Portugal: Continente tests delivery service with Glovo
Portugal-based, Sonae-owned Continente has partnered with Spain-based food delivery Glovo. Following the collaboration, shoppers will be able to enjoy a fast-paced home delivery service, fulfilled by Glovo. Continente and Glovo have started trialling the service in Lisbon, covering the areas of Alfama, Alvalade, Areeiro, Cais do Sodré, Campo Grande, Santos-o-Velho and Serafina. Customers living within these areas can request the 30-minute delivery service via Glovo's marketplace or app. Continente hopes to “extend the reach of this new service in the future”.
Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
Tuskys develops online store in Kenya
Kenya-based Tuskys has announced it has developed a new online store. Tuskys has invested KES30mln (US€284,993) in the development of the online store. Tuskys said the store is part of its strategy to improve business performance and online customer experience. It is powered by an Amazon Online retail engine and is based on a cloud-based platform. The store will use a split payment feature provided by Direct Pay Online, crediting suppliers once customers have checked out. The retailer said there is also an automated layby buying option, which allows customers to pay for orders in instalments. It is called the Tuskys Lipia Pole Pole Layby solution and was first introduced in-store in September 2017. Tuskys is also actively recruiting for over 1,000 online suppliers.
Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
Aldi Nord occurs loss for the first time in Germany
Aldi Nord, which also includes the Belgian and Dutch outlets, plunged into a loss in its home market for the first time ever. The substantial loss ("eight digits") was caused by a disappointing turnover and heavy investment costs. Aldi Nord is facing a crisis: according to German trade journal Lebensmittel Zeitung, the discounter has gone into the red for the first time in its home market. Last year, German profit (after taxes) was already halved to about 200mln euros. This year sees "ein zweistelliges Millionendefizit" ("an eight digit loss"), so a loss of at least 10mln euros. Only the profits of foreign subsidiaries will help Aldi Nord to end the year on a (small) profit.
Source: retaildetail.eu
Italy: Gruppo VéGé opens 'next generation' store in Sardinia
Italian local retailer Gruppo ISA has boosted its leadership position in Sardinia with the opening of a next-generation store in Oristano. The Iper Nonna Isa store forms part of the Torre Eleonora commercial complex which spreads over 3,000 square metres and includes a bar, restaurant and a number of additional services. The shopping complex has a very low environmental impact (energy class A3) and is fully energy sustainable with a 75 kW PV system, while the refrigeration system has zero impact in terms of CO2 emissions. The store itself has a large fresh department - fruit and vegetables, cold cuts and cheeses, butchers, fishmongers and bakery, as well as an extensive wine selection. The store also boasts an online click & collect service, which is also available in six other stores operating under the Nonna Isa banner. Gruppo ISA is a member of the Gruppo VéGé, a large-scale retail group which incorporates over 30 local wholesalers and retailers.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Takeaway acquires Delivery Hero and Foodora in Germany
Dutch food delivery group Takeaway.com has acquired the businesses of Delivery Hero in Germany. The acquisition comprises the Lieferheld, Pizza.de and Foodora brands in Germany and is in return for cash and a equity stake in Takeaway.com. The acquisition marks just another move of Takeaway to slowly conquer the European market. The Dutch company has paid 508mln euros in cash for the takeover, but it will also hand out 9.5mln Takeaway.com shares, which are worth 422mln euros and represent about 18% of the total issued shares.
Source: ecommercenews.eu
Finland: Kesko announces closure of Hehku Kauppa wellbeing chain
Finnish retailer Kesko has announced that Hehku Kauppa, the wellbeing chain it operates alongside Oriola, is to discontinue its operations by spring of next year. On 26 November, the business initiated statutory codetermination negotiations with personnel representatives relating to the potential discontinuation of its operations, 'as the company had failed to meet the business and financial targets set', Kesko said in a statement. Following a three-week negotiating period with personnel, these negotiations have concluded, and the decision has been made to discontinue the business. The announcement means that 19 stores will close, alongside an online store and corporate functions, with the loss of around 100 jobs. The timetable for store closures will be confirmed in due course, Kesko added, with stores operating as normal for the time being.
Source: esmmagazine.com
The Netherlands: Ahold Delhaize teams up with app to reduce food waste
Ahold Delhaize has announced that it has joined forces with the ‘Too Good To Go’ app, in an effort to reduce food waste at its stores. The move will initially concern the group’s AH to go banner, which will now generate ‘Magic Boxes’ that will combine food products that would normally be discarded at the end of the day. The boxes will be sold for €4, compared to their regular value of €12, with the assortment of each box being varied and “a surprise”. Each AH to go outlet will then upload details of how many such Magic Boxes are available that day, which shoppers can view via the app. Orders can then be placed via the app, with customers needing to pick up their Box from the respective outlet. Too Good To Go helps restaurants and stores sell their products that would otherwise be thrown away.
Source: kamcity.com
Spain: Mercadona will install an online store in Getafe
The new centre will be fully operational by 2020 and adds to what the company has already announced that will be installed in the polygon of La Atalayuela, and also in Madrid. Mercadona has rented a 14,500-square-meter warehouse in the Los Gavilanes de Getafe polygons to build an online store to develop its project in the Community of Madrid, according to a statement. These two warehouses will serve to give service to the municipalities around Madrid. The supermarket chain has a centre of these characteristics in Valencia and has already announced the purchase of acquiring land in Ripollat to locate a second warehouse in Catalonia, to cover the area around Barcelona.
Source: internationalsupermarketnews.com
7-Eleven Malaysia mulls float
The 7-Eleven Malaysia business may be floated. Malaysian businessman Tan Sri Vincent Tan is considering turning over his shareholding in convenience store operator 7-Eleven to his Berjaya Corp Bhd group. Maintaining that the share price of 7-Eleven is undervalued on Bursa Malaysia, Tan claims that the business, currently valued at RM1.43bln (US$342mln) should be worth more than US$1bln. The chain has 2250 locations within the territory, and according to Tan aims to open at least another 200 stores next year.
Source: insideretail.asia
UK: Aldi to open eight new stores in Scotland
Aldi has announced plans to open eight new stores across Scotland next year, creating 200 jobs. The move will bring the total number of Aldi shops in Scotland to 93 by the end of 2019. Next year will mark 25 years since Aldi opened its first store north of the border. The new outlets will be based in Kilmarnock, East Kilbride, Dalgety Bay, Dundee, Crieff, Milngavie, Cumbernauld and Leith, Edinburgh. Aldi said the openings would bring the total number of staff employed in Scotland to 2,300.
Source: bbc.com
Brazilian supermarket chain starts accepting cryptocurrency payments
Oásis Supermercados, a Brazilian supermarket chain located in Rio de Janeiro, has recently started accepting cryptocurrency payments after asking a local exchange for information, and training its employees on how to do it. According to local news outlet Portal do Bitcoin, the chain’s clients in Rio de Janeiro will now be able to pay for their things using Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin, according to one of the firm’s managers Douglas Andrade.
Source: ccn.com
US shoppers to continue shopping right up to Christmas Eve: NRF
While more than 40% of US shoppers have completed their Christmas gift purchasing already, many will continue to shop right up until Christmas Eve, according to a survey carried out by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics. The study found that 34% of shoppers completed their Christmas shopping by Tuesday, with 44% completing their purchasing by Thursday. Some 24% are expected to make their last purchases on Saturday or Sunday, with 7% saying they will still be shopping on Christmas Eve. Meanwhile, 4% said that their final gifts are likely to be purchased after Christmas. Some 56% of shoppers, or around 134mln people, plan to go shopping on 'Super Saturday', the final Saturday before Christmas.
Source: esmmagazine.com
US online grocers: offering both delivery and pickup could double your ecommerce success in 2019
While online grocery spending is poised for 15% growth in 2019, grocers that offer both delivery and click-and-collect options are anticipated to see up to double that growth in the new year, according to new research from Barrington, Illinois-based retail consultancy Brick Meets Click. Providers that offer both delivery and pickup are expected to grow their online sales between 25% and 30%, the research noted. But while the forecast indicated that a larger share of online spending for groceries will shift toward the brick-and-mortar retailers offering these services, the gains won't be evenly distributed, as winning more sales depends largely on how well providers are improving the shopping experience.
Source: progressivegrocer.com