Paval Holding, Zabka, Auchan bid for Carrefour Romania
Paval Holding, an investment vehicle controlled by Romanian entrepreneurs Dragos and Adrian Paval, founders and owners of do-it-yourself retailer Dedeman, has submitted an offer to take over Carrefour's operations in Romania, local media reported on Tuesday.
Polish convenience store chain Zabka Group, which operates under the Froo brand in Romania, and French retail group Auchan have also submitted bids to acquire Carrefour Romania's network of 458 stores, business outlet Profit.ro reported.
Source: SeeNews
Switzerland: Migros announces pay rise for 2026
Swiss retailer Migros has announced that it will implement a wage hike of 0.3% to 0.4% for 2026. Together with its social partners, the Migros Group National Commission (LAKO), the Swiss Association of Commercial Employees and the Swiss Butchers' Staff Association, Migros aims to support employees amid rising cost of living. The increase in the wage bill is reported to exceed the inflation rate of 0.2% forecast for 2025.
Source: ESM Magazine
UK: Tesco and Lidl pull ahead as Ocado hits record share
Grocery market share has shifted noticeably in the last 12 weeks, with Tesco, Lidl and Ocado emerging as the strongest performers while Asda and Co-op lost ground, according to new figures from Worldpanel by Numerator.
Tesco increased sales by 5.9% and lifted its market share from 27.7% to 28.2%. Meanwhile, Lidl continued to grow at pace, up 10.8%, taking its share to 8.2% and extending its long run of double-digit gains. Online remained the fastest-growing channel, with spending on home delivery up 11%. That helped Ocado achieve its highest-ever market share at 2.1%, after posting 15.9% sales growth, its strongest rate in more than four years.
Source: Retail Gazette
Poland: Żabka Group reports strong growth in 9M 2025
Polish retailer Żabka Group has reported a 'strong' financial performance in the first nine months of its 2025 financial year, with consolidated revenue increasing by 14.1%, to PLN 20.2 billion (€4.5 billion). This growth was largely driven by continued store expansion, robust like-for-like sales, and the rapid development of its new growth engines (NGEs), the company added. Sales to end customers for its ultimate convenience segment, or Żabka stores, rose by 13.0% year over year, to PLN 22.1 billion (€4.9 billion).
Source: ESM Magazine
Young shoppers turn to AI to save on Thanksgiving groceries
As grocery prices bite into holiday budgets, young Americans are finding a new ally in artificial intelligence to help stretch their Thanksgiving dollars. A new survey from data analytics firm Qlik reveals that more than half of Gen Z (58%) and millennials (56%) plan to use AI tools like ChatGPT or Copilot to plan, prep or cook their Thanksgiving meals this year—a higher rate than any other generation.
Source: Supermarket News
Grocery Outlet, WinCo still bringing in shifting shoppers
Discount grocers continue to gain ground in traffic, according to the latest data from Placer.ai. Two retailers capitalizing on this shopper shift are Grocery Outlet and WinCo Foods. Placer.ai reports that Grocery Outlet, which has been expanding beyond its West Coast core markets, saw traffic increase 7.5% year over year over the past 12 months. From November 2023 to October 2024, traffic rose 8.5% year over year. WinCo has also experienced a traffic boost over the past two years. From November 2024 to October 2025, visits rose 4.4%, and between November 2023 and October 2024, the increase was 4.9% year over year.
Source: Supermarket News
Grocery Dealz integrates with Instacart's Developer Platform to power on-demand delivery 
Grocery Dealz, the fast-growing platform that helps shoppers discover the best grocery savings, today announced a new integration with the Instacart Developer Platform. Through the collaboration, Grocery Dealz users can now access Instacart's trusted same-day delivery service directly from the Grocery Dealz app, with delivery in as fast as one hour.
"Utilizing Instacart's broad reach will provide rapid expansion for Grocery Dealz and help integrate our app into the purchase habits of online grocery shoppers." said Matt Goynes, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Grocery Dealz.
Source: Mass Market Retailers
Associated Food Stores expands Instacart E-Comm and Retail Media Solutions
Retail cooperative Associated Food Stores (AFS) is bringing Instacart's white-label e-commerce solutions, Storefront and Storefront Pro to the co-op's five owned and operated banners, including Fresh Market, Lin's and Macey's, as well as its more than 40 member retailers, among them Broulim's, Davis Food & Drug, Kent's, and Lee's, providing all of them with a simple and fast way to enter the online grocery space.
Source: Progressive Grocer
New Zealand: Location of second Costco store in the Auckland region revealed
Property developer Kiwi Property said it had agreed to sell a 6.4-hectare plot of land to the US-based mega store chain at its new development in Drury, south of Auckland. No opening date was announced.
"We are very excited to be entering into this agreement with Kiwi Property in a location as great as Drury," Chris Tingman, Costco country manager, said. "Whilst still subject to planning and corporate approvals, our aim is to introduce our unique high-quality, low-cost merchandise to Drury, serving our significant membership base in the south of Auckland, as well as Hamilton and the Waikato region."
Source: 1News
Malaysia: GIANT celebrates 81 years with Business Partners Awards Dinner 
In celebration of its 81st anniversary, GIANT, Malaysia supermarket chain, hosted its Business Partners Awards Dinner, honouring the suppliers, collaborators, and industry partners who have been instrumental in shaping the brand's growth and success over the decades.
The event, themed "Together We Shall Endeavour, Succeed, Advance", paid tribute to GIANT's long-standing legacy and its continued evolution under GCH Retail (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, part of the Macrovalue Group.
In his opening remarks, Cheah Yong Hock, Chief Executive Officer of GCH Retail (Malaysia), expressed his appreciation to business partners for their steadfast support and collaboration over the years. As part of its forward strategy, GCH Retail reaffirmed its plans to expand across Malaysia and Singapore, with new store openings under the Cold Storage, Mercato, and TMC banners.
Source: SME
Kenya: Naivas Ltd. eyes 80 more stores
Top Kenyan supermarket chain Naivas Ltd. is targeting 200 outlets by opening as many as 10 stores annually to meet strong demand in the nation. The company that's majority-owned by Mauritius' biggest conglomerate has 111 shops across the East African nation, Chief Executive Officer Andreas von Paleske said. IBL Ltd. holds 51% of Naivas, with the balance owned by the founding Mukuha family.
Source: Bloomberg
