UK: Waitrose honoured with Royal Warrant from His Majesty The King
Waitrose has been granted the Royal Warrant of Appointment to be Grocers and Wine & Spirit Merchants to His Majesty King Charles III. It is the only Royal Warrant granted to a supermarket and among the first Warrants to be awarded by His Majesty. The Warrant is given as a mark of recognition to companies who have regularly supplied the Royal Household for a period of at least five years.
Source: johnlewispartnership.media
Dino Polska sees revenue up by a fifth in first quarter
Dino Polska has reported a 20.3% year-on-year increase in full-year revenue to PLN6.7bln (€1.6bln) in the first quarter of its financial year. Fresh products accounted for 41% of Dino Polska's revenue, particularly fruit and vegetables, bread and the fresh meat produced by the Agro Rydzyna meat processing plant, the company noted.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Italian job for autonomous store technology firm Sensei as Conad opens Grab and Go store in Trento
Sensei, a Portugal-based provider of autonomous store technology, has announced a deal in the Italian market with the opening of the country's second autonomous supermarket. Located in the historic centre of Trento, Conad's new neighbourhood store TuDay Prendi & Vai promises a faster and more convenient shopping experience without the need to queue or scan products.
Source: retailtechinnovationhub.com
Retailer Lidl UK raises staff pay for third time in 12 months
The British arm of German supermarket group Lidl said it would lift wages by over 3% in June, giving thousands of workers a third pay rise in 12 months. Lidl said it would raise pay for staff across Britain to 12.40 pounds per hour from 12 pounds per hour, while London-based staff would receive 13.65 pounds per hour, up from 13.55.
Source: reuters.com
New Zealand: Foodstuffs co-ops mark two years of helping to tame food inflation
The Foodstuffs grocery co-ops - whose member-families own the country's 500+ PAK'nSAVE, New World and Four Square stores - have marked two years of efforts to tame food price inflation by again recording an average rate of price increases at their stores that's under Stats NZ's official rate. 21 different fruit and vegetable items see double-digit price falls, year-on-year.
Source: foodstuffs.co.nz
Brits get set for first major BBQ weekend of the year as hot weather finally arrives
With predictions of temperatures nudging 24C over the weekend, Tesco has seen demand for BBQ food jump to the top of shopping lists. Based on growing early demand, Tesco predicted that from Friday through to Sunday it would sell: 100,000 packs of plant-based meat alternatives; more than 1mln punnets of strawberries.
Source: tescoplc.com
UK: Families missing out on free food scheme
Leeds City Council has said almost 3,000 households could be missing out on a free food scheme. Healthy Start is an NHS scheme which helps women who are pregnant or have young children and are receiving benefits. Those who qualify receive a prepaid card enabling them to buy milk, fruit and vegetables. The council said about 8,000 families in the city could be eligible but only 68% of them are using the scheme.
Source: bbc.com
US: DOJ argues that Colorado lawsuit against Kroger, Albertsons merger should proceed
The U.S. Department of Justice has weighed in on a lawsuit out of Colorado that aims to block Kroger's $24.6bln acquisition of Albertsons, arguing against Kroger's attempt to get the case thrown out of court.
Source: supermarketnews.com
Whole Foods plans to open 30 stores a year
Whole Foods Market CEO Jason Buechel says the company is moving forward with its plan to open 30 stores a year, some of which will be in new formats like its smaller footprint Daily Shop stores.
Source: supermarketnews.com
US: Schnucks shuttering Eatwell Market format
Schnuck Markets announced it is abandoning Eatwell Market, a banner focused on natural and organic foods with two stores in Missouri. The Midwestern grocery chain said it is converting the Eatwell store in Columbia to its traditional format and closing the location in Chesterfield on June 2. Schnucks debuted the format with the Columbia store in 2020.
Source: grocerydive.com
US: Food Lion expands home delivery in three states
As more customers order groceries online, Food Lion is making it easier for its neighbors in Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia to get fresh and affordable groceries delivered to their homes.
Source: globenewswire.com
US supermarket chain Sam's Club to launch online shopping in Hong Kong; one industry expert warns of 'retail crisis'
The Post learns the megastore will roll out an e-commerce service for Hongkongers soon, with free delivery service available for purchases of 599 yuan. 'Supermarkets and online platform HKTVmall will be hard hit … I am afraid this will cause a retail crisis in Hong Kong', economist Simon Lee says.
Source: scmp.com