Amazon to hire 150,000 workers ahead of holiday season
Amazon.com Inc said it would hire 150,000 employees in full-time, seasonal and part-time roles across its operations in the United States ahead of the upcoming holiday season.
Source: reuters.com
Canada: Loblaw expands DoorDash partnership with on-demand delivery
Loblaw is offering its customers more delivery options with DoorDash. In addition to the PC Express app, orders from more than 1,100 Loblaw banners (including Loblaws, Shoppers Drug Mart, Real Canadian Superstore, Atlantic Superstore, Provigo and Maxi & Cie) can be placed on the DoorDash Marketplace app.
Source: canadiangrocer.com
US: Walmart to lay off about 1,500 workers at Atlanta fulfillment center
Walmart Inc is planning to cut more than 1,000 jobs at an Atlanta facility that fulfills orders placed on Walmart.com. In a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN), the nation's largest retailer said it would lay off 1,458 workers at the e-commerce fulfillment center located in Fulton Parkway in Atlanta, Georgia. Walmart confirmed to Reuters that it was cutting its workforce at the facility and that workers were notified about the move in late August.
Source: reuters.com
US: SpartanNash sells four distribution facilities to investment firm
SpartanNash has sold four food production and distribution facilities to Provender Partners, a California-based real estate investment company that specializes in food-related properties, for $29.9mln, according to a press release. The portfolio includes refrigerated facilities in Indianapolis and Minot, North Dakota, as well as a center in Lakeland, Florida, that handles frozen and refrigerated foods. Provender is also acquiring a grocery and produce distribution cross-dock facility in Newcomerstown, Ohio. The four facilities together occupy about 483,000 square feet, Provender said.
Source: grocerydive.com
US: Procurant digitizes produce inspections at Merchants Distributors Inc.
Procurant, a cloud-based software company transforming the global food supply chain, announced that Procurant Inspect, a mobile produce inspection solution, has been selected by Merchants Distributors Inc. to use across its network of regional distribution centers. “Produce inspections are a critical yet labor-intensive part of bringing safe, high-quality products to our customers. Procurant Inspect lets us enhance and simplify that process for our inspectors, and it adds timely information for our buyers and suppliers that are already using Procurant to manage orders and payments”, said Chuck Alexander, Senior Vice President, Procurement, MDI.
Source: businesswire.com
Sales growth at Costco moderates in September
Costco Wholesale saw sales growth ease in September after tallying bigger gains in the summer months. For the five weeks ended October 2, net sales climbed 10.1% to $21.46bln from $19.5bln a year earlier, Costco reported. That compared with 15.8% year-over-year net sales growth in September 2021.
Source: supermarketnews.com
US: Walmart ups automation ante in acquiring Alert InnovationWalmart is deepening its commitment to an automated supply chain with a deal to acquire grocery automation specialist and partner Alert Innovation. Financial terms of the agreement weren’t disclosed. David Guggina, senior vice president of innovation and automation at Walmart, announced the planned purchase of Andover, Massachusetts-based Alert Innovation in a blog post.
Source: supermarketnews.com
Amazon abandons live tests of Scout home delivery robotAmazon.com Inc will stop live tests of its automated delivery robot "Amazon Scout", a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement, after the U.S. retailer realized the program did not completely meet its customers' needs. The company is now scaling back or "reorienting" the program, and it will work with the involved employees to match them to other open roles within the organization, Amazon spokesperson Alisa Carroll said, adding that it was not abandoning the project altogether.
Source: reuters.com
Japan: Seven & I raises profit forecast on N. America sales value growth
Japan’s Seven & I Holdings raised its full-year profit forecast as the weakening yen boosted the value of earnings from its North American convenience operations. The company lifted its operating income estimate to 477bln yen ($3.30bln) in the year ending February 2023, from a previous figure of 455bln yen.
Source: reuters.com
Retail alliance Epic Partners also tempts Esselunga
Italian supermarket chain Esselunga also joins Epic Partners, just days after French cooperative Système U. The buying group founded by Germany’s Edeka is gaining weight in Europe.
Source: retaildetail.eu
Carrefour Belgium takes part in the country's first anti-food waste week
To encourage consumers to stop wasting food, Carrefour Belgium got involved in the first Zero Food Waste Week, organised in Belgium by the Too Good to Go app, which the retailer has been partnering since 2018. This initiative, which ran from 26 September to 2 October, follows on from numerous other initiatives that Carrefour Belgium has been implementing in this area for more than 15 years.
Source: carrefour.com
Aldi UK to recruit 3,000 ahead of festive season
The British arm of German discounter Aldi said it was looking to recruit 3,000 workers ahead of the festive trading period. Privately owned Aldi, which earlier this month overtook Morrisons to become Britain’s fourth-biggest supermarket group, said it is looking to fill over 2,000 temporary and permanent store positions. It is also recruiting for more than 850 roles across its 11 regional distribution centres.
Source: reuters.com
Kenya: Twiga Foods partners with Isuzu, NCBA to beef up logistics operations across the region
Kenyan-based technology food distribution platform Twiga Foods has entered into a strategic partnership with automobile manufacturer Isuzu EA and commercial bank NCBA Bank to boost affordability and safe delivery of fresh produce to retailers across the region. The partnership that seeks to see up to 300 Isuzu trucks being released into the marketplace in phases, has flagged off its first 15 commercial trucks.
Source: foodbusinessafrica.com
Kurly denies rumors of IPO postponement
Kurly, operator of the online grocery shopping and delivery service Market Kurly, denied rumors that the company would postpone its IPO. In its statement, Kurly said it had not communicated any intention to delay the IPO with the Korea Exchange or any of its investors.
Source: koreajoongangdaily.joins.com
World's first plant-based honey to launch in Europe next January
One of the largest European organic food producers, Narayan Foods, is preparing to launch the world’s first plant-based honey in select European countries early in 2023. Narayan’s honey is the first honey alternative to hit the EU market that doesn't include processed syrup or concentrates but still produces an indistinguishable taste and texture of bee-made honey. The bee-free honey is developed by award-winning Californian food technology company MeliBio, which is partnering with Narayan Foods.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Belgium: Takeaway.com delivers groceries for Carrefour
The first Belgian supermarket on the Takeaway platform is the Carrefour City on Anspachlaan in the pedestrian zone of Brussels. Customers can choose from over 500 products, from fruit and vegetables to care products. Orders are delivered every day between 10 a.m. and 9:30 p.m.
Source: retaildetail.nl