Food Lion customers and employees generated more than 13 million meals for those in need through the 2026 Orange Bag campaign, which ran Feb. 25-March 17 across the grocer’s 10-state footprint. Customers supported the effort by buying specially-marked bags of fresh navel oranges and making donations at the register or through Food Lion To Go. […]
Category: Southeast
The Shelby Report of the Southeast covers grocery retailers, wholesalers and suppliers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. Follow the latest store openings, remodels, leadership changes and market news from the region.
Posted inIndependent Store News, Featured News, Food City, Southeast
Food City Names 2026 Claude P. Varney Humanitarian Award Winner
Food City has announced the recipients of its annual Claude P. Varney Volunteer Recognition Program, honoring employees across the company for outstanding service to their communities. This year’s top honor goes to Amber Sweet of Abingdon, Virginia. The program is named in memory of Varney, Food City’s former president and board vice chairman of 47 […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, Harris Teeter, News, Southeast
Harris Teeter Packs 5K Meal Boxes At Annual Company Meeting
More than 300 Harris Teeter store managers, directors and support center leaders packed 4,992 seven-day meal boxes during the company’s annual leadership meeting, generating more than 104,000 meals for residents of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. Through a partnership with Nourish Up, each box was filled with items ranging from mac and cheese, tuna and pasta […]
Posted inSnacks Brands, Finance News, Health & Wellness, News, Southeast, West
Woman-Owned Pretzel Co. Gets Growth Investment
Pretzel maker Stellar Snacks has announced a minority growth investment from Main Post Partners that is expected to expand the better-for-you snack brand’s distribution footprint, production capacity and innovation. Carson City, Nevada-based Stellar Snacks was founded by mother-daughter entrepreneurs Elisabeth and Gina Galvin. Their company manufactures non-GMO, Kosher, vegan pretzels using clean ingredients and then […]
Posted inWholesaler/Distributor News, Associated Wholesale Grocers, Featured News, News, Southeast
AWG Invests $110M To Automate Gulf Coast Distribution Center
Associated Wholesale Grocers (AWG) will invest $110 million to modernize its Gulf Coast Division Support Center in Pearl River, Louisiana, installing advanced automation in the facility’s ambient section to improve order accuracy and service reliability for independent grocery retailers across the Southeast. Construction begins in January, with automation installation in April 2027 and full operations […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, Food Lion, News, Southeast
Food Lion Opens New Store In Simpsonville, SC
Food Lion will open a new location March 25 at 2321 W. Georgia Road in Simpsonville, South Carolina, marking the brand’s fifth in the area and its fourth store opening in the first quarter of 2026. The opening will be followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The first 100 customers in line will receive a mystery […]
Posted inExecutive News, Ahold Delhaize, Featured News, News, Southeast
Ahold Delhaize USA CEO Fleeman Leaving Role In June
Ahold Delhaize has announced that JJ Fleeman will depart from his role as CEO of Ahold Delhaize USA, effective at the end of June, to become CEO of Dollar General Corp. Fleeman has spent his entire 36-year career in grocery retail in Ahold Delhaize companies, including Food Lion, the grocer’s largest U.S. brand. Frans Muller, […]
Posted inExecutive News, Featured News, Harris Teeter, News, Southeast
Harris Teeter President DeBoer Named 2025 BusinessWoman Of The Year
Harris Teeter President Tammy DeBoer was honored as the 2025 BusinessWoman of the Year by Queens University of Charlotte during the award’s 40th anniversary luncheon March 13. DeBoer was recognized for her leadership of the North Carolina-based $10 billion regional grocery chain and her community-centered approach to the role. Kristi Coleman, CEO of Tepper Sports […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, Finance News, News, Southeast
Amazon, Winn-Dixie Expand Grocery Delivery To Greater Tampa Bay Area
Amazon and The Winn-Dixie Co. expanded their grocery delivery partnership to the Greater Tampa Bay area, adding six counties and dozens of communities to a service that reaches nearly 100 cities and towns across Florida and South Georgia. Customers in Hillsborough, Pasco, North Pinellas, Polk, Manatee and Sarasota counties can order from more than 15,000 […]
Posted inOnline Grocery Technology, Finance News, News, Southeast
ECRS Standardizes Third-Party Access To CATAPULT Platform
ECRS has released updated third-party integration and application programming interface (API) guidance, a formal framework defining how retailers and solution providers can connect with its CATAPULT point-of-sale platform through standardized, reusable API endpoints. The documentation is designed to reduce technical friction for integrators while protecting the platform’s stability across high-volume retail environments. Why standardization matters […]
Posted inIndependent Store News, Executive News, Lowes Foods, News, Southeast
Lowes Foods Opens New Location On Johns Island, SC
Lowes Foods opened a new store March 12 on Johns Island, South Carolina, expanding its Charleston market footprint to five locations. The store at 3575 Maybank Highway occupies a building that formerly housed a KJ’s Market and which underwent extensive renovations before the transition. The Johns Island location features Lowes Foods’ signature “Originals” – specialized […]
Posted inIndependent Store News, Featured News, Finance News, Harps Food Stores, News, Southeast
Harps Food Stores To Acquire 18 Stores From Dyer Foods In TN, KY
Harps Food Stores has entered into a purchase agreement to acquire 18 stores from Joey and Jeanie Hays, owners of independent grocery operator Dyer Foods, with 17 of the locations in western Tennessee and one in Kentucky. Both parties anticipate completing the transaction by this summer, with store banners, employment and operations continuing with minimal […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, News, Southeast
The Winn-Dixie Co. Converting 7 Supermarkets In FL, GA
The Winn-Dixie Co. announced that seven Harveys Supermarket locations in Florida and South Georgia will convert to the Winn-Dixie banner, the latest step in the company’s consolidation under a single brand following its rebranding from Southeastern Grocers in January. The locations slated for conversion are in Jacksonville, Lake City, Lakeland and Ocala, Florida, and Folkston, […]
Posted inGrocery Store Layout, News, Southeast, Southwest, Walmart
Walmart Tests Neighborhood Market Rapid Remodels
Walmart will begin testing a rapid remodel process at select Neighborhood Market stores in April, temporarily closing main sales floors for four weeks while keeping pharmacies and fuel stations open. The pilot spans stores in Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas. The accelerated timeline compresses a process that traditionally stretches several months, with […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, Food Lion, News, Southeast
Food Lion, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers Team Up For Hunger Relief
Food Lion Feeds, the nonprofit arm of Food Lion, and the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers are launching a season-long partnership that will convert runs scored during the 2026 minor league baseball season into meals for food-insecure families. For every home plate crossed this season, Food Lion Feeds will donate 100 meals to Second Harvest Food Bank […]
Posted inIndependent Store News, Featured News, News, Publix Super Markets, Southeast
Publix Opens 55,000-Square-Foot Store In St. Petersburg, FL
Publix opened a new 55,454-square-foot supermarket March 12 at 6605 38th Ave. in St. Petersburg, adding a full-format location with an indoor seating area and an adjacent Publix Liquors to the city’s northwest side. Lindsey Willis, Publix’s media relations manager, said the store was designed with comfort and convenience in mind. “This store brings together […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, News, Southeast
The Fresh Market Reopens Store One Year After Hurricane Helene
The Fresh Market recently reopened a store in Hendersonville, North Carolina, following more than a year of repairs and renovations after Hurricane Helene damage in 2024. The reopening included a $5,000 donation to MANNA Food Bank and a bread-breaking ceremony with the Hendersonville High School marching band. Mayor Barbara Volk and Chamber of Commerce President […]
Posted inIndependent Store News, Featured News, Food City, Health & Wellness, News, Southeast
Food City Expands NationsBenefit Flex Card Access For Members
NationsBenefits has integrated its Flex Card network with Food City, allowing eligible health plan members to use prepaid benefit cards at all of the grocer’s participating locations in Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, Georgia and Alabama. Using the NationsBenefits Mastercard Prepaid Flex Card, they will be able to buy approved food as medicine items, over-the-counter (OTC) health […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, News, Southeast, Southwest
Sprouts Farmers Market Opens 3 New Stores In FL, TX
Sprouts Farmers Market opened three new stores in late February and early March, adding two Florida locations and one in Texas. The first store opened Feb. 27 at 1591 N. Williamson Blvd. in Daytona Beach, Florida. That was followed by two locations on March 6 – one at 3420 South U.S. Hwy. 27 in Clermont, […]
Posted inOnline Grocery Technology, Executive News, Featured News, Finance News, News, Southeast
ECRS Names Rosner Chief Revenue Officer
ECRS, a Boone, North Carolina-based retail technology company, has named Merrick Rosner chief revenue officer. Rosner brings more than a decade of executive experience in retail technology and previously served on the National Retailer Advisory Board of the Independent Grocers Alliance (IGA). In his new role, Rosner will oversee customer experience, sales operations and strategic […]