by Mary Margaret Stewart, staff writer For Piggly Wiggly Alabama Distributing Co., David Bullard said the most challenging part of 2020 was finding a balance between supply chain demands and providing for its retailers. And as the entire industry witnessed when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, balance was hard to come by. “With the tremendously increased […]
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Posted inIndependent Store News, Home Page Slider, Market Profile, Midwest, Shelby Exclusives
New Year Brings Self-Checkout, Online Shopping To Buche Foods
Family-owned business serves smaller rural towns of South Dakota by Mary Margaret Stewart / staff writer R.F. Buche is the fourth-generation owner of Buche Foods, which was founded in Lake Andes, South Dakota, in 1905 by his great-grandfather, Gus Buche. Today, R.F. Buche owns and operates grocery and convenience stores, a Subway sandwich shop, […]
Posted inIndependent Store News, Home Page Slider, Market Profile, Midwest, Shelby Exclusives
MarketPlace Foods Keeps Focus On Associates, Their Resilience
Employee owned as of Jan. 1, company celebrating 80th anniversary by Mary Margaret Stewart, staff writer Founded in 1940 in Edinburgh, North Dakota, MarketPlace Foods just celebrated its 80th anniversary. And the company is entering 2021 with strong grocery business on its side. “The sales that we’ve had since the pandemic started are amazing – […]
Posted inIndependent Store News, Market Profile, Shelby Exclusives, The Kroger Co., West
Scolari’s Food And Drug Owner: ‘We Are Not The Normal Grocery’
One of Scolari’s stores features strong gaming presence by John McCurry / contributing writer Jerry Scolari thinks increased grocery sales, propelled by the COVID-19 pandemic, will continue through the first part of 2021. He is co-owner of the two-store chain, Scolari’s Food and Drug, which he said has been up to the challenges presented […]
Posted inROFDA Reports, Home Page Slider, National, Shelby Exclusives
Labor, Product Shortages And Uncertainty Among Top Concerns for ROFDA
Members also assess e-commerce, other trends likely to stick around by Mary Margaret Stewart, staff writer With 2021 in full swing, ROFDA Chairman David Bullard said the association’s membership has expressed three major concerns. “One is the labor problem. Finding enough quality workers with a good work ethic gets harder and harder to do. Labor challenges […]
Posted inIndependent Store News, Home Page Latest News, National, Shelby Exclusives
Independents Nationwide Eye Another Strong Year In 2021
IGA offers initiatives, help to keep pace with the trends by Mary Margaret Stewart, staff writer Phil Blackburn owns four IGA grocery stores in eastern Washington, two of which are general market and the others Hispanic-oriented. In 2021, he expects another good year for independent grocers. “We’re still holding with a lot larger basket size, so […]
Posted inIndependent Store News, Home Page Slider, National, Shelby Exclusives
NGA To Independent Supermarkets: Tell Your Story, Emphasize Local
Consumers likely will keep associating them with safety by Mary Margaret Stewart, staff writer Greg Ferrara sees 2021 as “the year of opportunity for independents.” Because while 2020 brought disruption to businesses across the nation in the form of the COVID-19 pandemic, grocery came out stronger on the other side. “Our industry overall responded incredibly well, […]
Posted inShelby Exclusives, Home Page Slider, National
Column: Taking A Peek Past Pandemic – Predictions For 2021, Beyond
by John Ross, president and CEO of IGA Your inboxes likely are filled with looks back at 2020 and reflections on all the craziness that ensued. Instead, I want to look forward to 2021 and the years ahead in our industry. Using insights from our stores in China, which has been dealing with the coronavirus […]