SPAR Ireland launches pioneering mobile self-checkout technology in stores
BWG Foods, supplier to SPAR and EUROSPAR Supermarkets in Ireland, has become the first retail and FMCG business in the country to launch the latest Scan, Pay & Go checkout technology, developed by MishiPay. The innovative technology, which is the next evolution of the mobile-scan checkout, will be trialled at two strategic locations within the partner’s retail estate, including SPAR Cherrywood in Dublin - ideal thanks to its high footfall.
Source: spar-international.com
China: Alibaba thrives after emerging from Covid-19 challenges
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group’s revenue soared 34% to US$21.762bln in the June quarter as the company emerged strongly from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in its home market. “Our domestic core commerce business has fully recovered to pre-Covid-19 levels across the board, while cloud computing revenue grew 59% year-on-year”, CFO Maggie Wu said in a statement. “We delivered a very strong start to our new fiscal year”. Net income attributable to ordinary shareholders was $6.736bln, exceeding analysts’ estimates and justifying the 23% rise in the group’s stock value so far this year.
Source: insideretail.asia
UK: John Lewis to pull 'Never knowingly undersold' pledge
John Lewis is planning to replace its famous promise to match rivals' prices as its new boss plans radical changes to the business. "Never knowingly undersold" has become harder to defend as competition from online retailers has become ever tougher. The new chief executive Sharon White told the Sunday Times she expected the price pledge to go. The slogan has been in place since 1925.
Source: bbc.com
South Africa: Massmart trading update reveals widening loss
South Africa-based, Walmart-owned Massmart has released a sales update and trading statement for the 26 weeks ending 28 June, which highlights the impact of COVID-19 on its performance and its expected loss for the period. Massmart said while it had enjoyed an uptick in sales in June, with total sales rising 0.8% versus the same month in 2019, this was not enough to offset its performance across the 26 week period, where sales fell 9.7%. In the 26-week period Massmart generated sales of ZAR39.6bln (US$2.3bln), with comparable sales decreasing by 9.7%, while internal product inflation stood at 3.7%.
Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
Switzerland: SPAR adds fully electric truck to its fleet
SPAR Switzerland has added a fully electric vehicle to its fleet. The new e-truck - a 264kW (360hp) e-truck from MAN - will transport food products emission-free and almost silently from the central warehouse to SPAR stores in the Appenzell region and Thurgau. By adding the new fully electric truck to its fleet, SPAR heralds a new era for even more significant reductions in CO2 emissions. The new e-truck can cover around 180km per charge, depending on the climatic and topographical conditions. Thanks to the sophisticated braking energy recovery system, the 180km range can be extended.
Source: spar-international.com
UK: Retail veterans lining up £6.5bln rival private equity bids for Asda
Two retail veterans are lining up to front rival £6.5bln private equity bids for Asda, the UK’s third largest supermarket. Rob Templeman, a former chief executive of Debenhams, is understood to be assisting Apollo Global Management, while Paul Mason, a former Asda chief executive who also once led discount fashion group Matalan and the now defunct Somerfield supermarket, is linked to Lone Star Funds.
Source: theguardian.com
Instacart expands Ahold Delhaize USA relationship with Hannaford launch
Instacart has begun same-day online grocery delivery at most Hannaford supermarkets in New England, making it an e-commerce provider for all Ahold Delhaize USA grocery chains. The San Francisco-based online grocery giant said that about 150 of Hannaford’s 184 stores in Maine, New York, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont now offer the service, which delivers fresh food, dry groceries, household essentials and other items to customers’ doorsteps in as soon as an hour.
Source: supermarketnews.com
US: Dollar General’s push to fill stores with fresh produce and frozen-food options gives the chain a big box feel
Dollar General is doubling down on fresh grocery options as part of its bid to become one of the top retailers in the US. For Dollar General, grocery is the key to continuing its ongoing expansion - by attracting more consumers to its stores. Fresh food also positions the retailer to go toe-to-toe with massive rivals like Walmart and Whole Foods. Dollar General has enjoyed an excellent few months, with cost-conscious shoppers flocking to dollar stores during the coronavirus pandemic. Outside its sales success, however, the company is making several big moves for the future, post-COVID-19 world.
Source: businessinsider.nl
Jeff Wilke, Amazon’s consumer boss and a top lieutenant to Bezos, will step down in 2021
Jeff Wilke, CEO of Amazon’s worldwide consumer business and widely considered to be a potential successor to Jeff Bezos, will retire next year, Amazon announced in a regulatory filing. Dave Clark, senior vice president of retail operations, will succeed Wilke after he retires, Amazon said. In a memo to employees, titled “Hanging up the flannel”, CEO Bezos called Wilke “an incredible teacher to all of us” and said Clark is well-suited to assume Wilke’s role.
Source: cnbc.com
US: H-E-B and STRATACACHE announce expansion of innovation partnership
H-E-B, consistently rated one of the top grocery retailers in the US, and STRATACACHE, leaders in marketing technology and in-store customer experiences, announced an expansion of a successful multi-year innovation partnership, focusing on delivering new actionable data and insights to create an even greater customer shopping experience.
Source: prnewswire.com
Store visits down, online shopping up in Western Canada: Study
Shoppers in Western Canada made fewer weekly trips to grocery stores in June and July than they did during the first 2 months of the year, while online grocery shopping increased, according to new research from Field Agent Canada. The findings are based on an online survey of 500 shoppers in B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba conducted using Field Agent’s mobile app. The average number of weekly grocery trips across the entire region fell from 2.68 pre-COVID to 1.83 during June and July, while drug store trips fell from an average of 0.98 per week to 0.65 and dollar store trips fell from 1.07 to 0.7.
Source: canadiangrocer.com
US: Ahold Delhaize investing in 5 supply chain entrepreneurs
Retail Business Services, the services company of Ahold Delhaize USA, is working with 5 entrepreneurs in the second round of its Supply Chain Seed Program, an immersive, 10-week opportunity to build next-generation products or services to solve problems in the retail supply chain. This year's finalists are: End2End Solutions, led by Robert Steward, which provides a set of Internet of Things solutions and services designed to improve supply chain visibility by addressing quality, compliance, security, logistics and performance management. Evergreens Farms, led by Ahmad Zameli, looks to provide vertical farming technology to produce anywhere, regardless of climate, and deliver consistently high-quality product year-round. GoWheels!, led by William Bateman, is developing a radically redesigned wheel with a replaceable tire for carts used in distribution and transportation centers. NanoThings, led by Tim Williams, is focusing on a cold-chain traceability solution by utilizing Internet of Things technology from source to store. Produce Pics, led by Sridhar Iyer, is providing a computer vision-based application for reducing food waste in supply chain.
Source: progressivegrocer.com