Europe Edition
Brazil court grants bankruptcy protection for retailer Americanas
A Rio de Janeiro court accepted Brazilian retailer Americanas SA's bankruptcy protection request, days after the company disclosed nearly $4bln in accounting inconsistencies that have sparked a legal feud with creditors and investors.
Source: reuters.com
ValueAct calls for Seven & i to spin off 7-Eleven retail chain
Hedge fund ValueAct Capital urged Seven & i Holdings shareholders to back a spin-off of the company's 7-Eleven convenience store chain, arguing the move would improve the conglomerate's valuation and corporate governance. The U.S.-based investment firm, which owns a 4.4% stake in the Japanese company and has been urging it to make changes for at least a year, called on shareholders to express their opinions on the matter to Seven & i's board.
Source: reuters.com
Canada-based Trendi’s robotics vending machine to automatically dole out nutritional smoothies made from rescued fruits and vegetables at Vancouver International Airport
Travellers from across the globe visiting Vancouver International Airport (YVR) now have another delicious, nutritious beverage option at their fingertips, 24/7, with The Smoothie Machine. A first for North American airports, five machines were recently installed in various locations throughout YVR. The robotics vending unit by Burnaby-based TrendiTech Inc. (Trendi) was created to help make healthy options more accessible. It automatically doles out blended smoothies made with rescued fruits and vegetables.
Source: globenewswire.com
Amazon fulfillment center opens in Papillion
Amazon has announced the opening of its first fulfillment center in Nebraska. The facility, which has more than 1mln square feet of space, is now open in Papillion near Nebraska highways 370 and 50.
Source: starherald.com
How s-commerce is driving growth at The Fresh Market
While many grocery retailers are still trying to figure out how to replicate the in-store experience online, The Fresh Market thinks it has found its answer: Firework.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Kroger CEO discusses feeding the Human Spirit
"Fundamentally, we know the grocery business will only ever become more competitive - that has proven true for the last century", said Rodney McMullen, Kroger's chairman and CEO. "At Kroger, we succeed by giving a great experience to the customer, investing in associates and making an impact in the communities we serve. When we do that really well, we succeed in living Our Purpose to Feed the Human Spirit".
Source: prnewswire.com
LCN Capital Partners pays €150mln for 50 Portuguese supermarkets
US private equity fund LCN Capital Partners has paid approximately €150mln for a portfolio of 50 supermarkets across Portugal, according to Portuguese news portal Economia Online. The deal is expected to be closed later this month with Germany’s Trei, part of the Tengelmann Group. The 50 assets have a total area of 68,196 square meters, of which 44 are Pingo Doce supermarkets, with an average of 1,400 square metres. Together they represent €8.1mln in rent, or 97% of the total.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Sainsbury's' Argos business to exit Ireland
British supermarket group Sainsbury's said its Argos general merchandise business will exit the Irish market, closing its 34 stores there, with the loss of 580 jobs.
Source: reuters.com
Gojek appoints new head in Vietnam
Gojek has appointed Sumit Rathor as its new general manager in Vietnam - its fourth appointment for the same post after operating in the country for only four years. Rathor succeeds Phung Duc, who co-founded Gojek Vietnam and served as its CEO since 2020. The company said Phung has chosen to seek new professional challenges.
Source: techinasia.com
Aiqusec Retail & Wholesale launches its Kirana retail chain 'Growceries' using investment aggregation model; aims to setup 100 stores by March 2023
Aiqusec Retail and Wholesale announces India's most disruptive offline grocery retail project, "Growceries", with the aim to launch 100+ Kirana store like "Growceries"-branded outlets in Bangalore city. The retail stores are envisioned to be local and look like any neighborhood Kirana storefront backed by a corporate structure. With the planned organised retail penetration, "Growceries" will be the first to introduce a discount model at Kirana stores.
Source: aninews.in
Shopee leaves Poland and thereby Europe
Shopee, an online marketplace from Singapore, has left Poland. The company launched there just over a year ago. After also canceling operations in France early last year, Shopee is saying goodbye to Europe as a whole.
Source: ecommercenews.eu
UK: What's a portion of vegetables? Meatless Farm launches plant-based APM
Meatless Farm reported: "Meatless Farm has launched a plant-based APM as research revealed 96% of Brits don’t know what constitutes a portion of vegetables. The APM - which is a planty twist on an ATM/cash machine - will dispense free vegetables and plant-based food to consumers. The APM can be found at the iconic BOXPARK Shoreditch on Thursday 19th January between 9am and 6pm. The APM is part of our initiative to help people eat one million more plant-based meals, and our team will also be giving away fresh vegetables, packs of seeds and our Plant-Based Mince all at the touch of a button."
Source: meatlessfarm.com
Introducing NOMU, MENA’S leading food-tech supply chain platform
NOMU, a food-tech supply chain platform in the MENA region that soft-launched in 2022 and went through a pilot phase of testing for a year, has officially launched operations across the region, set to reinvent groceries for families and homegrown F&B professionals. NOMU is a holding group created from the merger of two companies, Jumlaty and Appetito.
Source: zawya.com
Key trends set to influence retail landscape
IGD has identified six trends it expects to influence the global retail landscape in 2023: 1. The efficiency imperative; 2. The new value equation; 3. The magic of stores; 4. Force for healthier futures; 5. Savings for the planet; 6. Task technology. A preview of the report can be downloaded from the IGD Retail Analysis website.
Source: kamcity.com
Chinese consumers’ online shopping activities surge on back of Lunar New Year holiday demand, Alibaba report says
Sales of nianhuo, Lunar New Year specialities, rose 30% on Alibaba shopping platforms Tmall and Taobao during the period from January 1 to 16. Alibaba’s preliminary Lunar New Year holiday sales figures reflect a much-needed confidence boost for domestic consumer spending.
Source: scmp.com
Australia: Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci says inflation should ease but ‘question is the speed’
The boss of Australia’s largest supermarket chain has some good news for cash stressed shoppers - rocketing food inflation may finally come down to earth. But there’s a catch: Woolworths chief executive officer Brad Banducci has said it could take several months, perhaps longer, for people to see the total on their dockets decrease. “We do believe inflation will start coming off, the question is the speed and that’s a difficult one compounded by the terrible weather”, Mr Banducci said on the sidelines of a global retail conference in New York.
Source: news.com.au
