Swiftly has partnered with Merchants Distributors (MDI), a Hickory, N.C.-based wholesale grocery distributor, to expand digital capabilities across MDI’s network of more than 600 independent retailers in the Southeast. Under the agreement, MDI retailers will gain access to three Swiftly products – a modern retail website platform, SmartCircular for digitizing the weekly circular experience and Audience […]
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 inProduce News, Featured News, News, Southeast
Healthy Family Project Raised $348K In 2025 For Food Security
Healthy Family Project gathered more than 200 produce industry professionals Feb. 27 for its annual Thank You Reception during the Southeast Produce Council’s 2026 Southern Exposure event in Orlando, celebrating a year of cause marketing campaigns that raised more than $348,000 for charitable partners. The funds benefited Feeding America food banks, the Foundation for Fresh […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, Southeast, Walmart
Walmart Opens New Supercenter In The Villages, FL
Walmart opened a new supercenter March 4 at 11115 Waxman Drive in The Villages, a 55-and-up community in central Florida. The “next generation” store opened with a community celebration “highlighting the store’s associates, new products and services, Fresh From Florida produce and local nonprofit partners,” the retailer said. “Today is a proud moment for our […]
Posted inBakery News, Executive News, Featured News, News, Southeast
Flowers Foods Promotes Lorge To Lead Simple Mills Unit
Michelle Lorge has been named president of the Simple Mills business of Thomasville, Georgia-based Flowers Foods Inc., the company announced March 2. Lorge succeeds Simple Mills founder and CEO Katlin Smith, who Flowers said “has made a personal decision to step down to spend more time with her family and on philanthropic interests, and will […]
Posted inNews, Finance News, Independent Store News, Publix Super Markets, Southeast
Publix Reports Fourth Quarter, Annual Results For 2025
Publix Super Markets reported fiscal 2025 sales of $62.7 billion, a 5 percent increase from $59.7 billion in 2024. Comparable store sales for the fiscal year ended Dec. 27, 2025, increased 3.5 percent. “Our greatest asset is our associates,” said Publix CEO Kevin Murphy. “I’m proud of their dedication to continuous improvement and commitment to […]
Posted inCenter Store, News, Southeast
Louisiana Fish Fry Expands Seafood Boil Lineup With Two New Seasonings
Louisiana Fish Fry launched two additions to its seafood boil lineup – Louisiana Fish Fry Cajun Reserve Boil Seasoning and Louisiana Fish Fry Slammin’ Spice Boil Booster. Together, the new seasonings give home cooks more ways to customize their boils with Louisiana flavor. Louisiana Fish Fry Cajun Reserve Seafood Boil Seasoning is a premium citrus-herb […]
Posted inIndependent Store News, Executive News, Featured News, Finance News, News, Southeast
Houchens Industries Names Jordan White As EVP
Houchens Industries has appointed Jordan White as EVP, the Bowling Green, Kentucky-based company announced Feb. 26. White will work with executive leadership and subsidiary management teams to support strategic growth initiatives, capital deployment and operational excellence across Houchens’ portfolio of companies. “I am excited to have Jordan join the Houchens team,” said Dion Houchins, chairman […]
Posted inProduce News, Food Lion, News, Southeast
Food Lion Begins Annual Orange Bag Donation Campaign
Food Lion launched its annual three-week Orange Bag campaign Feb. 25, inviting customers to turn purchases of fresh navel oranges into meals for communities through its Food Lion Feeds hunger-relief platform. The campaign, which runs through March 17, benefits Feeding America and partner food banks throughout the retailer’s 10-state footprint. Since it began in 2019, […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, News, Southeast
The Fresh Market Opens Second Store In Aventura, FL
The Fresh Market has opened a second location in Aventura, Florida, featuring expanded seating and a Roasting Plant where guests can buy freshly roasted premium coffee beans to order. The specialty grocery retailer celebrated the occasion by breaking a six-foot loaf of Cuban bread. The opening also featured giveaways and sampling, along with a $2,000 […]
Posted inProduce News, Association News, Featured News, News, Southeast
Southern Exposure 2026 To Feature Grower Panel, Product Launches
The Southeast Produce Council will hold Southern Exposure 2026 from Feb. 26-March 1 at the Orlando World Center Marriott in Orlando, Florida, featuring educational sessions on agriculture challenges and consumer trends alongside new product debuts from exhibitors. The conference theme, “From Fields to Families: Nourishing Our Nation,” reflects SEPC Board Chair Sloan Lott’s platform emphasizing […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, News, Southeast, The Kroger Co.
Kroger Invests $23M To Expand Store In Marietta, GA
Kroger is expanding its Parkaire Landing location in Marietta, Georgia, with a $23 million investment that will increase the store’s size by more than 26,000 square feet. The project will grow the store from about 59,000 to 85,000 square feet by filling three adjacent vacancies in the East Cobb shopping center. A new 12-pump fuel […]
Posted inOnline Grocery Technology, News, Southeast
ECRS Completes SOC 2 Type 2 Audit
ECRS has completed a SOC 2 Type 2 audit conducted by an independent CPA firm in accordance with American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Trust Services Criteria, the Boone, North Carolina-based retail technology provider announced. The audit evaluated the design and operational effectiveness of ECRS’ internal controls over a defined period. The SOC 2 Type […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Food Lion, News, Southeast
Food Lion Awards $20K To North Carolina College Hunger Challenge Winners
Food Lion Feeds and North Carolina Campus Engagement awarded $20,000 to three North Carolina colleges for student-led hunger-relief efforts. Alamance Community College received $10,000 as Grand Hunger Champion, while Catawba College won $5,000 as the North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities Private Sector Hunger Champion. North Carolina Central University received $5,000 as the UNC System […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Ahold Delhaize, Featured News, News, Southeast, Supply Chain News
Ahold Delhaize USA Breaks Ground On $860M DC In Burlington, NC
Ahold Delhaize USA recently broke ground on a new distribution center in Burlington, North Carolina, marking an $860 million investment in supply chain expansion. The facility, which will be the largest in the company’s network, will add more than one million square feet of fresh and frozen distribution capacity to support Food Lion and other […]
Posted inC-Store News, Grocery Store Equipment, News, Southeast
Spinx Selects Tote.AI For POS, Foodservice Technology
The Spinx Company has selected Tote.AI to provide point-of-sale, self-service kiosks and foodservice technology across all 96 convenience stores in the Carolinas, the Greenville, South Carolina-based retailer announced in early February. The AI-native platform will unify Spinx’s ordering, checkout and kitchen technology into a single system. The rollout will begin in the second half of […]
Posted inExecutive News, Featured News, Finance News, Independent Store News, Midwest, News, Southeast, Southwest
Second Annual HFG Awards Program Honors 15 Store Managers From 6 States
Houchens Food Group continued its Store Manager Appreciation Awards for the second year, culminating with the announcement of the 2025 HFG Store Manager of the Year. The company recently hosted 15 lunch banquets divided by region and banner. The events included individual recognition of store managers, as well as a selection of other awards. In […]
Posted inBeverage News, Marketing News, News, Southeast
Coke Florida Surpasses $1M In Black History Month Investments
Coca-Cola Beverages Florida has invested more than $1 million to support technology access programs across Florida since launching its efforts in 2018, the Tampa-based bottler announced Feb. 11. As one of the largest Black-owned businesses in the United States, Coke Florida marks the 100th anniversary of Black History Month by continuing investments in education, technology […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, News, Southeast, Walmart
Walmart Supporting Southeast Winter Storm Relief
Walmart and the Walmart Foundation have invested more than $1 million in grants, product donations and e-gift cards to support communities across the Southeast following winter storms that caused damage and power outages across the region. The combined investment has provided support to more than 30 city governments and local organizations through $500,000 in grant […]
Posted inWholesaler/Distributor News, Finance News, News, Southeast, UNFI
UNFI Spotlights 5 Key Grocery Trends For 2026 Spring Season
United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI) brought more than 3,400 retailers and suppliers together at its Spring and Summer Selling Show in Orlando, Florida, to examine five major trends reshaping grocery retail, from private label dominance to the growing emphasis on gut health. The distributor’s Feb. 10-12 event highlighted shifts in shopper behavior that grocers should […]
Posted inCorporate Store News, Food Lion, News, Southeast
14th Food Lion Store Coming To Greensboro, NC
The store Food Lion will open Feb. 11 at 3501 N. Elm St. in Greensboro, North Carolina, is its 14th in the city and continues the company’s growth across its 10-state footprint. “We’re thrilled to open Food Lion’s newest store here in Greensboro and welcome our neighbors into their new store to experience fresh and affordable […]