Simon wants to upgrade Class B malls

After years of prioritizing CapEx to help turn Class A malls into A+ trophy malls, Simon Property Group is right to shift its excess capital toward turning B malls into A malls.

It is not difficult to turn a B+ mall into an A- mall through redevelopment, re-leasing, consumer marketing, etc. Simon, with its very powerful leasing resources, certainly has the ability to identify and attract highly productive retailers to replace underperforming retailers through lease expirations. Simon can also buy out tenants to replace them with more productive tenants that will pay higher rents. Achieving better sales also pushes demand from the most desirable retailers. This alone can turn a B+ mall into a Class A- mall.

Read more: Simon seeks rent growth by upgrading outdated, second-tier shopping centers (CoStar News)

Chipotle Mexican Grill to open more than 300 restaurants in 2025

Chipotle Mexican Grill expects to open 315-345 new restaurants in 2025. At least 80% of them will have Chipotle drive-thru lanes. International growth will accelerate, especially in Canada and the Middle East, with ongoing efforts to improve the economic model in Europe.

Chipotle's sales grew 15% to $11.3 billion, driven by a 7.4% comp including over 5% transaction growth. The popular chain opened 304 new restaurants in 2024, with 257 featuring Chipotle lanes. If you want to lease to Chipotle, better to offer a location with drive-thru capability.

Read more: Chipotle targets 315-345 new openings in 2025 with focus on Chipotle lanes (Seeking Alpha)

Marco’s Pizza to open its 1,200th store in 2025

Marco's Pizza (Marco's Franchising, LLC) with 85 franchises awarded and 70 new store openings in 2024, is ready to surpass its 1,200th store milestone in 2025.

Key growth areas include expansion into non-traditional locations and international markets. Tony Libardi, co-CEO and president of Marco’s Pizza says “2025 will be a year of momentum.”

Headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, Marco’s was founded in 1978 by Italian-born Pasquale (“Pat”) Giammarco, but “Giammarco’s Pizza” just didn’t exactly roll off the tongue.

The company has grown from its roots as an Ohio brand to operate over 1,200 stores in 35 states with locations in Puerto Rico, the Bahamas and Mexico.

Read more: Marco’s Pizza Kicks Off 2025: Recapping a Stellar 2024 and Charting a Bold Path Forward (Marco’s Pizza)

Rails to increase brick-and-mortar presence

The Los Angeles-based clothing company Rails is shifting its strategy from wholesale to retail, and has announced it will open four new stores in 2025. The lifestyle apparel brand recently opened stores in Atlanta’s Buckhead Village and the Phoenix-area Scottsdale Quarter. It will also open new locations in Bethesda, Md., on April 25, and on Chicago’s Armitage Avenue later this spring.

After mostly selling wholesale during the first part of Rails' 15-year history, the new openings are part of what founder Jeff Abrams’ described as a retail strategy to open four to five stores per year, (mostly in the U.S., but maybe one to two international stores per year). Rails has 16 stores including stores in Amsterdam, Berlin, London and Paris.

Read more: Rails Plots U.S. Expansion and First Menswear Store in a Strategy to Pivot From Wholesale to Direct-to-consumer (Women’s Wear Daily)

Krispy Krunchy Chicken to open 600 stores in 2025

You’ve head of Chick-fil-A Restaurants, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and KFC. But have you heard at all about KKC? It’s the fastest growing chain of store-in-store restaurants serving Louisiana-style fried chicken called Krispy Krunchy Chicken by Krispy Krunchy Foods LLC.

The Alexandria, Louisiana-based chain beat its previous record of 481 restaurant openings in 2023, and opened 605 restaurants in 2024. This year it plans to open more than 600. Most of these restaurants are inside c-stores but many are inside Walmart, supermarkets, malls, casinos and college campuses. For comparison, fast-growing coffee chain Starbucks opened 614 new locations from 2023 to 2024, according to its financial filing.

KKC uses the Olo app to consolidate third-party delivery services and works with DoorDash, UberEats and Grubhub.

The restaurant chain was purchased by a private equity firm Main Post Partners in 2021. Jim Norberg is the CEO of Krispy Krunchy Chicken. Dan Shapiro is chairman of the board of the company. There are currently more than 3,200 Krispy Krunchy Chicken locations in 47 states.

Read more: A little-known Louisiana fried chicken chain quietly grew by more than 600 stores last year (Daily Mail)

Atomic Wings to double its restaurant count in 2025

Another fast-food chicken restaurant chain is looking to grow its store count. Atomic Wings, known for its New York-style buffalo wings has 22 units now open across the U.S. and a strong pipeline of development, aiming to open 30-34 units by the end of 2025.

Atomic Wings has now begun to expand beyond its traditional New York market, according to Zak Omar, CEO of Atomic Wings. In 2024, the chain entered Texas, Minnesota, Indiana, South Dakota, Virginia and Illinois.

This year, Atomic Wings plans to expand in Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. In addition to its existing locations, Atomic Wings is targeting New York, New Jersey, Texas, Arizona and Nevada for additional growth. The brand is led by brothers Zak and Ray Omar.

Read more: Atomic Wings Closes 2024 with Record Growth and Big Plans for 2025 (Retail & Restaurant Facility Business)