some retailers are eyeing real estate in markets outside of major cities as they follow people who uprooted to find bigger spaces during the Covid pandemic. And companies including

that shuttered stores in recent years are now testing different formats, often with smaller footprints.

So far this year, retailers in the U.S. have announced 4,432 store openings, compared with 1,954 closings, according to data from Coresight Research, resulting in a net of 2,478 openings.

Before the pandemic, the industry was seeing net closures of thousands of stores every year as consumers increasingly moved their spending online. In 2019, Coresight tracked 9,832 closures, compared with 4,689 openings. Last year, the retail industry eked out a net addition of 68 stores.

“Retailers are not going to pull back on store growth,” said Naveen Jaggi, president of the retail advisory team at JLL, a commercial real estate services firm. “They’re going to continue to grow because that’s one of the ways that they can send a message to the market that, ‘We’re healthy and safe.’”

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/02/mall-owners-retailers-still-opening-stores-despite-recession-fears.html