Aldi has officially opened its new state-of-the-art regional distribution centre at the Logistics North site in Over Hulton (Greater Manchester). The German supermarket giant has created its biggest facility in the UK. The new hub — which replaces Aldi’s existing distribution centre in Middleton — has seen 550 employees make the move across to Bolton. (theboltonnews.co.uk)Lidl Poland devoted to selling domestic produce
Lidl stores in Poland offer approximately 90 different types of vegetables and fruits. "What is important for us is primarily the quality of our products, but also their origin. Whenever we have the opportunity to work with a domestic supplier, we try to focus on Polish vegetables and fruit," stated Anna Biskup, PR Manager at Lidl Poland. "During the year, nearly 100% of the potatoes, carrots, onions, beets and cabbage available at Lidl stores come from Polish producers, and the share of other agricultural products, such as broccoli, cauliflower, courgette and lettuce is also considerable in the spring-summer season, when the country which has the greatest availability of native crops," affirms Anna Biskup. Overall, Polish products dominate the shelves nationwide and account for approximately 70% of Lidl's turnover in Poland. (sadyogrody.pl)Deal suggests America is logical next step for Ocado
Ocado is on its way to launching in the United States now that it has struck a deal with logistics company Mace. According to The Times, Ocado has hired Mace to advise on how it should approach a launch which comes ahead of a licensing deal to supply online shopping for a US retailer. It is understood that Ocado is mulling expansion either across the Atlantic or over the English Channel in Europe. The appointment of Mace drives speculation that the online grocer’s first international licensing deal will be with an American retailer. Please, click here to read more wsj.com. UK: David Potts backs Morrisons’ turnaround with share investment
CEO of Wm Morrisons Supermarkets, David Potts, has thrown his weight behind turnaround plans for the business, investing £360,000 in shares. Mr Potts earlier this week purchased 180,000 ordinary shares at 10p each at a purchase price per share of £2.01. (thebusinessdesk.com)US: Kroger invests in natural chain Lucky's Market
Kroger Co. on Friday announced it has made a “meaningful investment” in Lucky’s Market, the Niwot, Colo.-based natural and organic chain with 17 stores in 13 states. Described as a strategic partnership, Kroger said the investment would “significantly accelerate Lucky's Market's growth in new and existing markets.” Financial terms were not disclosed. (supermarketnews.com)Russia: Dixy Group hires discount experts
The new President of Dixy Group Sergey Belyakov is reinforcing its management with experts working for discounters like Biedronka and Lidl. In March 2016, he appointed a new CEO, Pedro Manuel Pereira Da Silva who was for 16 year as CEO of Jeronimo Martins in Poland (Biedronka). This move should help Dixy to become more competitive with its rivals like X5’s Pyaterochka and Magnit. (igd.com) Thailand: Pesticides found on fruit in supermarkets
Greenpeace Taiwan yesterday said that a pesticide residue test on vegetables sold at major retail outlets showed that 73% of the samples tested contained pesticide residue. Prohibited chemicals were found on produce of Carrefour, A.Mart, Pxmart and RT-Mart. Only products collected from 7-Eleven and FamilyMart outlets showed no excessive residue, the organization said. (taipeitimes.com)Vietnam sees growth opportunity in retail sector
Dang Tran Hai Dang, deputy director of VietinBank Securities Company’s research centre, told participants that retail turnover last year was worth US$102bn, and it is expected to rise to $179bn by 2020. Wet markets dominate the retail scene with a 75% share, while supermarkets, department stores and other modern retail outlets account for 25%. But Dang said this is expected to increase to 45% by 2020. (english.vietnamnet.vn)AU: Woolworths woes spark talk of full-blown supermarket price war with Coles, Aldi
The battle for market share in the $90bn grocery sector could turn into a full-blown price war next year if Woolworths' attempts to restore sales growth in supermarkets fail to gain traction, UBS analysts say. All four major grocery retailers are keen to avoid, and have played down the risk of, a price war, having seen the damage to profits incurred in price wars in Europe and the UK. But if market leader Woolworths fails to restore sales growth after investing $700m into reducing prices and improving service in stores this year, it could become more aggressive and initiate a price war in 2017, a report by broker UBS said. (smh.com.au) Philippine 7-Eleven profits surpass 1bn pesos
The Philippine 7-Eleven network of convenience stores recorded record profits in 2015, fuelled by new store openings. Parent, listed company Philippine Seven, says it surpassed 1bn pesos (US$22m) in profits for 2015. The 15.4% year-over-year profit rise came on the back of an increase in stores from 1282 in 2014 to 1602 stores in 2015. Philippine Seven said retail sales of all stores rose by 25.3% to P25.8bn from P20.6bn compared with prior year. (fool.com)
Online groceries becomes next e-commerce battlegroundPlease, click here to read the article.
