Austria: Spar announces new CEO, executive board changes
Spar Austria has announced that 2 of the most longstanding members of its executive board, chairman Dr. Gerhard Drexel and Rudolf Staudinger are to retire at the end of 2020. From 1 January next, Fritz Poppmeier will be installed as the group's new chief executive, while Hans K. Reisch. Marcus Wild, Markus Kaser and Paul Klotz will all be appointed to the board, with each individual having worked at the retailer for many years.
Source: esmmagazine.com
UK: Waitrose announces plans for third online fulfilment centre in London
Less than two months after the opening of its second online fulfilment centre in London, Waitrose has announced plans for a third such site to meet the increasing demand for grocery deliveries. The new centre, in Greenford, West London, will be opened and operated with logistics company Wincanton. Waitrose already has a 20-year relationship with the firm through its supply operations for the supermarket chain.
Source: kamcity.com
UK: Tesco rebuked as shareholders vote down directors' pay report
Shareholders decisively voted down Tesco’s remuneration report, as Britain’s largest retailer joined a growing list of big companies to be rebuked over executive pay. Supermarket group Tesco said 67.3% of votes cast at its annual general meeting (AGM) were against the resolution to approve the pay report, with only 32.7% in favour. Several investor advisory groups had recommended shareholders vote against the report ahead of the meeting. They focused on the exclusion of online grocer Ocado from peer benchmarking, which they said had inflated one of the bonuses paid to departing chief executive Dave Lewis by 1.6mln pounds ($1.98mln) to 2.4mln pounds.
Source: reuters.com
Russia: X5 Retail Group enters Kaliningrad with 5 new stores
Russia’s X5 Retail Group has announced that it has launched operations in the Kaliningrad region with 5 new store openings. The new stores will operate under the Pyaterochka banner, with nearly half of the sales area dedicated to fresh produce. General director of Pyaterochka, Sergey Goncharov, commented: "Over 13mln Russians already trust us when they come to Pyaterochka stores daily. Our mission is to deepen our guests' trust by offering them fresh and high-quality products at low prices, continuously improving our services, and becoming a leader in both convenience and community care. Now people in Kaliningrad can also appreciate all these benefits”.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Holland: Ahold Delhaize invests in sustainable products, reduces climate impact and promotes healthier eating using funds raised with Sustainability Bond
Ahold Delhaize announced that the full proceeds of the company’s first Sustainability Bond have been used to support the increased consumption of sustainably sourced products, further reduce the company’s climate impact and increase sales of healthier products. The transaction made Ahold Delhaize the first retailer to issue a euro-denominated Sustainability Bond, highlighting the company’s commitment to accelerate the transition to sustainable food systems.
Source: aholddelhaize.com
‘Ecommerce in Germany: €103.4bln in 2020’
Ecommerce in Germany is expected to be worth 103.4bln euros at the end of 2020. This would mean an increase of 10%, as the online retail industry was worth 94bln euros last year. Germany is one of the most mature ecommerce markets in Europe. In this country, 95% of the population is expected to be online this year. And consumer adoption of ecommerce has always been high. Last year, 84% of the online population bought something online. This year, a share of 85% is expected. This is shown in the latest Germany 2020 Ecommerce Country Report by RetailX. This study, which collected data from many other pieces of research, shows that German ecommerce is expected to grow 10% this year. If the forecast is true, ecommerce in Germany will be worth 103.4bln euros at the end of this year.
Source: ecommercenews.eu
Amazon, SoftBank held talks over Russian online retailer Ozon, shareholder says
Global retail giant Amazon and Japanese SoftBank have made approaches to Russian conglomerate Sistema about a possible acquisition of its online retailer Ozon, Sistema’s majority owner Vladimir Evtushenkov said. It’s not immediately clear if talks are still under way or have ended. Sistema has said it was looking for partners to invest in Ozon, in which it holds a more than 40%. “The interest to Ozon among foreign investors is very high”, Evtushenkov told reporters after Sistema’s annual general meeting.
Source: reuters.com
US: Albertsons CEO: Coronavirus pushed people to form new habits
The coronavirus pandemic drove higher demand for food-at-home, online sales and curbside pickup, and that could have permanently changed the way some people shop. One of those new habits, is the desire for more options of curbside and delivery. "It's a growth opportunity for us, and we are continuing to expand it", Albertsons CEO Vivek Sankaran told FOX Business' Liz Claman. "We have so much headroom there. We need to get better, and we are getting better, and we'll do a lot more".
Source: foxbusiness.com
US: Winn-Dixie not ditching ‘Dixie’
Shortly after TMZ reported that Winn-Dixie was thinking of changing its name because of a new corporate awareness of the racist associations of certain terms like “Dixie” for many consumers, a spokesman for the venerable banner’s parent company, Jacksonville, Florida-based Southeastern Grocers, denied that a different moniker was in the cards, according to published reports. “While we have no immediate plans to rename this banner, we have always been and will continue to be responsive to the needs and concerns expressed by the communities we serve”, Southeastern Grocers spokesman Joe Caldwell told the Jacksonville Daily Record via email.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Giant Food announces integrated eCommerce platform to save customers time and money
Giant Food, the leading greater Washington D.C. regional grocery chain, announced a new integrated eCommerce shopping experience for customers available on the new Giantfood.com website and Giant Food mobile app. The integrated platform joins together the prior Peapod.com and Giantfood.com sites to create a single site on Giantfood.com. Visitors to the new site can easily access a robust shopping experience with personalized shopping, rewards program benefits, weekly circular and coupons as well as pharmacy, nutrition and wellness content offerings.
Source: prnewswire.com
US: Raley's opens 1st store under new 'healthy' banner
Raley's debuted its first small-format Market 5-ONE-5 banner in 2018 with a focus on organics, nutrition and education, and now the retailer's newest banner appears to combine the mission of Market 5-ONE-5 in a slightly larger footprint and with the Raley's name. The first Raley's O-N-E Market opened June 27 in Truckee, California, near the Nevada border, and measures 35,000 square feet. “It has become increasingly clear that our customers want to know where their food comes from, what’s in it and how it may impact their overall health and wellness”, said Keith Knopf, Raley’s president and CEO. “We are consistently listening and learning, and that's led us to the next step in our company’s transformation: Raley’s O-N-E Market. It’s a shopping destination that gives customers access to and information about thousands of products for healthier eating”.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: UNFI extends partnership with National Co+op Grocers
United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI) is the primary grocery wholesaler and national distributor for National Co+op Grocers (NCG)-affiliated retail food co-ops, and a new long-term supply agreement extension has expanded this relationship. NCG and UNFI will focus on numerous business development initiatives resulting from UNFI’s expanded offering, providing NCG’s 147 member co-ops access to more than 250,000 SKUs of natural, organic, conventional, specialty, bulk and wellness products, including the addition of UNFI’s Brands+ private label portfolio.
Source: progressivegrocer.com