Ahold Delhaize has announced that its Maxi retail banner was voted as Serbian consumers' favourite supermarket at the recent My Choice awards. The awards, which are organised by tourism organisation My Serbia and the country's Chamber of Commerce and Industry, honour the best national products and brands based on a survey of over 1,900 people in ten cities. In the supermarket category, Maxi came in first position, followed by local retailer Tempo.Source: esmmagazine.com
China's JD.com FY2017: online direct sales increases by 39.5%
For the full year of 2017, JD.com has reported net revenues of CNY362.3bln (US$55.7bln), representing a 40.3% increase from the full year of 2016. Net revenues from online direct sales increased by 39.5%. As of January 31, 2018, JD.com’s joint venture, New Dada, had partnered with 163 Walmart stores and 388 Yonghui stores, among numerous other supermarkets and grocery stores, to provide a premium online fresh grocery shopping experience with one-hour home delivery service. New Dada is the largest crowd sourcing logistics provider and O2O grocery platform in China.Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
Lidl updates its store design in Italy
Lidl has opened a new and upgraded store design in Italy in Milan. The 1,400 sq. m store is slightly larger than its standard size for the country enabling it to stock a larger range, especially for organic and vegan products. Lidl has also expanded its offer of locally purchased products and for its Deluxe private label range. Commenting on the new store, Lidl Italy’s managing director for real estate development and central services, Emilio Arduino, said: “This is our interpretation of the future for our stores. The main changes concern the building and its green characteristics, given that at the supply level, there are no substantial changes…”.Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
Holland: Jumbo and Coop obtain Emté supermarket chain
Sligro Food Group sold its struggling supermarket chain Emté to a group which consists of supermarket companies Jumbo and Coop. The group will not only acquire the 130 Emté stores, but also its distribution centers in Kapelle and Putten, its meat plant in Enschede and its supporting operational and commercial divisions in Sligro’s main offices in Veghel. The store real estate, which contains 27 locations, will also be sold to the group, albeit in a separate deal. On top of these two deals, there is a third deal: Sligro will become restaurant chain La Place’s supplier for several years. Source: retaildetail.eu
France: Carrefour Asia back on offensive
French hypermarket retailer Carrefour is reaping the rewards of restructuring its Asian operations. The Carrefour Asia business has converted an operating loss of €58mln in 2016 to a return on investment of €4mln (US$4.4mln) last year, according to the company’s annual results released overnight. “Carrefour is back on the offensive and investing to resume growth,” says chairman/CEO Alexandre Bompard.Source: insideretail.asia
UAE: Union Coop posts record profit
Union Coop, the UAE-based supermarket chain, recorded its largest profit ever in 2017, posting a total revenue of Dh2.923bln. Compared to 2016, last year saw a 19% increase in shareholders’ equity from Dh2.150bln to Dh2.511bln, whilst the number of families associated with the group increased from 28,000 to 31,000.Source: gulfnews.com
Mexico's Walmex says same-store sales up 8.9% in February
Mexico’s biggest retailer, Walmart de Mexico, said that sales at its Mexican stores that have been open at least a year rose by 8.9% in February compared with the same month a year earlier. Total sales in Mexico increased by 10.1% on the year. Source: reuters.com
US: Company-owned Publix stores now exceed 30% of the total
Publix Super Markets now owns nearly a third of its grocery stores and plans to invest more than $1bln this year in its property portfolio. The Lakeland-based grocer owned 31.8% of its stores last year, up from 29.1% in 2016, according to the company’s 2017 annual report. Publix has increased the percentage of company-owned stores it operates for 11 consecutive years, starting in 2007, when the company owned 11.2% of its stores and leased the rest.Source: therealdeal.com
Amazon expands grocery delivery from Whole Foods to Atlanta and San Francisco
Amazon.com Inc. and Whole Foods Market launched free two-hour delivery of natural and organic products from Whole Foods Market through Prime Now in Atlanta and San Francisco. Starting today, Prime customers in neighborhoods of Atlanta and San Francisco can shop through Prime Now for bestselling items including fresh produce, high quality meat and seafood, everyday staples and other locally sourced items from Whole Foods Market.Source: markets.businessinsider.com
US: Target spending $250mln on 28 Twin Cities remodels
Target is investing $250mln to remodel 28 Twin Cities-area stores, part of the retailer’s plan to “reimagine” 1,000-plus stores nationwide by the end of 2020. While the Twin Cities will be the retailer’s largest remodel market this year, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York will also get store renovations. 2018’s total remodels will number 325, and over the next few years, every major city will get refinished stores.Source: progressivegrocer.com