Sprouts, a Phoenix-based organic grocer, will open this year at 15121 Ballancroft Pkwy., off Providence Road West in Ballantyne. The new store will be the grocer’s first in Charlotte – it operates another in Raleigh, and will open one in Fayetteville as well. The new Ballantyne supermarket is one of six new locations that Sprouts is opening in the second quarter of this year, the company said in a statement. Others will open in Georgia, California, Nevada and South Carolina.Source: wbtv.com
US: SpartanNash introduces "Our Family" brand in Michigan
Midwest grocery operator SpartanNash is rolling out the Our Family brand in Michigan at its own 87 retail stores – including Family Fare Supermarkets, D&W Fresh Market, Forest Hills Foods, ValuLand and VG’s stores – and more than 300 independent retail customers throughout the state. “We are excited to offer Our Family products to our store guests and independent retail customers in Michigan, because it reflects on SpartanNash’s commitment to great products at affordable prices,” said John Paul, VP of private brands.Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Big Alabama solar project now serving Walmart
After months of construction, one of Alabama’s largest solar energy facilities, built in partnership with utility company, Alabama Power, is up and running in Chambers County. Most of the renewable energy attributes from Alabama Solar A are going to serve Walmart through a long-term contract in order to help the retailer meet its renewable energy goals.Source: solarindustrymag.com
Germany: Edeka celebrates its 111th birthday
The Edeka Association is celebrating its birthday - and all customers are welcome to join in the celebration. In 1907, numerous regional purchasing cooperatives united to form a national association: it was the birth of Edeka. 111 years later, Edeka thanks its customers for their loyalty. At the beginning of the anniversary year, they can look forward to very favorable prices. The campaign started yesterday with a colorful TV ad and will continue across all media. The Edeka jubilee year starts with a real hit: in the first week of January, there are many attractive brand products available at the special price of only one euro. A real eye-catcher is the new TV commercial "Feierwerk". Here, shopping customers are surprised by lots of glitter and colorful balloons. Particularly astonished is a young girl musing who it is, that is now 111 years old... The 30-second commercial is now showing on all bigger stations. Advertisements, radio spots, the website, the social media channels and numerous other promotions in the Edeka stores will draw the consumer’s attention to the current anniversary offers.
Source: edeka-verbund.de
Tunisia: Monoprix aims to open 100 new stores by 2020
Monoprix opened a new store on the 29th December 2017 in Boumhel El-Bassatine, a few kilometres from the centre of Tunis. More openings are planned over the next few years and they aim to reach 100 new stores by 2020. This store is Monoprix’s 8th store to open in Tunisia in 2017 and covers 1,175m2 with 32 employees. Source: africanmanager.com
Netto Poland appoints Janusz Stroka as new CEO
Danish retail group Dansk Supermarked has appointed Janusz Stroka as the new CEO for its Netto Poland discount stores. Under the new appointment, the Polish discounter is set to expand by 40 new stores per year from 2020 onwards, according to the retail group.Source: esmmagazine.com
UK’s first parcel vending machine comes to Asda Trafford Park
In a first for the UK, a new, 16ft foot tall and 8ft wide, automated parcel tower has been installed at Asda’s Trafford Park store following a successful trial by parent company Walmart in the US. The tower, which acts as a giant parcel vending machine, is located inside the store so customers can pick up their online order in less than 60 seconds and it will also take returns.Source: retailtimes.co.uk
France: Auchan Group to invest €90mln in Portugal
French retail group Auchan has plans to invest €90mln in Portugal over the next two years, focusing on store refurbishments as well as new openings. According to Pedro Cid, director general of Auchan Portugal, the retailer intends to spend 40% of this investment on new stores, while the rest has been earmarked for refurbishing and rebranding existing stores.Source: esmmagazine.com
Dutch supermarket app will recommend healthier products over unhealthy ones
The Netherlands’ government-backed Nutrition Centre has launched an app that consumers can use to compare brands in store and find the healthiest one. "We hope to unleash a revolution in the supermarket," it says.Source: foodnavigator.com
UK: Supermarket chain to open new store on retail park
Budget supermarket chain Lidl has signed up to open a new store on a retail park. The German chain is to open a 20,000 sq ft store on a new park being developed by IM Properties in Birmingham Road, Bromsgrove. The supermarket is due to open later this year and will create up to 40 new jobs.Source: birminghampost.co.uk
UK: Morrisons selects Irisys to streamline checkout promise
Morrisons, one of the largest supermarkets in the United Kingdom, is investing in its stores with the recent estate-wide upgrade of Irisys’ Queue Intelligence™ analytics solution. “Morrisons is using real-time data from Irisys products as part of its customer service commitment to improve both efficiency and the shopping experience,” says Kevin Hughes, General Manager for Irisys.Source: digitaljournal.com