Germany: Metro AG achieves sales 'above pre-pandemic level' in 4th quarter
Wholesale giant Metro AG has reported a 9.9% increase in sales in the 4th quarter of its financial year, with sales for the period ahead of pre-pandemic levels. Sales totalled €7.1bln for the period, with both Western and Eastern Europe above pre-pandemic levels (compared to Q4 2018/19).
Source: esmmagazine.com
Singapore: RedMart unveils automated fulfilment centre
RedMart, Singapore’s first fully-digital, and largest online grocer, has marked 10 years of operations by unveiling its new 350,000 square feet West Fulfillment Centre (WFC), built at an estimated cost of close to USS$74.1mln, and equipped with state-of-the-art automation technology to cater to the future grocery needs of Singaporeans.
Source: retailinasia.com
France: Intermarché trials smart shopping basket
In a store in Paris, supermarket chain Intermarché is testing a smart shopping basket making till-free shopping a possibility. Start-up Mo-Ka has developed a basket equipped with cameras fitted in the handle, recording all products taken off the shelves. Intermarché is the first retailer to trial it in the Relais store on rue de Pelleport in Paris.
Source: retaildetail.eu
Romanian online retailer eMAG launches online grocery service in Bucharest
eMAG launched ‘Freshful by eMAG’, the new online hypermarket with fast delivery of fresh food, after investing over EUR5mln in technology, operations and its own cold storage house. eMAG’s grocery service will be available in Bucharest metropolitan area, through the Freshful.ro website or directly from the iOS mobile application and, soon, Android.
Source: romania-insider.com
China: Alibaba nowcasting delivers precise weather predictions
Alibaba DAMO Academy, the global research initiative by Alibaba Group, has unveiled a cloud-based AI-powered nowcasting platform capable of predicting short-term weather conditions up to 6 hours in advance. The Short-term AI Weather Forecasting Platform, now available to Alibaba Cloud's clients in China, produces high-resolution imagery with 1-kilometer grid spacing with updates available every 10 minutes. Capable of tracking rainfall, wind speed as well as severe weather conditions such as thunder and hailstorms, the platform promises to deliver tangible value to weather-dependent sectors, including agriculture, logistics, transportation and renewable energy.
Source: prnewswire.co.uk
UK: Asda looks to raise debt after sale of forecourts business falls through
Barclays is leading a round of talks with investors to raise the equivalent of £500mln (€593mln) of debt for UK supermarket chain Asda, after a deal to purchase its forecourt petrol pumps business fell through. The bank is seeking to raise senior secured debt for Asda, which could be a mix of bonds and loans according to people familiar with the matter. The proceeds from the fundraising, along with £262mln on Asda’s balance sheet, will go to repay a £750mln bridge loan.
Source: independent.ie
Spain: Caprabo sources 10% of local products from agricultural cooperatives
Caprabo has announced that 10% of the local products sold by the company come from agricultural cooperatives in Catalonia. Currently, 34 agricultural cooperatives work with the retailer and up to 300 of their products can be found in Caprabo outlets. Fruit and vegetables with a share of 21%, dairy (18%), rice (11%), oils (7%), DO wines (6.5%), cheese (4%), and nuts (3%) are the products from agricultural cooperatives with the greatest presence on the retailer's shelves.
Source: esmmagazine.com
UK: It's full steam ahead for Deliveroo, even post-Covid
The reopening of the hospitality industry hardly seems to affect Deliveroo. In the past 3 months, the significant growth continued, which resulted in the British meal delivery company increasing its annual forecast. Between July and September, the gross transaction value increased by 54% to 1.6bln pounds (1.9bln euros). Just over half of that was realised in the UK and Ireland. Deliveroo received over 74mln orders, compared to 54mln during the same period last year. The average order value did drop by 6%. The order frequency remained stable: customers order 3.3 times per month on average.
Source: retaildetail.eu
Sweden: Axfood reports ‘good profitability’ in 3rd quarter
Swedish retailer Axfood has reported good profitability despite high comparison figures in the 3rd quarter of its financial year. Net sales increased by 2.2% year-on-year, amounting to SEK13.7bln (€1.37bln), with store sales increasing 0.7% to SEK11.6bln (€1.16bln). Excluding items affecting comparability, operating profit amounted to SEK811mln (€81.1mln), up 1.9% year-on-year.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Carrefour Spain opens 1,000th Express store
Carrefour Spain has reached the milestone of 1,000 Express stores, helped by the opening of over 100 stores in the country this year. The company has opened more than 100 Express stores in each of the last 5 years, with the highest number of openings in Spain in the past year.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Walmart in Mexico targets low prices despite steep inflation, profit jumps
Walmart’s Mexico unit said it focused on its low-price strategy as inflation rose in the 3rd quarter, helping the retailer’s net profit rise more than 20%. Walmart de Mexico, the biggest retailer in Mexico, posted net profit of 11bln pesos ($535mln) while revenue rose 6.4%, to 176bln pesos.
Source: reuters.com
US: Grocery Outlet partners with Instacart to launch its first ecommerce offering
Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (“Grocery Outlet” or the “Company”), the leading extreme-value retailer in the United States offering quality, name-brand opportunistic products at prices generally 40% to 70% below those of conventional retailers, announced a partnership with Instacart, the leading online grocery platform in North America, on a pilot program to make its iconic bargain shopping experience available online for the 1st time ever.
Source: businesswire.com
US: Another case for the powerful potential of grocery pickup
New research from Mercatus and Incisiv confirms broad appeal of online ordering and on-site fulfillment. The report “E-Grocery Transformed: 2021 Market Projections and Insight into Online Grocery’s Elevated Future”, was based on a survey of more than 40,000 consumers across 20 U.S. states. Among other findings, the research shows that 75% of survey participants prefer store pickup.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Ultrafast grocery delivery has exploded in New York City. Your town could be next
A wave of ultrafast delivery companies has entered New York City and turned the city into a test ground for how fast consumers want groceries and other goods. Gopuff, a veteran in the “instant needs” category, launched in the city. Retail analysts say that the companies have to prove they can change shopping patterns - and turn the quick deliveries into a profitable business.
Source: cnbc.com
US: Fresh Street secures seed funding round to launch first location in early 2022
Fresh Street, the first and only grocery store built exclusively for online, click & collect shopping, announced that it has raised $4mln in seed funding from private investors. The brand is set to open its 1st location in Chicago early 2022.
Source: globenewswire.com
US: Ethnic e-grocer Weee! announces acquisition of online Asian food delivery company RICEPO
Weee! (www.sayweee.com), the largest and fastest-growing ethnic e-grocer in North America, announced the acquisition of RICEPO, an online Asian food delivery company. The move will bolster Weee!'s growing demands of customers nationwide seeking diverse and authentic food-at-home options, from groceries to restaurant meals.
Source: prnewswire.com