Once high-flying Chinese tech giants are now looking to scale back costs
Alibaba and Tencent executives have been focusing on cutting costs across the business from headcount to exiting non-core businesses. It comes after Alibaba and Tencent both posted a set of second quarter results that confirmed these once free-wheeling and high-flying behemoths are not growing anymore. Alibaba and Tencent have felt the effects of a Covid-induced economic slowdown in China which is hitting areas from consumer spending to advertising budgets.
Source: cnbc.com
Ecommerce in Spain was worth €57.7bln in 2021
Spanish ecommerce was worth over 57.7bln euros in 2021. This was a 11.7% growth when compared to a year earlier. A large part of this growth came from cross-border sales. In the fourth quarter of 2021, ecommerce in Spain reached a total of 16.9bln euros, which was a 15.8% growth when compared to the year before. This is according to the latest data on the website of the Spanish National Commission of Markets and Competence (CNMC).
Source: ecommercenews.eu
South Korea: Peaches surpass watermelon, become most popular fruit this summer
Peaches have surpassed watermelon to become this summer’s most popular fruit at large malls, primarily led by changes in consumption trends. Peach sales topped South Korean discount retailer E-Mart Inc.’s fruit sales chart between July 1 and August 18. Unlike the years 2020 and 2021, when peaches came after watermelon in fruit sales, this year’s peach sales jumped by 22.9%, while sales of watermelon dropped by 8.7%. The change is largely attributed to smaller households preferring peaches over watermelon due to their size, E-Mart said.
Source: koreabizwire.com
Russian retailer Magnit reports H1 profit and revenue jump
Magnit reported a revenue and profit jump in the first half of this year, boosted by strong sales growth that it said has accelerated into the third quarter. Magnit said net income increased by 39.6% in the first half of 2022 to 32.0bln roubles ($536mln), predominantly driven in the second quarter by one-off effects of foreign exchange gains on import operations and interest income on bank deposits.
Source: reuters.com
Italy: Despar Sardegna partners with Everli for grocery deliveries
Italian regional grocery retailer and Abbi Group subsidiary, Despar Sardegna has partnered with online shopping marketplace Everli. The partnership, initially active in three stores in the Cagliari area (Cagliari, Quartu Sant'Elena and Selargius), will allow consumers to choose from around SKUs, or 20% of the assortment in stores.
Source: esmmagazine.com
UK: Aldi follows convenience stores lead by adopting Too Good To Go
Aldi has linked up with surplus food app Too Good to Go in its latest effort to battle against food waste. Under the scheme, products that are damaged or approaching their sell-by date are bundled up into “magic bags” which customers can buy for £3.30 each through the app before collecting them through the store. The exact contents of the bags are a surprise until they are collected, but all contain at least £10 worth of groceries.
Source: talkingretail.com
Croatia: Studenac opens its first pop-up store
Croatian supermarket chain Studenac has opened its first pop-up store in Camp Sirena in Novigrad. The store, launched in early August, will remain at this location until the end of October. It features state-of-the-art design that makes optimum use of smaller spaces to offer a convenient shopping experience. The store is mobile and can be moved based on customers' requirements.
Source: esmmagazine.com
UK: Tesco seeks alternatives as some fruit not suitable for vegans
The UK’s biggest retailer Tesco has come in for criticism after labelling some of its fruit as unsuitable for vegans. Tesco is now looking for alternatives to the wax that is applied on some of its fruit after harvesting as it contains shellac, a resin secreted by the female lac bug on trees in the forests of India and Thailand. Tesco has confirmed that its oranges are labelled as non-vegan because of the application of the post-harvest beeswax in the production process. This means that consumers following a vegan diet are unable to use the zest from orange peel in their cooking. Some other citrus fruits, including lemons and limes, are also affected.
Source: retailgazette.co.uk
Sweden: ICA Gruppen posts ‘stable performance’ in second quarter
ICA Gruppen has reported sales growth of 6.7%, to SEK34.6bln (€3.3bln), in the second quarter of its financial year. In a trading update, the company described its performance as ‘stable’ in a ‘challenging world’ as high inflationary pressure and macroeconomic uncertainty weighed on the quarter.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Just Eat Takeaway sells Brazilian branch
Just Eat Takeaway has reached an agreement with South African investment fund Prosus on the sale of its 33% interest in Brazilian iFood. Prosus will pay 1.5bln euros, an amount that could be increased by 300mln euros if the meal delivery market performs well in the coming months. The deal still has to be approved by the shareholders.
Source: retaildetail.eu
US: Indian food e-marketplace Quicklly taps Instacart for grocery delivery
Digital marketplace Quicklly is, well, quickly becoming a go-to source for Indian and other South Asian food for many Americans, and now many of its groceries are available for fast delivery by Instacart. The companies’ partnership offers delivery of Quicklly’s Indian pantry staples, desi spices and sauces - in as fast as 60 minutes. Customers can shop and order from Quicklly’s new digital storefront or via the Instacart app.
Source: supermarketnews.com
US: RoNetco Supermarkets Inc. launches “Fresh to Table” in-store experience
RoNetco Supermarkets Inc. recently announced the debut of Fresh to Table, an innovative store-within-a-store concept where customers can find fresh on-trend foods, easy to prepare ingredients and meal solutions in a variety of grab-and-go formats. The new format can be found in five RoNetco ShopRite stores operating in Sussex, Warren and Morris counties.
Source: newsroom.shoprite.com
Walmart, DoorDash plan to end four-year delivery partnership
Walmart Inc. and DoorDash Inc. are ending their four-year delivery partnership. “We have agreed to part ways”, Walmart said in an email. “We’d like to thank DoorDash for their partnership and support of our customers the past several years.” The retail giant said it would continue to work with “multiple providers to bring delivery to our customers.” Walmart said its platform for self-employed drivers, called Spark, has become its largest delivery provider, capable of serving 84% of US households with 7,000 pickup points.
Source: bnnbloomberg.ca
US: Southeastern Grocers pledges to protect pollinators
As a means of ensuring food security now and in the future, Southeastern Grocers is making a commitment to the health of small pollinators, including honeybees, butterflies, birds, bats and more. In order to meet its goals, the grocer is investing in several initiatives to help ensure the safety of pollinator habitats.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: SpartanNash sees ongoing growth in Q2
Lifted in part by inflation, SpartanNash tallied strong sales gains across its business segments in its fiscal 2022 second quarter. For the 12-week quarter ended July 16, net sales totaled $2.27bln, up 7.9% from $2.11bln a year ago, SpartanNash said. That compared with a 3.6% dip in the 2021 quarter, when the company cycled big gains from pandemic-fueled demand a year earlier.
Source: supermarketnews.com