US: Walmart's chief e-commerce officer Casey Carl exits company after nearly 2 years
Walmart's top e-commerce executive Casey Carl is leaving the company at the end of February after nearly 2 years, the company said in an internal memo. Carl will be replaced by Tom Ward, Walmart's senior vice president of last mile deliveries. Ward's new title will be executive vice president and chief e-commerce officer starting February 1.
Source: reuters.com
US: Stop & Shop expands food waste elimination effort
After a successful pilot, Stop & Shop is launching the Flashfood waste reduction program to additional stores in Rhode Island. The initiative, a digital marketplace that connects shoppers with food nearing its best-by date, is one way that the Northeast retailer is helping to eliminate food waste at its point in the farm-to-table chain.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Lazy Acres offers on-demand grocery delivery via DoorDash
Lazy Acres Natural Market has tapped last-mile logistics platform DoorDash for on-demand grocery delivery from all Lazy Acres locations across the Southern California region, including Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and San Diego.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Walmart to open Mississippi fulfillment center in spring 2022Walmart Inc. has revealed plans for a fulfillment center in Olive Branch, Mississippi, to support the retailer’s burgeoning supply chain network and e-commerce business. The more than 1mln-square-foot fulfillment center, which will be located at 10480 Marina Drive, is set to open this spring. The new fulfillment center will create about 250 full-time permanent jobs across the region.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Save A Lot completes sale of 33 company-owned stores
Save A Lot, one of the largest discount grocery chains in the U.S., has announced it completed the sale of 33 company-owned stores across the greater Orlando, Florida, area to Ascend Grocery LLC, in December. The sale is part of the discount grocer’s ongoing efforts to convert corporate-owned stores to local ownership.
Source: winsightgrocerybusiness.com
UK: Aldi ends Deliveroo deliveries as customers return to stores
Aldi is ditching grocery deliveries via Deliveroo to focus on its own home shopping service as consumers return to stores in greater numbers. About 100 of the German retailer’s 950 UK stores offered grocery orders and home deliveries through Deliveroo during the pandemic when shoppers increasingly chose to shop online.
Source: theguardian.com
Deliveroo increases grocery deliveries but other rapid-delivery firms muscle in
Deliveroo is continuing to increase the size of its grocery deliveries business despite competition from ultra-fast start-ups, the company revealed. In the 4th quarter of 2021, on-demand grocery deliveries made up 8% of the company’s gross transaction value (GTV), against 7% in the 1st half of 2021 and 6% in 2020. At the end of 2021, Deliveroo had more than 11,000 grocery sites live globally, compared with more than 10,000 at the end of the 3rd quarter of 2021. In the UK, Deliveroo’s GTV was £945mln in the 4th quarter of 2021, up by 36% on the same quarter in 2020 and by 12% on the 3rd quarter of 2021.
Source: talkingretail.com
Switzerland: Migros Group sees turnover up 2.2% in 2021
Switzerland’s Migros Group saw its consolidated turnover excluding divestments increase by 2.2% to CHF28.8bln (€27.7bln) in 2021, boosted by online sales. Turnover from online retailing grew by 15.6% to CHF3.2bln (€3.1bln) and contributed to 11.2% of total sales, the company said.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Auchan Portugal expands customer experience with 'Auchan Live'
Auchan Retail Portugal has announced the rollout of Auchan Live, a series of events that aims to create live and memorable experiences for consumers. The concept will see the introduction of dedicated event areas in stores, which will feature regular programming, including an Academy, a video wall and an area with regional products.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Aldi opened 31 new stores in Italy last yearDiscounter Aldi continued to boost its presence in Italy during 2021 with the opening of 31 new stores. The retailer's network now consists of 138 supermarkets in 6 regions of Northern Italy - Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Trentino-Alto Adige and Emilia-Romagna.
Source: esmmagazine.com
India: Future Group mulls Supreme Court bid to avoid being named a defaulter - sources
India's Future Group plans to challenge its own lenders in the Supreme Court to avoid being named a defaulter for missing payments, citing its ongoing dispute with partner Amazon.com Inc, 3 sources told Reuters.
Source: reuters.com
UK: Blakemore records sharp increase in sales over Christmas
Wholesaler AF Blakemore & Son has announced an 18% sales increase for the 4 weeks ending 2 January. The company said its purpose-built distribution centre in Bedford meant it was able to meet strong customer demand.
Source: talkingretail.com
IGD reveals top stores to visit in 2022
IGD - provider of grocery insight, analysis and foresight - reveals the must-see stores that are pushing boundaries and moving the industry forward. The new study ‘Top stores to visit in 2022’ highlights how retailers continue to invest in their physical estate to create shopper destinations that compete with rival stores and the expanding online and quick commerce channels. The list of must-see stores includes: Exciting and experiential: K-Citymarket, Tammisto, Finland - Pioneers of Finland’s 1st hydroponic herb greenhouse and Europe’s 1st hypermarket-based brewery. Digitally-enabled: Carrefour Flash, Paris, France - A seamless experience, accessible to all. Highly efficient: Kaufland, Bergkamen, Germany - Meeting shopper missions in an effective way. Omnichannel native: TYPY, Dusseldorf, Germany - Enhanced service and experience driven by data. Naturally sustainable: Asda, Milton Keynes, UK - Reducing plastic with a dedicated refill zone.
Source: igd.com
Italy: iN’s Mercato kicks off year with 7 new stores
Italian discounter iN’s Mercato has kicked off 2022 with the opening of 7 new stores across Northern and Central Italy. In the 1st half of January, the retailer opened 6 new outlets in the Liguria, Piedmont, Lombardy, Emilia Romagna and Abruzzo regions. They will be followed by the opening of a new store in Binago (Como) on 26 January, taking the total of new openings to 7.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Lidl GB appoints new CCO
Lidl has announced the appointment of Peter de Roos as Chief Commercial Officer for its operations in Britain. Formerly CCO for Lidl Netherlands, de Roos will join Lidl GB from 1 April, taking responsibility for Buying, Marketing and Promotional Activity. He will report into former CCO Ryan McDonnell, who is scheduled to take over the CEO role next month from Christian Härtnagel.
Source: kamcity.com
Una-peel-ing: Brits bin more than £1.17bln worth of fruit and veg each year
Research from Sainsbury’s reveals a huge spike in healthier, more sustainable New Year’s resolutions, with 1 in 5 Brits pledging to reduce food waste, whilst a further 1 in 10 strive to lessen their carbon footprint and buy second hand. Reducing food waste is the top way that UK households are looking to achieve a more sustainable lifestyle with research revealing 914mln potatoes, 733mln tomatoes and 728mln carrots are wasted each year. As part of its brand commitment ‘Helping Everyone Eat Better’, Sainsbury’s has unveiled delicious, healthy and affordable recipes for winter warming soups, designed to help customers reduce their food waste.
Source: about.sainsburys.co.uk