Matherne’s Market has opened a grocery store in the Nicholson Gateway corridor on Louisiana State University’s (LSU) campus as the anchor retail tenant. The 17,500-s.f. store, which hosted a soft opening Aug. 24, mimics Matherne’s downtown location, focusing on more fresh food options and prepared foods featured in a modernized market space. The Nicholson Gateway […]
Category: Industry News
Kroger To Phase Out Single-Use Plastic Bags By 2025
The Kroger Co. on Aug. 23 announced it will phase out single-use plastic bags and transition to reusable bags across its family of stores by 2025. Seattle-based QFC will be the company’s first retail division to phase out plastic bags, and Kroger expects QFC’s transition to be completed in 2019. “As part of our Zero Hunger […]
Valu Merchandisers Co. Hosts Fall Show, Names Vendors Of The Year
Valu Merchandisers Co. (VMC), a wholly owned subsidiary of Associated Wholesale Grocers Inc. (AWG), hosted its Fall 2018 Trade Show earlier this month at the Overland Park Convention Center in Kansas. “The VMC show is a great way to connect and network with valued members, vendors and broker partners, VMC sales and merchandising teams and […]
Frieda’s Kicks Off Chilean Kumquat Season
Fresh kumquats from Chile, which are in season starting in late August, soon will be in consumers’ hands. “Shoppers are asking for kumquats year-round, not just in the winter anymore,” said Alex Jackson Berkley, assistant sales manager at Frieda’s Specialty Produce. “Even Oprah recently mentioned her kumquat trees and sharing the fruits with her friends.” Kumquats are […]
Larger Albertsons Market To Replace Current Carlsbad, New Mexico, Store
Albertsons Market plans to construct a new store in Carlsbad, New Mexico, beginning in late November with completion slated for fall 2019. The new store, almost 40 percent larger, will replace the existing Carlsbad location upon completion. Albertsons intends to demolish the current store to create additional parking. “We have enjoyed being an active part […]
Ricker’s Bringing Hybrid Checkout Platform To All Stores
C-store chain Ricker’s is rolling out a new checkout experience with Skip, a mobile checkout platform, to all of its 58 Indiana stores. The retailer describes the technology as a hybrid of mobile pay and AmazonGo’s “just walk out” program. Ricker’s says the mission of its partnership with Skip is to provide a best-in-class c-store […]
Raley’s Launches New Pharmacy Mobile App With Mscripts
Through a new partnership, Raley’s is integrating mscripts’ mobile pharmacy solutions with a new Raley’s pharmacy app, Rx Refill On-The-Go. The app will offer a new tool that will support text notifications when a prescription is ready for pick up and a refill is due to be ordered. Customers will be able to use the mobile and web […]
Prop. 65 Warning No Longer Needed For Coffee; Cereal Under Scrutiny
by Ron Fong/president and CEO, California Grocers Association In many respects, California is like an island unto itself when it comes to laws and regulations. For better or worse, our state is home to a number of laws and regulations that exist nowhere else in the nation. Among the most notorious and controversial of them […]
Kroger Begins Testing Driverless Delivery
The Kroger Co. and Nuro have selected Scottsdale, Arizona, as the city for their self-driving grocery delivery pilot, which kicked off Aug. 16. Earlier this summer, Kroger and Nuro, maker of driverless delivery vehicles, announced a partnership to begin testing grocery delivery using Nuro’s robots. Customers can place same-day delivery orders through Kroger’s ClickList ordering system or […]
Whole Foods, Hy-Vee, Aldi Top Seafood Sustainability Rankings
Greenpeace recently released its 2018 “Carting Away the Oceans” (CATO) report, ranking Whole Foods, Hy-Vee and Aldi the top three retailers out of the 22 largest supermarket chains in the U.S. for their seafood sustainability efforts. Target came in at No. 4, rounding out the retailers in this year’s “best” category. Since 2008, Greenpeace has evaluated […]
Connecticut Private Equity Firm Acquires Rise Baking Co.
Stamford, Connecticut-based private equity firm Olympus Partners has acquired Rise Baking Co. from another private equity firm, Arbor Investments. Rise Baking is a manufacturer of premium cookies, dessert bars, artisan breads and flatbreads. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, it is a supplier to the in-store bakery, foodservice and convenience channels in North America. Rise employs more than […]
Simbe Robotics, Advantage Solutions Pilot Shelf-Scanning Robot
In what they say is a first-of-its-kind pilot program, Advantage Solutions’ digital technology division and Simbe Robotics, developer of autonomous, shelf-scanning robot Tally, are working with global consumer goods manufacturers to identify on-shelf opportunities and provide a better shopping experience for consumers. Tally collected real-time shelf data from Schnucks stores, which Advantage then analyzed and […]
HR & Benefits News: Key To Success—Hire & Keep The Best People
HR & Benefits News is a monthly column by Chris Cooley, co-founder of MyHRConcierge and SMB Benefits Advisors. It’s no secret, hiring and keeping workers has significant impact on independent grocers. Its impact is second only to “competition from other retailers” say independent grocers who participated in the 2018 Independent Grocers Financial Survey prepared by […]
Walmart Opens New Distribution Center In Mobile, Alabama
Walmart hosted a grand opening celebration this week to commemorate the official opening of its new $135 million distribution center in Mobile, Alabama. The event was a culmination of a multi-year effort, supported by state and local officials and community members, intended to strengthen Walmart’s supply chain network. During the ceremony, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and local officials highlighted the many benefits the new […]
Long Lines, Slow Checkout Lower Shopper Satisfaction And Revenue
Technology company Digimarc Corp. has released findings from a commissioned survey revealing that long lines and poor checkout experiences reduce shopper morale, and are significant reasons for why consumers would shop elsewhere or shift to buying groceries online. Key findings from study include: Line length and the checkout experience has become as important as price […]
S.Pellegrino Rolling Out Canned Sparkling Water
S.Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water is introducing cans to its product lineup. “Delivering the same refreshing mix of gentle bubbles and fine mineral balance customers know and love, the new S.Pellegrino cans are a fun and tasteful new way to enhance any dining occasion, from an alfresco dinner to a sunset picnic,” the company says. […]
Wonderful Co. Celebrates First Class Of Ag Prep Program Graduates
On Saturday, The Wonderful Co. Co-Owners Lynda and Stewart Resnick led a celebration of the 90-strong inaugural graduating class of the Wonderful Agriculture Career Prep program (Ag Prep) at a special event held at Wonderful College Prep Academy in Delano, California. More than 300 family, friends and community members gathered to honor students graduating with an […]
Dome Joins Potatoes USA As A Global Marketing Manager
Kayla Dome has joined Potatoes USA’s staff as a global marketing manager in the organization’s retail sector. Dome comes to Potatoes USA with a background in merchandising and sales. She spent the last several years working in the produce industry for Grimmway Farms, where she managed sales and merchandising for the fresh produce category. Most […]
Wayfield Foods Unveils Eden Fresh Market Concept Store
Atlanta-based Wayfield Foods has opened a new-format store called Eden Fresh Market. True to its name, the store offers a broader selection of fresh foods than a traditional Wayfield Foods store. Eden Fresh Market is located southwest of Atlanta, at 12160 County Line Road in Fayetteville. It had a soft opening at the end of […]
New Phoenix, Arizona, Sprouts To Open Aug. 22
Sprouts Farmers Market will open a new location in its hometown of Phoenix, Arizona, at 7th Avenue and Osborn on Wednesday, Aug. 22. The store will be the grocer’s fifth new location to open in Arizona this year. The Phoenix location joins three other new Sprouts stores opening the same day in Lodi, California; Las Vegas, Nevada; […]
