US Foods names Dave Flitman as CEO
Dave Flitman will be the new chief executive officer and board member of leading foodservice distributor US Foods Holding Corp., effective Jan. 5, 2023. Flitman replaces Interim CEO Andrew Iacobucci who took the post in May following the departure of former CEO Pietro Satriano who led the company for 11 years.
Source: Supermarket News
Is being the low price leader critical to Amazon’s ongoing success?
A study finds online prices are on average 13 percent less expensive on Amazon.com than other leading U.S. retailers across 15 categories, narrowing from 14 percent lower in 2021 and 16 percent in 2020. Profitero’s sixth consecutive annual pricing study analyzed online prices for nearly 15,000 exact-matched products from July to October across 15 categories at 13 retailers. Amazon had the lowest prices across 14 categories while tying Chewy in the pet category.
Source: RetailWire
Newest Allegiance member strengthens cooperative's Manhattan presence
New York supermarket chain Morton Williams has become the newest member of Allegiance Retail Services, a leading retailer owned grocery co-op. Founded in 1952, Morton Williams Supermarkets is a family-owned-and-operated food retailer with 16 stores in the New York metropolitan area.
“It is a great testament to the strength of our cooperative and product offerings that Morton Williams Supermarkets has chosen to join our membership,” stated John T. Derderian, president and chief operations officer of Allegiance Retail Services
Source: ProduceNews
Grocery code of conduct nears finish line, but more work to be done
Grocery leaders are one step closer to sealing the deal on a code of conduct for the sector. The years-long endeavour by a steering committee representing a cross section of Canada’s food industry submitted a draft of proposed code components to government officials this month.
Committee members are in consultation with their respective boards on those draft components. In December, a draft code will be submitted to the federal, provincial and territorial ministers of agriculture, who are expected to reach a decision early in the new year.
Source: CanadianGrocer
Netherlands: Ahold Delhaize pledges ‘net-zero’ on carbon emissions by 2040
Dutch supermarket operator Ahold Delhaize stated that it is planning to reduce carbon dioxide emissions for its operation by 50% by 2030 and to become net-zero by 2040. The company also is seeking for its entire value chain to reduce carbon emissions by at least 37% by 2030 and to become net-zero by 2050, while ensuring that all of its climate targets are in line with the United Nations’ goal of keeping global warming below 1.5°C, Ahold Delhaize said.
Source: Supermarket News
UK: Asda retains crown as UK's most affordable supermarket for online shopping
Asda has held on to its long-reigning title as the UK's cheapest online supermarket for October, beating the most expensive option by over £25. New monthly research found that the "big four" grocer is still offering online shoppers the most affordable prices for the weekly online grocery shop.
Based on a basket of 42 everyday items, the supermarket giant was not only the cheapest overall at £120.08, but its basket total had actually decreased by 38p despite food prices rising to their highest levels, according to the price-tracking website Alertr, which monitors the six major supermarket chains Asda, Morrisons, Tesco, Sainsbury's, Waitrose and Ocado. Lidl and Aldi were not included as they do not currently include a full online shop.
Source: DerbyTelegraph
France: What Carrefour plans to do with Potager City
Carrefour plans to open three branches of its new fresh food format Potager City in January. The concept? A fresh food shop offering short-chain products at supermarket prices. CEO Alexandre Bompard had already announced it in his recent strategic update: the retailer wants to strengthen its commitment to sustainable agriculture. To that end, the group is launching a new sustainable store format, and it has just released more details. The first three shops are already opening within two months, in Paris.
Source: RetailDetail
UK: Fresh food prices climb record 14.3% in November, says BRC
The cost of fresh food sold in British shops increased in November at the fastest annual rate since records began in 2005, a new blow for households grappling with the cost-of-living crisis, a new survey has shown. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said fresh food prices were 14.3% higher this month than a year ago.
Source: European Supermarket Magazine
Germany: Lidl sees international growth slow down, margins remain intact
Lidl has achieved a nice increase in sales in its international business, although the pace of growth is slowing down a little following the pandemic. The discounter manages to maintain its margins in most countries, with one painful exception. German discounter Lidl now operates in 32 countries: it recently added Latvia (October 2021) and Estonia (March 2022). The retailer has transferred its international operations – all activities outside Germany, accounting for more than two thirds of the retailer’s total sales – to the company Lidl Stiftung & Co KG. The latter’s results are now known for the broken fiscal year 2021/22, which ended in February 2022, as Barclays analysts dipped into the figures.
Source: RetailDetail
Belgium: Colruyt workers save up to 90 minutes a day stocking shelves
Colruyt workers started using the new Product Finder technology today. All 16,000 Colruyt Group store workers received a smartphone that supports them in their day-to-day work some time ago. Today, a test with a very special new application on this smartphone was launched: when store workers scan an item with a barcode scanner connected to their device, the light of the electronic price label on the shelf flashes, telling them where the item goes. Stocking the shelves takes up to 90 minutes less, every day. The new technology was developed by the Colruyt Group Smart Technics innovation team and was successfully tested at the Colruyt stores of Poperinge and Heverlee. The technology was also introduced at the store in Halle today. The further roll-out is scheduled for 2023.
Source: Colruyt
Australia: Aldi supermarket has confirmed a major change to the way it prices its items at stores.
The retail giant has rolled out digital price tags on shelves to all stores in South Australia, as well as selected stores in New South Wales and Queensland as part of a trial. The electronic labels have replaced paper tags in these stores, bringing ALDI into a new digital shopping age.
Source: 7News