US: BJ’s Wholesale freshens BOPIS offering
A Northeast wholesale club retailer is adding to the assortment available for chainwide buy-online-pickup-in-store (BOPIS) and curbside pickup orders. BJ’s Wholesale Club now allows members to order fresh and frozen grocery products on its e-commerce site or consumer app for curbside pickup or pick up in-store at any one of its locations. The company’s BOPIS and curbside pickup services are free for members.
Source: chainstoreage.com
Nestlé USA acquires meal delivery company Freshly
Following a strategic investment in the company in 2017, Nestlé USA has acquired Freshly, a subscription-based meal delivery service. Freshly is a weekly subscription service which delivers fresh, chef-cooked meals that can be heated and served in three minutes, directly to customers’ doors. Central to the company’s ethos is a focus on removing barriers to healthy eating, with its food philosophy centered on less sugar, less processed, and more nutrients. All meals are gluten-free and single-serve for easy portion control. In 2017, Nestle led a $77m funding round in the business, representing around 16% of the company, to evaluate and test the market. The acquisition of Freshly values the company at $950mln.
Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
Canada: Walmart speeds up investment in omnichannel
Walmart Canada says it will spend $110mln this year on store renovations and omnichannel technology. The investment is part of a five-year, $3.5bln plan to improve service in stores and on the web, renovate more than 130 stores and build two new distribution centres.
Source: canadiangrocer.com
US: 99 Ranch Market taps Instacart
Asian-American grocer 99 Ranch Market has signed on with Instacart to offer delivery from its 53 stores across nine states. Under the new partnership, customers can now have their groceries delivered directly from their nearest store in as fast as an hour. “This effort will diversify our existing offerings and elevate shopping experiences”, said 99 Ranch Marketing and Public Relations Director Juliet Chen.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
Walmart Chile facing supplier suit over allegations it abused market dominance
An association of Chilean food suppliers has sued the local unit of U.S. retail giant Walmart Inc, alleging that the store owner abused its dominant position in the market to impose contracts on providers and set arbitrary prices. The suit, dated October 22 but recently uploaded on the website of Chile’s antitrust court, said the AGIP supplier union had made the allegations against Walmart, which operates Líder, Acuenta and Central Mayorista markets in Chile. Walmart “exploited in an abusive manner its dominant position in the supermarket supply market, by imposing on its suppliers the contracting of certain services and establishing arbitrary values associated with them,” the lawsuit said.
Source: reuters.com
Ireland: Aldi offering finder's fee in a bid to source new store sites
Aldi is offering to pay a finders’ fees to people who identify new supermarket sites to the grocery chain. The German supermarket chain said it will pay a fee of 1.5% “for suitable referrals”. It comes as Aldi is looking for new sites for potential future stores in the Greater Dublin Area, including counties Kildare, Meath and Wicklow. The expansion will add to its network of 144 stores across Ireland.
Source: independent.ie
Malaysia: Jaya Grocer chain owners said to be weighing stake sale
The owners of Jaya Grocer are weighing selling a controlling stake in a deal that would value Malaysia’s biggest high-end supermarket chain at more than US$200mln (RM832mln), according to people with knowledge of the matter. The Teng family, who founded the supermarket, and the Asean Industrial Growth Fund (AIGF), whose backers include Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp, are working with an advisor on the potential stake sale, the people said. Non-binding bids are due as soon as next month, the people said, asking not to be named as the process is private.
Source: themalaysianreserve.com
Finland: Kesko posts ‘record' results in third quarter of 2020
Finnish retailer Kesko has reported net sales of €2.65bln, up 4.6% year-on-year in comparable terms, in the third quarter of its financial year. The company’s comparable operating profit increased by €38.2mln to €181.8mln when accounting for the change in the consolidation method of Kesko Senukai Group. Kesko reported Kesko Senukai Group as a joint venture as of 1 July 2020. Until 30 June 2020, it was reported as a subsidiary of the company.
Source: esmmagazine.com
New Zealand: Countdown trials fruit and veg box home delivery
Countdown is making a play for the home-delivered fruit-and-veg box market, trialling delivery of boxes of its Odd Bunch seasonal produce such as potatoes, capsicums, mandarins and onions. The boxes are being distributed in Auckland from Coundown’s eStore in Penrose, which services online orders for 10 supermarkets, to gauge customer feedback before rolling out further. Countdown’s Odd Bunch programme was first launched in 2017 with Odd Bunch apples, and now includes a range of fruit and vegetables.
Source: stuff.co.nz
Holland: Sligro Food Group reports 9.5% decline in turnover in Q3
Dutch wholesaler Sligro Food Group has posted a 9.5% year-on-year decline in turnover to €547mln in the third quarter of its financial year. In the Netherlands, the company’s third-quarter revenue declined to €504mln, from €550 last year. The Belgian division generated revenue worth €43mln during the quarter, down from €55mln in 2019. Sligro witnessed an overall 14.4% decline in revenue in the first 9 months of its financial year to €1.49bln from €1.74bln in 2019.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Germany: This is the largest Aldi in the world
The largest Aldi in the world opened in the German Ruhr area. The XXL shop covers an area of around 2,000 square metres, twice as large as the average. In Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany, Aldi Süd's largest branch to date opened its doors on Saturday. The supermarket - or rather hypermarket - has almost 2,000 square metres of sales space, which is about twice as large as an average discounter's store. The product range remains the familiar one, but above all there is significantly more space.
Source: retaildetail.eu
Supermarket chiefs urge Sunak to use rates reform to 'level up' Britain
The bosses of 3 of Britain's biggest supermarket chains have urged Rishi Sunak to use an overhaul of the business rates system to "level up" the economy amid pressure on the government's handling of the coronavirus pandemic in the north of England. Sky News has learnt that a letter signed by executives from the Co-op Group, Tesco and Wm Morrison argues that a permanent 20% reduction in business rates would create 10,000 jobs in the retail industry and its supply chain in 50 constituencies most in need of new investment.
Source: news.sky.com
Indian bourse to consult regulator on Future-Reliance deal after Amazon objection: source
India's Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) will consult the market regulator and seek clarifications from Future Retail and Reliance Industries about their $3.4bln transaction, following Amazon's objection to the deal, an exchange source said.
Source: reuters.com