Retail sales rose 3.1% in the final three months of 2017 (4Q17), boosted by the year-end festivity and school holiday spending, but the hypermarket segment continued its decline as consumers shunned large retailers for cheaper alternatives. The supermarket and hypermarket subsector was the worst performer for the retail market as sales dropped 2.7% for the October-December 2017 period. For the whole of 2017, sales at these mammoth stores shrunk 3.2%, said Retail Group Malaysia (RGM).Source: themalaysianreserve.com
Carrefour Brazil: acquisitions and partnerships to drive expansion
Carrefour Brazil said it could acquire or partner with existing retailers in the country as it looks to expand. The retailer said in 2018 it was aiming to open 20 Atacajero, while a further five to seven will be added as part of hypermarket conversions, 10 Carrefour Market and 20 Carrefour Express. The pace of expansion will see it end 2018 with 166 Atacadão stores and 23 wholesale delivery centres. In the longer-term Carrefour will look to open between 120 and 140 stores by 2022. The expansion could be driven by franchising its banners to third party companies, with Carrefour Brazil’s chief executive, Noel Prioux, saying that ‘a franchising model in supermarkets is possible. We’re open to everything’.Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
France: Leclerc investing in supply chain
As it looks to expand its ecommerce offer in Paris, Leclerc has strengthened its position by signing an agreement with ID logistics. The retailer is set to use Paris as a test bed for initiatives to help it target shoppers in large cities, both in terms of physical stores and digital commerce. The new agreement will see ID Logistics support Leclerc’s new ecommerce operations in Paris, specifically home delivery and click-and-collect.Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
Australia's Wesfarmers to spin off Coles as competition bites
Australia’s Wesfarmers Ltd plans to spin off its supermarket chain Coles and list it on the country’s stock exchange, as fierce competition forces the retail giant to shed low-margin operations and focus on faster-growing businesses. The move comes more than a decade after Wesfarmers bought Coles, discount chains Kmart and Target, and the Officeworks business supplies chain for A$21bln ($16bln) in what was then Australia’s biggest takeover.Source: reuters.com
Finland's K Group outlines vision for 'store of the future'
Finnish retailer K Group surveyed over 60 grocery trade experts, to create an idea of what food shopping could look like in the next ten years. The 'store of the future' would combine the best features of both physical and online grocery stores, according to K Group, including 24-hour pick up of groceries bought online, restaurant-quality food, nutritional advice, and shopping trips tailored to the needs of each individual customer.Source: esmmagazine.com
France: Les Mousquetaires sales up 4%, driven by increased market share
French retail group Les Mousquetaires, which operates the Intermarché grocery chain, saw sales rise by 4.1% across its European operations in 2017. The group's six banners, Intermarché, Netto, Bricomarché, Brico Cash, Poivre Rouge and Roady, together achieved sales of €37.58bln, while its agri-food division, Agromousquetaires, posted sales of €4.02bln, giving the company a total of €41.6bln.Source: esmmagazine.com
US: Rouses introduces same-day grocery delivery at most stores
Regional grocer Rouses Markets has added online grocery shopping and same-day delivery at the majority of its locations. A click-and-collect option will follow in the spring. In partnership with San Francisco-based delivery provider Instacart, the Thibodaux, Louisiana based retailer launched the service March 8 in the New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Gonzales, Houma and Thibodaux areas of the Pelican State. Customers in those markets can now order fresh produce, seafood, meat, deli and bakery items through the grocer's website or the Instacart mobile app, with deliveries arriving in as little as one hour. Delivery will expand to other areas across the Gulf Coast in the coming weeks.Source: progressivegrocer.com
Retail sales in U.S. unexpectedly fall for third straight month
U.S. retail sales unexpectedly fell in February for a third month, adding to signs that consumer spending will cool this quarter from the previous period’s hot pace, according to Commerce Department figures. The results indicate consumer spending, the biggest part of the economy, is easing after rising at a 3.8% annualized pace in the fourth quarter, the fastest in more than a year. Shoppers may be taking a breather following a run-up in borrowing in late 2017, and relatively tepid wage growth is limiting Americans’ purchasing power.Source: bloomberg.com
CA: Turnaround gaining strength in Sobeys’ Q3
Sobeys’ third quarter sales increased by 2.4% to $6.0bln, with same-store sales up 1.1%. Adjusted net earnings over the period increased from $34.6mln to $89.9mln, reflecting an improvement in sales and margins, cost efficiencies and benefits related to Project Sunrise. Key activities have included the closure of ten under-performing stores, reducing capital expenditure and reducing its headcount following a major restructure which marked the first phase of the turnaround plan. To date, the retailer has achieved around 5% of the planned $500mln cost synergies, in line with its plan.Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
Southeastern Grocers plans to file for U.S. bankruptcy
Southeastern Grocers LLC, which operates supermarket chains Winn-Dixie and Bi-Lo, said it is preparing to file for bankruptcy and would shutter 94 underperforming stores. “We conducted a thorough review of our strategic options,” Chief Executive Anthony Hucker said. The company said it plans to file with the Delaware Bankruptcy Court by the end of this month.Source: reuters.com