Retailers

Domingo Catalan powered through the Thanksgiving night crowds to get his children toys. He methodically checked all the boxes on his relatives' wish lists on Black Friday. And before he goes to work as a data analyst for a government contractor on Cyber Monday, he expects to look for online deals to have shipped to his brother's family in Germany. So whom was Catalan, a Crofton resident, shopping for on Sunday morning at Bass Pro Shops at Arundel Mills? "Me," he grinned, pausing to jerk his thumb toward his chest as he put an Under Armour winter jacket and fishing gear into the back of his Ford pick-up truck.

Just as Tom and Claudia Towles were opening their second Baltimore toy shop four years ago, the recession hit. The owners of aMuse Toys decided to cut back - not on staff or selling space - but on the number of manufacturers whose products they carry. The strategy worked, allowing the owners and small staff to focus on fewer toy makers, learn about their products and share that knowledge with customers. Sales grew, and the Towles now hope to open a third location. "Other companies have tried to cast too wide a net," Claudia Towles said between a steady stream of customers at the tiny but well-stocked Thames Street shop in Fells Point on the day before Thanksgiving.

Red anti-Walmart signs dot a stretch of Route 924 in Harford County, where people have packed public meetings and organized protests. Petitions are circulating through housing developments, and residents are writing to politicians. But it's not corporate labor practices or the impact of discount pricing on nearby mom-and-pop stores — issues that have triggered protests in other communities — that have many residents in an uproar. They're upset over a three-mile move planned by the giant retailer, from Abingdon to Bel Air, where it wants to build a bigger store that offers more groceries.

Dunbar Armored has been in the armored-car business for nearly 90 years. But the Hunt Valley-based company now is branching into a new way to protect banks' and businesses' money and valuables: cybersecurity. The company is launching a subsidiary, Dunbar Digital Armored, early next year to tap into the growing need to protect online transactions for its thousands of bank and retail customers. Dunbar will focus its cybersecurity products on small and mid-size companies that are looking for tech-savvy solutions but don't have the deep pockets or cybersecurity expertise of the big banks.

Tumi, a specialty retailer that sells luggage, briefcases, backpacks and other travel accessories, will open next spring in Towson Town Center. The new store will open on the second level of the mall's Crate & Barrel luxury wing. Tumi sells its products in 200 of its branded stores in the U.S. and internationally  as well as in department, specialty and travel retail stores in more than 65 countries.  Michael Sullivan, Towson Town's senior general manager, said signing the new tenant fits with the mall's focus on bringing exclusive and first-in-the-market shops to the center.

Though Under Armour still plans to open a store at its Tide Point headquarters, the company felt it had gone too long without a retail space in the city it calls home. Under Armour announced Thursday that it will open a specialty store at Harbor East in February. Construction on the 8,000-square-foot store at 700 S. President St., not far from J. Crew, will begin this month. The company reported a 31 percent increase in direct-to-consumer revenue for the third quarter as it further transitioned from selling mostly in big-box stores.

Discount retailer Marshalls plans to open in the former Filene's Basement spot at the Inner Harbor early next year. The national chain, known for selling brand-name apparel at a discount, signed a lease for more than 31,000 square feet at Lockwood Place on East Pratt Street, David S. Brown Enterprises Ltd., the center's manager, said Tuesday. National retailer Filene's filed for bankruptcy protection last year and closed all of its stores. The Inner Harbor Filene's closed in January.

When Harborplace first opened, it was hailed as one of the crown jewels of Baltimore's renaissance, and millions of visitors from across Maryland and around the country beat a path to its door. On a typical Saturday afternoon, the Light and Pratt street pavilions were beehives of activity, crowded with tourists who came to the Inner Harbor to eat, shop and gawk. More than 30 years later, Harborplace is still viable and still commercially successful, although not necessarily what it once was. There are any number of reasons for this, from competition elsewhere to the natural evolution of any attraction - but surely one big problem involved its owners and the lack of sufficient investment in the properties as ownership transferred from Rouse Co. to Chicago-based General Growth Properties, which subsequently landed in bankruptcy.

Dorothy May Press, a homemaker and matriarch of her family, died of congestive heart failure Oct. 10 at her home in the Rosemont section of West Baltimore. She was 94. Born Dorothy May Brown in Baltimore, she was the daughter of Sarah Jane Smith Brown, a homemaker, and George Augustin Brown, a postal worker and chauffeur. She attended the old St. Barnabas Roman Catholic School and graduated from Frederick Douglass High School in 1936. She met her future husband, Vernon Castle Press, while both were in their junior year.

Sales at all three ReStore locations Saturday will support a Habitat for Humanity of the Chesapeake home under construction in Baltimore's Orchard Ridge community. Shoppers will find a broad selection of quality building materials, appliances, furniture, cabinets, flooring, lighting and plumbing materials at affordable prices. In addition to the regular discounts, the stores are offering 50 percent off all lighting and 20 percent off all donated items. The Dundalk, Pasadena and Halethorpe ReStores will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sales profits enable the local Habitat chapter to continue its affordable homeownership opportunities in the greater Baltimore metropolitan area as well as in Anne Arundel and Howard counties.