US: Kroger, Walgreens test cameras in aisles
Retailers are testing out smart shelves and coolers with penny-sized cameras that collect information on shoppers and their purchases, according to the Associated Press. The technology is aimed at personalizing the shopping experience, but also raises questions about customer privacy. Kroger has placed cameras in two stores near Cincinnati and Seattle, which are embedded in price signs above shelves to play ads and show discounts. The cameras don't store data, though they can guess age and gender, Kroger told the AP. Walgreens has installed cooler doors that act as video screens with cameras and sensors at six stores in Chicago, New York, San Francisco and Bellevue, Washington. The doors display ads and the contents inside the cooler, and a camera can guess ages and track shoppers' eyes to see where they're looking, though Walgreens said that feature is currently disabled.
Source: grocerydive.com
US: Topco introduces customized attributes
With consumers demanding more ingredient information, many of Topco’s members-owners have joined the Product Transparency Initiative and can take advantage of an expanded partnership with Label Insight to provide customized attributes that they can use to power ecommerce, improved searches and in-store initiatives. “The attribute customization offering is truly ground-breaking in that it enables Topco members to more effectively guide shoppers to the products they want in the store and online”, said Randy Skoda, president and CEO of Elk Grove Village, Illinois-based Topco. “Not only does the platform offer thousands of standard attributes, the data within it can be leveraged to customize attributes so Topco members can differentiate in their markets and provide information that is important to their shoppers”.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
Amazon posts a record quarterly profit of $3.6bln
Amazon reported that it made a record $3.6bln in profit for the first three months of 2019, more than doubling from $1.6bln in the year prior. This marks the sixth straight quarter in which Amazon's profits have topped $1bln and the fourth consecutive quarter of record profits. Amazon posted revenue of nearly $60bln for the quarter, an increase of just 17% from the year prior, its lowest growth rate since 2015.
Source: edition.cnn.com
Canada: Sobeys opens first Western FreshCo store
Sobeys opened its first discount grocery store in Western Canada on Thursday as it works to catch up to competitors in the chase for frugal shoppers. The FreshCo store in Mission, British Columbia, is the first of a dozen shops under that banner promised by Sobeys Inc. by the end of this year in an effort to grow market share in the west following a years-long fallout from its troubled acquisition of the Safeway chain. “Sobeys is far behind our competitors in terms of having a presence in discount”, said Mike Venton, general manager of the discount format at Sobeys, a subsidiary of Empire Co. Ltd.
Source: canadiangrocer.com
US: Weis Markets embarks on $109mln cap ex plan
Weis Markets has revealed plans to invest $109mln in capital expenditures during 2019. The plan encompasses new stores, remodels, supply chain improvements and continued information technology upgrades. Weis said that the company’s sales rose to a record $3.5bln in 2018, with comparable-store sales having gone up 18 of the past 19 quarters. Weis Markets’ income from operations also grew by 9.4% year over year. Weis attributed the grocer’s success to its store base and IT investments, adding that its sales and operating income had benefited from targeted holiday promotions through its loyalty marketing program, price optimization improvements and more efficient store-level inventory management.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Walmart experiments with AI to monitor stores in real time
Walmart is experimenting with digitizing its physical stores to manage them more efficiently, keep costs under control and make the shopping experience more pleasant. On Thursday, the retail giant officially opened its Intelligent Retail Lab inside a 50,000-square-foot Neighborhood Market grocery store on Long Island. Thousands of cameras suspended from the ceiling, combined with other technology like sensors on shelves, will monitor the store in real time so workers can quickly replenish products or fix other problems. The technology, shown first to The Associated Press, will also be able to spot spills, track when shelves need to be restocked and know when shopping carts are running low. Cameras, for example, can determine how ripe bananas are from their color, and workers will get an alert on their phone if they need to be replaced.
Source: phys.org
US: Kroger celebrates Zero Hunger | Zero Waste achievements
The Kroger Co. announced its latest milestones and results for Zero Hunger | Zero Waste, the company's bold vision to end hunger in the communities it serves and eliminate waste across the company by 2025. "Zero Hunger | Zero Waste is shaping the national discussion around how to end hunger and eliminate waste across America", said Jessica Adelman, Kroger's group vice president of corporate affairs. "At Kroger, we are intently focused on using our scale for good and we encourage our customers, associates and other businesses to join us".
Source: prnewswire.com
GPA sales rise, closes in on supermarket leader Carrefour Brasil
Brazilian supermarket chain Grupo Pão de Açúcar SA posted first-quarter sales up 12% from a year ago, closing the gap on Carrefour Brasil, the market leader in Latin America’s largest economy. GPA, which is owned by France’s Casino Guichard Perrachon SA, reported gross revenues of 13.8bln reais ($3.46bln), driven by gains in its wholesale division, Assaí.
Source: reuters.com
Belgium and France: Colruyt Group selects Juniper Networks to support its digital transformation
Juniper Networks, an industry leader in automated, scalable and secure networks, announced that Colruyt Group, one of the largest retailers in Belgium and France, has deployed Juniper Networks’ solutions to improve its data connectivity in response to exponential growth in network traffic. Colruyt Group consists of more than 40 brands for consumers and businesses, including food and non-food retail, fuel, wholesale and food services. Established more than 80 years ago, it operates 553 of its own stores, supplies 581 independent shopkeepers in Belgium and France and also offers its products via e-commerce sites. The group owns the BIO-planet, Collishop, Cru, dreambaby, DreamLand, OKay, SPAR Belgium, MyUnderwear24, NewStory, Newpharma and ZEB brands and operates a network of DATS24 fuel stations throughout Belgium.
Source: globenewswire.com
South Korea: Datametrex secures contract with Homeplus
Datametrex AI Limited (the “Company” or “Datametrex”) is pleased to announce that the Company has secured a contract with Homeplus, the second largest retailer in South Korea for predictive analytics. Homeplus operates its hypermarkets, supermarket chain ‘Homeplus Express’, 365 convenience stores and an online shopping service offering everything from groceries to clothes and appliances. Homeplus was run by Tesco, the large British multinational grocery and general merchandise retailer until 2015 and is currently owned by MPK Partners, a private equity firm. With 140 branches and 25,000 employees throughout South Korea, Datametrex has been awarded an initial contract with a recurring revenue component for the NexaIntelligence AI solution to use in several departments where there is a strong requirement for Artificial Intelligence and Predictive Analytics. “To be selected by such a large retailer for our solution is compelling and will open up a lot of opportunities in the predictive analytic space. The need for AI and machine learning plays a key role in analyzing various data formats that retailers collect and is major technology initiative at Homeplus”, says Andrew Ryu, CEO & Chairman of the Company.
Source: globenewswire.com
Carrefour sees improvement in France
In the first quarter of 2019, Carrefour group performed slightly better than expected, mainly thanks to higher food sales in the home market. Although the turnover in Belgium went down again, the retailer sounds rather positive. The turnover of the French retail group increased - on a comparable basis - by 2.7 % to 20.6bln euros. In France, growth was 1 % as food sales went up 2 %, while non-food sales continued to decline. The hypermarkets improved by 0.1 %, the supermarkets by 1.5 % and the other formats by 2.6 %. The retailer sees a positive impact of price investments and a new loyalty program. There is growth in organic sales, e-commerce and convenience. In Belgium, sales decreased by 3.5 % to 987mln euros. This is mainly due to restructuring measures that were implemented last year, such as some reductions in store size. On a comparable basis, the decline was only 0.4 %, leading the retailer to speak of an improvement in a very competitive market. Carrefour Belgium recently announced quite a few initiatives, such as an expansion of its private label offering and the organic assortment, the opening of separate organic stores, further expansion in the convenience channel (with automated stores) and a collaboration with pharmacy chain Medi-Market.
Source: retaildetail.eu