by Terrie Ellerbee/associate editor Doug Rinehart, president and CEO of Dick’s Fresh Market, saw opportunity when the fourth generation of the family running a store on 9th Street in Menomonie, Wisconsin, decided to leave the grocery business. The store was founded 155 years ago, during the Civil War, and the same family had operated it […]
Tag: operations
Fiesta Mart Acquiring All Minyard Food Stores
Houston-based Fiesta Mart said today that it is acquiring all nine of the remaining Minyard Food Stores and two Sun Fresh Markets affiliated with Minyard in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex from RLS Supermarkets. Fiesta is a specialty grocery retailer known for its international offerings that cater to the diverse communities served by their stores. With […]
Whole Foods, Nielsen To Create Customized Product Hierarchy
Whole Foods Market has selected Nielsen as its primary U.S. analytics provider for point-of-sale data, consumer insights and industry metrics. The companies are collaborating on a customized natural and organic product hierarchy that will provide a comprehensive view of Whole Foods Market’s product categories, including ingredient-level attributes. In addition to allowing the company and its […]
Barons Market Adds Olive Oil And Vinegar Bars To All Stores
San Diego-based natural grocer Barons Market has installed olive oil and vinegar tasting stations in all six of its locations. Ten olive oils and 14 vinegars fill silver vats at each store’s tasting station, where shoppers will find bread for dipping. Unique flavors include citrus habanero olive oil and honey ginger white balsamic vinegar, with […]
FMI Report: Fresh Produce Growth Driven By Mega Trends
Fresh produce is in demand. At $61 billion in annual sales, fresh produce is big, growing (+4 percent) and lucrative, with a grocery basket with fresh produce averaging nearly $30 more than one without. The consumer trends in Food Marketing Institute’s (FMI) second annual Power of Produce report substantiate the growth opportunities for fresh produce […]
FMI’s New Power Of Fresh Prepared/Deli Study To Be Released This Fall
As the number of meals prepared away from home grows and consumers seek new methods of convenience, the supermarket industry will continue to identify improved ways to track consumer dynamics, convenience and household trends that have had a profound impact on meal preparation and shopping behaviors regarding fresh prepared foods. The Food Marketing Institute (FMI) […]
FMI’s Sarasin: It’s Time To Expand Our Shopper Vocabulary
“It’s a brave new world of grocery shoppers with nearly everyone getting in on the act of shopping for food,” said Food Marketing Institute (FMI) President and CEO Leslie G. Sarasin. Sarasin shared insights on the impact the shifting shopper paradigm is having on the purchasing behavior of more than half of U.S. shoppers on […]
Harry’s Farmers Market Founder Still Speeding Along In Life And Work
Harry Blazer opened his first Harry’s Farmers Market in Alpharetta, Georgia, in 1988. Blazer grew the business into three mega-stores and six Harry’s in a Hurry locations, generating revenues of $140 million and employing 1,200 people. Admitting later that the company expanded so fast it “ran out of runway,” Blazer sold to Whole Foods Market […]
SpartanNash Adds 50 Jobs As It Completes Gordy’s Market Transition
SpartanNash Co. has completed the transition of its newest independent customer, Gordy’s Market. The family-owned independent retailer operates 26 retail grocery stores in the central Wisconsin area, where the company has been headquartered for 50 years. “The process of bringing Gordy’s Market into the SpartanNash family was an exercise in teamwork and accountability, and we […]
Dollar General Opens Its 13th Distribution Center In San Antonio, Texas
Dollar General held a grand opening for the discount retailer’s 13th distribution center on June 4. The distribution center in San Antonio, Texas, represents a local investment of approximately $100 million and the creation of more than 500 local jobs. “Dollar General is excited to celebrate the grand opening of our San Antonio distribution center,” […]
General Mills Partners With Cooperative To Increase Organic Dairy Supply
General Mills has formed a sourcing partnership with the largest organic cooperative in the U.S. that will help about 20 dairy farms add around 3,000 acres to organic dairy production over the next three years. The program with Wisconsin-based Organic Valley will drive more acres in the U.S. into the organic certification process and builds […]
Casey’s Fiscal Year Ends Strong As Company Looks To Expand East And South
On June 6, Casey’s General Stores Inc. reported diluted earnings per share of $1.19 for the fourth quarter of fiscal year ended April 30 vs. $1.05 for the same period a year ago. For the year, diluted earnings per share grew 24 percent to $5.73 vs. $4.62 for the same period last year. “Fiscal 2016 […]
Kroger’s Mid-Atlantic Division Ratifies Agreement With UFCW Local 400
The Kroger Co.’s Mid-Atlantic division has ratified a new labor agreement with the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 400. The agreement covers 5,100 associates in Virginia from Bristol east to Appomattox and from Martinsville north to Harrisonburg, three stores in Kingsport/Johnson City, Tennessee, and two stores in the Bluefield, West Virginia, area. “We are […]
Meijer Opens Supercenters In Wisconsin And Indiana
Meijer opened a new 192,000-s.f. supercenter in Sussex, Wisconsin, on June 7. The Sussex store is one of nine new Meijer supercenters to open this year, and part of an investment of more than $400 million in new and remodeled stores that will create 3,000 new jobs across the Grand Rapids, Michigan-based retailer’s six-state foot […]
Buck Promoted To EVP/COO At The Hershey Co.
Michele Buck, who formerly led Hershey’s U.S. and Canadian businesses as president-North America, has been promoted to EVP and COO, effective June 2. Buck, 54, will continue to report to John P. Bilbrey, chairman of the board, president and CEO of The Hershey Co. in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Buck has more than 25 years of consumer […]
GMA Highlights Industry Progress In Reducing Food Waste
The food industry has made significant strides in cutting food waste and is taking steps to reduce consumer confusion around product date labeling, an expert from the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) told the House Agriculture Committee on May 25. GMA Senior Director of Sustainability Meghan Stasz testified at the hearing on behalf of the Food […]
BJ’s Wholesale Club Offers Free Electronics Help For Members
BJ’s Wholesale Club is launching Tech Advisors, an exclusive free service that lets members research, shop and install electronics. BJ’s Tech Advisors offer free technical support for TVs, home theater, audio, computers, tablets, cameras and other consumer electronics, both before and after purchase. After purchase, the advisors are able to assist members with first-time setup; […]
Earth Fare Opens Fourth Ohio Store
Earth Fare opened its fourth Ohio location yesterday in The Venue at Belden, located at 3939 Everhard Road in North Canton. Every item in the new 24,000-s.f. store is free of artificial fats, trans-fats, colors, preservatives and sweeteners and high fructose corn syrup, as well as bleached or bromated flour. Its meat, seafood and poultry […]
Founder’s Grandson Takes Helm Of Strack & Van Til
The board of directors of Midwest grocery operator Strack & Van Til has announced the appointment of Jeff Strack as president and CEO. Strack replaces Kenneth Diehl, who has stepped down to return home in the Western U.S. Diehl had led the company since October 2014. The change is effective immediately. Strack, the grandson of the […]
NACS, Pinnacle Launch Industry’s First Skimming App
Fuel dispenser security is of great concern for the convenience store industry. Approximately 39 million Americans fill up their gas tanks every day and fuel dispensers have become one of many targets for thieves looking to steal credit and debit card information by “skimming,” an aggressive tactic used to illegally obtain consumer card data for […]
