Rudy and Debbie Dory and their daughter Lauren Johnson—owners of Newport Avenue Market in Bend, Oregon—received the 2015 “Ben Schwartz Retail Grocery Visionary Award” from Unified Grocers at a special awards dinner Tuesday in Los Angeles. This is the 10th year that Unified has presented the award to an outstanding independent retailer. “It’s an honor […]
Author Archives: Shelby Report Staff

The Shelby Report newsroom covers the grocery industry for retailers, wholesalers and suppliers. Staff reports include store openings, executive appointments, company announcements and industry event coverage. Since 1967, The Shelby Report has covered supermarkets, grocery chains and independent grocers through five regional editions.
Wegmans Unseats Amazon To Claim Top Corporate Reputation Ranking
Rochester, New York-based grocer Wegmans Food Markets, with 85 stores and one-tenth of Amazon’s revenues, edged past the online retailer to reach the top spot for corporate reputation among the 100 most visible companies, according to the 16th annual Harris Poll Reputation Quotient (RQ) study. Ranking third on the list, Samsung outperformed all other technology […]
RedLine Solutions To Host Second Installment Of ‘Traceability For Dummies’ Webinar
RedLine Solutions, a leader in produce traceability and inventory solutions, will host the second part of its “Traceability For Dummies” webinar series titled “The New Era of Traceability Part 2: The Produce Traceability Model” at 2 p.m. (ET) Feb. 25. The webinar will focus on the accelerating evolution of produce traceability, including how automated traceability systems […]
Ralphs Launches Charitable Campaign To Benefit Children’s Hospitals
Ralphs Grocery Co. is raising funds to support children’s hospitals in Southern California. Ralphs customers and associates can support their local children’s hospital through the supermarket chain’s nonprofit arm, The Ralphs Fund, by donating their spare change in collection canisters located at the checkstands in their neighborhood Ralphs supermarket. The children’s hospital fundraising campaign will […]
Strack & Van Til Reorganizes Executive Management Team
Strack & Van Til President and CEO Ken Diehl has announced a reorganization of the Highland, Indiana-based chain’s executive management team. Hired last October to steer the 5,000-employee company operating 38 stores, Diehl said the staffing changes are part of a plan to better position Strack & Van Til for the future. “I’m very excited […]
Homeland Announces Winner Of 14-Week Get Healthy Challenge
Twenty-year-old William White of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, was awarded $5,000 on Jan. 31 for his weight loss efforts in the Homeland Grocery Stores‘ second annual Get Healthy Challenge. White lost a total of 83 pounds throughout the 14-week challenge. Collectively, 12 contestants finished the program and lost 363 pounds and 264 inches. The contestants also […]
Nominations Now Being Accepted For United Fresh’s Retail Produce Manager Awards
The United Fresh Produce Association is now accepting nominations for the 2015 United Fresh Retail Produce Manager Awards Program. The program will honor 25 outstanding retail produce managers at the United Fresh 2015 convention June 8-10 in Chicago, Illinois. Nomination forms may be accessed online and must be received by March 16, 2015. The Retail […]
Frieda’s: Asian Food Trend Can Be Boon For Biz As Chinese New Year Holiday Approaches
Authentic Asian flavors are among the top food trends of 2015, and there’s no better time to introduce Asian specialties to shoppers and diners than during the Chinese New Year celebration. That’s according to Los Alamitos, California-based Frieda’s Specialty Produce, which says it is offering retailers a number of Asian specialities to help businesses boost sales […]
Conference Has Helped Students Become ‘Industry Ready’ For 50 Years
Celebrating its 50th annual Food Marketing Conference, Western Michigan University (WMU) continues to make an impact in retail through its graduates who help build the consumer loyalty that retailers strive for each day. Retail is one of the most exciting and challenging areas in today’s marketplace. Providing the intersection between product and consumer, successful innovation […]
Albertsons, Safeway Complete Merger; Combined Co. To Operate 2,230 Stores
Albertsons and Safeway on Friday said that they have completed their proposed merger. Under the terms of the agreement first announced and unanimously approved by Safeway’s board of directors in March 2014, Albertsons will acquire all outstanding shares of Safeway. The deal is valued at approximately $9.2 billion. The merger creates a company that has 2,230 […]
MGA Presents Its 2015 Legislator Of The Year Award
The Minnesota Grocers Association (MGA) presented its 2015 MGA Legislator of the Year Award to Rep. Jenifer Loon (R-Eden Prairie) at the annual MGA Legislative and Food PAC Dinner on Jan. 27 at the St. Paul Hotel in St. Paul. Each year the Minnesota Grocers Association recognizes a lawmaker who demonstrates a commitment to the […]
Sprouts Recognized By Supply Chain Solutions Provider As Innovator Of The Year
iTradeNetwork, a provider of supply chain solutions for the food service and retail industries, has honored Sprouts Farmers Market with its Innovator of the Year Award for Supply Chain Technology. The Phoenix, Arizona-based grocers was recognized for its visionary contributions shaping the breakthrough new iTrade store order management solution, scheduled for general release later this […]
Campbell Soup Co. Shakes Up Divisions, Leadership
Campbell Soup Co. plans to implement a new enterprise structure that the New Jersey-based company says will align the organization’s business operations with its core growth strategies. Under the new design, Campbell’s businesses will be organized and managed in three divisions structured principally by product categories rather than by geographies or brand groups. Each division […]
AFS Launches Platform To Provide Online, Mobile Shopping Opportunities
Associated Food Stores (AFS) is making grocery shopping more convenient through a partnership with Rosie, an integrated software company, which will provide online/mobile shopping opportunities to retailers. The new platform will enable participating AFS corporate and member stores to reach new customers, while providing consumer behavior analytics, data analysis and new marketing opportunities. Saveway Market […]
Martin’s Will Be ‘Official Supermarket’ Of 2015 Richmond Cycling Event
Richmond 2015, the organizer of the 2015 UCI Road World Championships, says that Martin’s Food Markets will join its team of major corporate partners of the nine-day cycling event that will be held in Richmond, Virginia, in September. Martin’s, operating 24 grocery stores in central Virginia, will be the “Official Supermarket” of this year’s UCI […]
Giant Eagle Entering New Market With Two Store Concepts
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based Giant Eagle plans to enter greater Indianapolis later this year with two store concepts. The multi-format food, fuel and pharmacy retailer will open a Market District food destination store and GetGo convenience restaurant and fuel station in The Bridges development in Carmel, Indiana, just outside of Indianapolis. “We are thrilled to bring our Market […]
Sales Of Local Foods Reach $12B
Like organic products before them, locally produced foods are stepping out of the shadow of their once “quirky niche” designation to claim a much more prominent—and permanent—place in the U.S. food and beverage retail-scape. Market research publisher Packaged Facts estimates that local foods generated $12 billion in sales in 2014, accounting for 2 percent of total […]
California WIC Moratorium Is Lifted
The moratorium for stores to apply for authorization in the California Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Program was lifted Feb. 1. The announcement was made by Dr. Ron Chapman, director and state health officer at the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). “This positive step will improve availability and access for the approximately 1.4 million […]
Millennials Come In All Shapes And Sizes…And Have Varied Shopping Habits
Millennials are, without a doubt, one of today’s most influential demographic groups when it comes to marketing. The reason so much attention has been given to this group of 18- to 34-year-olds is because of sheer numbers: There are about 74.3 million of them, or about 30 percent of the U.S. adult population. With numbers […]
Albertsons Market Debuts First Alamogordo, New Mexico, Store
Albertsons Market opened the company’s first Alamogordo, New Mexico, store Jan. 28. Located at 1300 East 10th Street, the 53,727-s.f. Albertsons Market offers a wide variety of specialty foods, including more than 2,000 international and imported items, an expansive bulk food section, a wine steward and a gluten-free selection containing more than 300 items. The […]
