Business

Under Armour Inc. is selling a once-cherished and now defunct Locust Point community garden lot as the first signs of its move to exit Tide Point for Baltimore Peninsula. The property is one of two empty lots owned by the Baltimore sportswear giant that recently hit the market in what could be the beginning of large-scale change on the waterfront leading into the Inner Harbor.

Buying this week’s groceries or paying for a full tank of gas with a credit card might contribute more to the profits of the airline industry than buying a one-way ticket. That’s because frequent flyer programs have become a crucial part of the airline industry’s profitability. And that’s due to the billions of dollars banks and credit card issuers pay to buy bulk miles from airlines to reward and entice cardholders to make purchases with their cards.

In a world where stress can dominate daily life, a small business focused only on playing games can take on an important role, giving people a chance to escape and relax. “The idea was to create a space where not only they could buy games that they play, but also play the games in the store so that they could build a community,” said Richard Hubley, owner of the store Play More Games in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

Atlas Restaurant Group is expanding its presence in Annapolis once again. The Baltimore group has signed a lease at 142 Dock St. in downtown Annapolis, the group announced Thursday afternoon. The space will add to its growing list of Annapolis spots, which includes Choptank and two restaurants joining the Annapolis Waterfront Hotel.

After two days of meetings of North America’s largest longshoremen’s union amid an impasse with port ownership on a new contract, concerns of a strike are growing amongst those in the business and logistics community. A strike by the International Longshoremen’s Association, which moves the trade at the ports along the East Coast, Gulf Coast and Puerto Rico, would impact 43% of all U.S. imports and billions of dollars in trade monthly.

The Port of Baltimore could be headed for its second partial shutdown this year. A six-year contract between a dockworkers’ union and shipping companies expires at the end of this month, and labor leaders say they are closer than ever to their first strike in nearly 50 years. Such an action would affect ports along the East Coast and the Gulf of Mexico, upend the global supply chain and put thousands of Baltimore-area residents out of work.

Retail real estate company Centennial said Wednesday it has finalized its deal to purchase the Annapolis Mall in Anne Arundel County. The Texas company is partnering with Sandeep Mathrani, founder of Atlas Hill RE and vice chairman of Brookfield Properties, to acquire the shopping mall. Terms of the sale were not released.