US: Who will inherit the peas of the pod?
The pioneering online grocer Peapod, which discontinued service in the Midwest last week, leaves behind hundreds of employees and thousands of longtime customers, and it is putting nearly $100mln in annual online grocery sales - or about 10,000 orders a week - up for grabs in the Chicago, Milwaukee and Indianapolis markets. For established grocers and services such as Instacart, that’s a rare opportunity to win new sales from a customer base already dedicated to internet shopping. And for customers, it means choosing among options they may previously have eschewed. Sources contacted by WGB predict the biggest winners in the Peapod turnover will be local grocers with significant market share and e-commerce capabilities - but pressure will be on them to impress. Chicago’s longtime market share leader Jewel-Osco, which fulfills orders both through dedicated delivery (similar to Peapod) and with same-day delivery partners such as Instacart, is experiencing booming interest, a company spokeswoman told WGB.
Source: winsightgrocerybusiness.com
Amazon expands physical footprint with bigger cashier-less grocery shop
Amazon.com Inc is bringing its cashier-less store technology to a larger stage. The world’s biggest online retailer opened on Tuesday ‘Amazon Go Grocery’, a store in Seattle’s Capitol Hill with 4 times the shopping space as the first cashier-less location it opened to the public in January 2018. The concept targets customers in residential neighborhoods rather than office workers, whom the smaller Amazon Go convenience stores serve. The new format reflects Amazon’s ambitions to capture more of shoppers’ weekly spend through groceries, increasing competition with national players Kroger, Albertsons and others. The company, once famous for selling books online, was long rumored to be working on a new chain of physical grocery stores that would cater to a more diverse set of tastes than up-market Whole Foods, which it acquired in 2017.
Source: reuters.com
US: FreshDirect selects Selligent Marketing Cloud to drive personalized service and engagement
Global B2C marketing automation company, Selligent Marketing Cloud (Selligent), announced that online direct-to-consumer grocer, FreshDirect, has chosen the company to power its digital marketing efforts. Known for their quality of grocery and service, the partnership will enable FreshDirect to deliver personalized customer experiences leveraging Selligent’s Universal Customer Profile to tie together demographic, behavioral and transactional data for a unified view of the customer.
Source: globenewswire.com
US: Target poised to be a top e-commerce player in 2020
Target leap-frogged 3 competitors to become the 8th largest e-commerce player in the U.S, according to eMarketer's latest market share rankings. The ranks mark Target's entry onto the top 10 list. Target's e-commerce business will expand by 24% to $8.3bln this year, eMarketer estimates, giving it 1.2% market share in 2020, according to an emailed press release. To make it to the No. 8 spot, Target edged past Qurate Retail Group, Costco and Macy's. Once again the top e-commerce player, by leaps and bounds, is Amazon with projected market share of nearly 39% for 2020. Next in line is Walmart, with 5.3% market share, followed by eBay (4.7%), Apple (3.7%), Home Depot (1.7%), Wayfair (1.5%) and Best Buy (1.3%). Costco (1.2% share) and Macy's (1.1%) took the No. 9 and No. 10 spots respectively.
Source: retaildive.com
US: SpartanNash targets reducing food waste with Flashfood
SpartanNash is piloting the Flashfood mobile app at 5 of its West Michigan Family Fare stores, allowing customers and community nonprofits to purchase food nearing its best-by date at up to 50% off. Items include meat, produce, seafood, deli and bakery products. Flashfood is a Toronto-based mobile app that operates in more than 440 grocery locations throughout Canada, Michigan - through a partnership with Meijer and now Family Fare - and Wisconsin - with Hy-Vee.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Shipt turns grocery delivery into an employee benefit
Shipt has launched Shipt 4 Work, a program that allows new and existing employees of participating companies to have their grocery and household essentials delivered to their home or office at no cost to them. The same-day delivery marketplace has revealed partnerships with 10 companies so far. Employees of these companies can sign up for a free annual Shipt membership by visiting shipt.com/shipt4work and entering their company email address and employee ID number. Customers can then select their favorite retailers in the app and online.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
Colombia: Grupo Éxito’s latest formats drive solid annual performance
Grupo Éxito Colombia has reported net sales of COP11tln (US$3,273mln) for 2019, a 4.2% growth year-on-year (YoY). This performance is mainly attributed to solid sales from its innovative Wow, FreshMarket and Surtimayorista formats, strong omnichannel growth (+37% YoY) and the opening of 29 new stores. Same-store-sales (SSS) were up 4% YoY, driven by the strong performance of its Éxito banner (where SSS rose 4.9%). “In Colombia, Grupo Éxito posted the best SSS performance of the last 3 years, benefited by value formats such as Éxito Wow, Carulla FreshMarket and Surtimayorista”, said Carlos Mario Giraldo Moreno, CEO of Grupo Éxito.
Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
Italy: Esselunga sees sales up 2.9% in FY 2019
Italian supermarket chain Esselunga has reported sales of €8.14bln in its financial year 2019, up 2.9% year-on-year. The company's performance was boosted by new store openings, e-commerce, and the introduction of a meal voucher programme in its stores. Adjusted EBITDA grew by 8.3% year-on-year, amounting to €675.5mln, while adjusted net profit increased by 3.1% to €250.8mln during the financial year. Esselunga retained its top position for shelf prices at 3% below the market average, with a shelf price deflation of 0.1%. The company offered savings of more than €1.5bln to customers in 2019, up by around €80mln compared to the previous year.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Kosovo retailer Viva Fresh to increase store count with EBRD funding
Kosovo-based retailer Viva Fresh has received financial assistance from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to expand its operations. The €10mln investment is part of the agreement signed by EBRD and Viva Fresh in London, UK, during the EBRD’s Western Balkans Investment Summit 2020. The investment will finance the launch of new Viva Fresh stores domestically and in North Macedonia. It will also facilitate the growth and development of the retail sector in Kosovo and the Western Balkans region. As part of the deal, the two sides have agreed on a comprehensive value-creation plan, which will be implemented with support from the Enterprise Expansion Fund (ENEF).
Source: retail-insight-network.com
Holland: Ahold Delhaize publishes 2019 Annual Report and issues convocation for 2020 Annual General Meeting of shareholders
Ahold Delhaize published its 2019 Annual Report, an integrated report that provides an overview of the Company’s financial and non-financial performance in 2019. Ahold Delhaize’s 2019 Annual Report will be on the agenda of the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM), which will be held on April 8, 2020. Group highlights: Net sales €66.3bln. 2018: €62.8bln, +5.5% (+2.3% at constant rates). Underlying operating income €2.8bln. 2018: €2.8bln, +0.6% (-2.6% at constant rates). Underlying operating margin 4.2%. 2018: 4.4%, -0.2% pt. Net income €1,766mln. 2018: €1,780mln, -0.8% (-3.8% at constant rates).
Source: aholddelhaize.com
Australian fires & drought hit Woolworths sales, shares down
Australia’s largest supermarket chain Woolworths Group Ltd posted a jump in first half profit as promotional giveaways lured shoppers, but warned of softer trading ahead as drought and months of bushfires hurt the quality of its produce. The country’s biggest company by sales bumped up its total projected bill to nearly A$400mln ($264mln) for staff backpayments dating back nearly a decade, adding to the challenges for the Sydney-listed operator of about 1,000 supermarkets.
Source: reuters.com
99 Speedmart opens in Singapore
The Malaysia-based chain has opened three stores in Singapore. In Malaysia, 99 Speedmart has over 1,500 stores across the country. It operates a chain of neighbourhood convenience stores that range from 250 to 500 sq m in size. The retailer’s success is driven by low prices, carrying a narrow range of top selling brands and great store visibility. A quick look into its flagship store in Singapore suggests that it is pursuing the same strategy here.
Source: retailanalysis.igd.com
South Africa: Shoprite forms JV with Equities Property fund
South Africa’s Shoprite Holdings will transfer its distribution centres and undeveloped land valued at 2bln rand ($133mln) to a new joint venture (JV) it is creating with Equities Property Fund, the supermarket chain said. Shoprite has more than 2,800 stores across Africa and has said it wants to divest some real estate to help its balance sheet. Shoprite Checkers will contribute a portfolio of distribution centres and associated undeveloped land in Brackenfell in the Western Cape and Centurion in Gauteng into the joint venture.
Source: reuters.com
Spain: Masymas Supermarket expands its network on the Costa Blanca with 3 new openings
The Masymas supermarket chain, owned by the firm of Pedreguer (Alicante) Juan Fornés Fornés SA, continues to expand its network of establishments in the Valencian Community, the Costa Blanca and the Region of Murcia. In this way, the company plans to make 3 new supermarket openings this year, 2 in Alicante and another in Murcia, according to sources from the chain. The first 2 stores will open during the first half of 2020 in Denia and in Cartagena, where work has begun in the Santa Ana industrial estate.
Source: euroweeklynews.com
UK: Morrisons and Tesco to rent out parking spaces
Leading grocers have become the latest retailers to rent out parking spaces to non-customers at their car parks. Spaces at all Morrisons and Tesco stores with large enough car parks will join the YourParkingSpace platform, according to press reports. Bays at 446 Morrisons sites and 98 Tesco stores can now be reserved and paid for using the app and Tesco plans to extend availability to 250 more. The app is already used by 203 Sainsbury's and 81 Co-op stores following deals signed between retailers and the start up operator.
Source: retailanalysis.igd.com