US: Southeastern Grocers continues to lead path forward to a sustainable future
Southeastern Grocers Inc. (SEG), parent company and home of Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie grocery stores, released its 2021 Corporate Social Responsibility Progress Report defining advancements the grocer has accomplished over the last year to create stronger communities, better products and a more sustainable future for all.
Source: businesswire.com
Gopuff taps Amazon veteran Maria Renz as U.S. head
Instant commerce company Gopuff has hired Maria Renz as senior vice president of North America. Plans call for Renz, executive vice president of consumer finance and wealth management at SoFi, an online personal finance company, to officially join Gopuff in May.
Source: supermarketnews.com
US: Meijer now accepting SNAP benefits for online orders in Michigan
Meijer announced that stores in Michigan are now accepting Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for its Meijer Pickup and Home Delivery shopping services.
Source: prnewswire.com
US: CEO of online grocer Boxed says if gas prices stay high, so will grocery bills
Boxed CEO Chieh Huang said in an interview on CNBC’s “TechCheck” that gas prices are driving up costs for the online grocer. He said for fresh foods, such as beef, the company has had to pass on some of the higher prices to customers. Food prices rose 1% in March and 8.8% over the past year, according to the Labor Department. Some of those pricier food items include ground beef, rice, citrus fruits and fresh vegetables.
Source: cnbc.com
Union seeking to organize Amazon site in New Jersey withdraws petition for vote
A labor group seeking to represent Amazon.com Inc workers in a small warehouse in New Jersey has withdrawn its petition for a unionization vote, a spokesperson for the U.S. National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) said.
Source: reuters.com
US: Whole Foods Market customers in Texas to pay by palm
The Texas city of Austin has become the 1st region outside the Seattle area where Whole Foods Market is offering the palm recognition service Amazon One as a payment option. The Arbor Trails Whole Foods store is the initial location in the Austin area to allow shoppers to pay with just a scan of their palm.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Wegmans announces retirement of top executive
Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. announced that Marty Gardner, senior vice president of merchandising, distribution, manufacturing, food safety and pharmacy, will retire in May 2022, following a 40-year-career with Wegmans.
Source: wegmans.com
Brazil's Assai net revenue grows 21% in Q1
Brazilian cash-and-carry chain Assai reported 1st-quarter net revenue of 11.443bln reais ($2.45bln), 21.1% above the same period from 2021. The figure reflects the high performance of the 32 stores inaugurated in the last 12 months, Assai said in a securities filing.
Source: reuters.com
Just Eat Takeaway weighs Grubhub sale as pandemic boost fades
Europe's biggest meal delivery company Just Eat Takeaway.com is looking at selling U.S. arm Grubhub less than a year after buying it, under pressure from investors to revive its shares amid stiff competition and a fading pandemic boost.
Source: reuters.com
Carrefour Brasil reports Q1 total sales of $4.45bln
Brazilian retailer Carrefour Brasil reported 1st-quarter total sales of 20.755bln reais ($4.45bln), a 14.5% increase compared with the same quarter the previous year. The company said same-store sales grew by 8.5% for the quarter.
Source: reuters.com
Deliveroo to appeal French ruling it abused the rights of its riders
Deliveroo will appeal a French court ruling that said it had abused the freelance status of its riders, which resulted in a 375,000 euro fine and suspended sentences and additional fines for 2 of its former bosses, a spokesperson said.
Source: reuters.com
Netherlands: SPAR and Just Eat launch delivery pilot
SPAR Netherlands has teamed up with Thuisbezorgd.nl, part of Just Eat Takeaway.com, to test a grocery delivery service in the Netherlands via the platform. The groceries will be delivered from 20 SPAR Netherlands stores across the country and will be rolled out to more stores should the pilot be successful.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Croatian retailer Studenac takes over peer Kordun
Croatian biggest retail chain by the number of stores, Studenac, said it has taken over its peer Kordun for an undisclosed sum. The transaction is continuation of the company's growth through acquisitions of the past couple of years, Studenac said in a statement.
Source: seenews.com
Navis picks Rothschild for Malaysian supermarket sale
Asian buyout firm Navis Capital Partners has selected Rothschild & Co. to help with a potential sale of its premium supermarket chains in Malaysia, which could be worth more 1bln ringgit ($235mln), according to people with knowledge of the matter. The Kuala Lumpur-based private equity firm and its financial adviser are preparing to start a sale process to gauge prospective investors’ interest in The Food Purveyor Sdn., said the people. Other companies in the industry and private equity firms have expressed interest, one of the people said, asking not to be identified as the process is private.
Source: bnnbloomberg.ca
Belgium: Ghent ghost kitchen chain Casper cooks up €5mln for its neighbourhood-friendly approach
Belgium’s leading ghost kitchen chain Casper has just raised €5mln in a Series A round. The funding was led by Slingshot Ventures with participation from serial entrepreneurs Jürgen Ingels (Smartfin), Zhong Xu & Jan Hollez (Deliverect). The firm plans to expand to the Netherlands and France by Q3 of this year, before heading to Luxembourg and taking further international leaps.
Source: eu-startups.com
China: Shanghai regulators warn e-commerce platforms including Meituan and Ele.me against price gouging during pandemic
Shanghai’s top market regulator said that it had summoned 12 e-commerce platforms including Meituan and Ele.me for review of topics including price gouging during the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. Ele.me said that it has issued price stabilization initiatives and alerts on regulation of “blind vegetable boxes” 3 times to merchants since March 27. It also has set up a special management team to inspect and control the prices of 25 key fresh and livelihood commodities such as potatoes, cucumbers and meat on a daily basis.
Source: pandaily.com
Poland: Eurocash sees sales up 3% in FY 2021
Polish retailer Eurocash Group has reported sales growth of 3% year-on-year to PLN26.3bln (€5.7bln) in its financial year 2021. EBITDA, excluding write-offs in the retail segment, remained the same as the year before at PLN782mln (€168.4mln), the retail group noted.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Romania: Freshful online supermarket mulls expansion
ZFEnglish reported that Freshful, an online hypermarket recently added to eMAG’s e-commerce platform group, is looking at cities with over 300,000 inhabitants for expansion and mulls potential agriculture investments to produce its own products for sale. Shopping experience streamlining and tendency and client analysis are however among the most important pieces of advice Andrei Popescu, general manager of Freshful, gives people who plan to start a business in the field.
Source: agroberichtenbuitenland.nl
Singapore: Sheng Siong aims to open 3 to 5 supermarkets a year in the next 3-5 years
Supermarket operator Sheng Siong is aiming to open 3 to 5 stores per year in the next 3 to 5 years, the company said in a bourse filing. Sheng Siong currently has 65 outlets in Singapore.
Source: straitstimes.com