Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW) has announced the appointment of Kathleen Verelst as chief investment officer, effective from January 1, 2026. She will also join the Group’s Management Board. This appointment follows the recommendation of the Governance Committee and comes as URW prepares its 2025-2028 strategy.
Portrait of Kathleen Verelst – LinkedIn
URW remains one of Europe’s leading players in the commercial real estate sector. The Group owns 66 shopping centres in 11 countries, including 40 under the Westfield brand, with a total portfolio valued at €49 billion. URW is also pursuing urban and sustainable projects, in line with its ‘Better Places’ plan. Its shares are listed on Euronext Paris.
Kathleen Verelst has over 30 years’ experience in real estate and finance. She has worked at the investment bank Morgan Stanley, as well as at law firms in New York. Between 2021 and 2024, she served as senior adviser to URW. In this role, she helped the Group reduce its debt and dispose of 17 assets in the US for a total of $3.3 billion.
She succeeds Vincent Rouget, who will become chairman of the Management Board in 2026. In her new role, Kathleen Verelst will be responsible for investment policy and capital allocation. She will oversee strategic projects across the Westfield portfolio and develop new growth opportunities, including through capital-light projects and co-investments.
URW’s management emphasises that her international experience and deep knowledge of the Group make her a key asset in delivering the 2025-2028 roadmap. Her expertise in real estate, finance, and complex operations should strengthen the Group’s ability to continue its transformation.
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Groupe Dynamite on Tuesday posted strong third-quarter results, reporting double-digit sales growth and increasing its full-year guidance.
Groupe Dynamite lifts 2025 outlook after Q3 revenue surge. – Dynamite
Revenue for the quarter rose 40.3% to $363.0 million from $258.8 million a year earlier, driven by a 31.6% increase in comparable store sales and contributions from new locations. Online revenue grew 43.3% to $63.2 million.
The Canadian fashion retailer behind the Dynamite and Garage brands posted net earnings of $41.1 million, up 101.7% from a year earlier, with diluted earnings per share rising to $0.71 from $0.38.
Operating income surged 90.3% to $120.1 million, while adjusted EBITDA rose 67.5% to $146.1 million.
“Our teams once again demonstrated the strength of our values-led culture. What we delivered this quarter across product, stores, and digital reflects the intention, discipline, and agility that continue to set us apart. We’re well into our journey to elevate and premiumize both brands, and the customer response remains strong,” said Stacie Beaver, president and chief operating officer.
“Operationally, our real estate strategy continues to be a core pillar, with 17 gross openings year-to-date positioning us for sustained, high-quality traffic. On digital, we’re encouraged by the 40 basis points increase in e-commerce penetration in Q3 2025, as we enhance our platforms to support richer storytelling and more seamless experiences. With a solid foundation, real momentum, and teams who move fast and stay aligned, we enter Q4 confident in our ability to raise performance, strengthen brand experiences, and deepen our community connections.”
Looking ahead, the company increased its fiscal 2025 outlook and now expects comparable store sales growth of 25.5% to 27.5%, up from 17% to 19%.
The company said its outlook remains subject to risks, including tariffs, real estate delays, weather disruptions, changes in consumer demand and IT or supply chain issues.
Canada’s Roots announced on Wednesday sales were up 6.8% to $71.5 million for its third quarter ended November 1, as demand for its core products, improved marketing and stronger in-store performance lifted results.
Direct-to-consumer revenue increased 4.8% to $56.8 million, supported by 6.3% comparable sales growth driven by enhancements to the company’s omnichannel experience and continued interest in the brand’s product assortment.
Partners and other revenue, comprising of wholesale Roots branded products, licensing to select manufacturing partners and the sale of certain custom products, rose 15.3% to $14.6 million, boosted by earlier wholesale orders in Taiwan and stronger domestic wholesale sales of custom Roots-branded products.
Gross profit climbed 8.1% to $43.4 million, with gross margin improving to 60.8% from 60.0% last year. Net income was $2.3 million, or $0.06 per share, compared with $2.4 million, or $0.06 per share, a year ago.
“Even in a dynamic retail environment, our heritage, quality, and focus on comfort continued to differentiate the brand and drive engagement across our omnichannel platform,” said Meghan Roach, president and chief executive officer of Roots Corporation. “We remain disciplined in execution and committed to strengthening the foundations of the brand to support long-term value creation.”
Year to date, Roots generated $162.2 million in sales, up 6.6% from last year, while DTC revenue increased 8.6%. The company reported a year-to-date net loss of $10.0 million, an improvement from a $11.7 million loss a year earlier.
Looking ahead, Roach added that “While early in the fourth quarter, we continue to experience positive trends.”
Authentic Brands Group has named Pattern Group Inc. as its global e-commerce marketplace accelerator and premier TikTok Shop partner, a move aimed at strengthening the digital performance of more than 50 brands in its portfolio.
Authentic partners with Pattern to optimize ecommerce operations. – Champion
The partnership expands Authentic’s marketplace strategy, with Pattern responsible for managing official storefronts on TikTok Shop and expansion planned across Amazon, Walmart, Target Plus, Zalando, Otto and additional marketplaces worldwide. The work will include marketplace-specific content, translations and retail media strategies designed to boost visibility and conversion.
“Authentic’s global marketplace strategy meets customers on the platforms they trust, creates smarter discovery for our brands, and optimizes conversion at scale,” said Tim Derner, global head of marketplaces at Authentic.
“Partnering with Pattern is an important step in our digital expansion strategy. TikTok Shop is critical to how today’s consumers discover and purchase our brands, and Pattern’s proven technology and global expertise will enable us to scale faster while driving long-term, sustainable growth across our portfolio and protecting the strength of our brands.”
As part of the collaboration, Authentic will centralize core ecommerce functions such as inventory planning, forecasting, fulfillment and brand protection. Pattern will provide technology to monitor unauthorized sellers and improve marketplace consistency, giving Authentic greater insight into supply, demand and execution across global retail channels.
“Authentic owns some of the world’s most recognizable brands,” said John LeBaron, chief revenue officer at Pattern.
“We’re thrilled to leverage our AI-powered platform and operational excellence to help Authentic’s brands accelerate e-commerce growth globally across an increasingly dynamic e-commerce landscape. As Authentic’s premier TikTok Shop partner, we’re excited to help their brands sell on TikTok Shop and leverage this fast-growing channel, where customers are increasingly discovering and purchasing products, to reach new customers and expand their global footprint.”