US: Costco Wholesale Corporation reports fourth quarter and fiscal year 2022 operating results
Costco Wholesale Corporation (“Costco” or the “Company”) announced its operating results for the 16-week fourth quarter and the 52-week fiscal year, ended August 28, 2022. Net sales for the quarter increased 15.2%, to $70.76bln, from $61.44bln last year. Net sales for the fiscal year increased 16.0%, to $222.73bln, from $192.05bln last year.
Source: globenewswire.com
US: ALDI topples the apple pyramid on gimmicks traditional grocers use that cost shoppers more
ALDI US reported: "We create a different kind of grocery experience by focusing only on what matters: providing high-quality groceries like fresh fruits and vegetables, award-winning wine and beer, and delicious meat and seafood, our fastest growing categories (ALDI sales data 2017 vs. 2021), instead of wasting time (and money) on all the extra noise, like apples stacked in a fancy pyramid. And our simple, efficient displays are just the beginning. Our fresh fruit and vegetable sales are up 70% in the last five years. In that time, we’ve expanded our assortment by 20%, with a heavy focus on organic."
Source: corporate.aldi.us
US: Invafresh study: Grocery retailers say biggest “threats” are inflation, supply chain disruptions
Invafresh, the industry leading fresh grocery platform, announced the findings of its 2022 Grocery Innovation Study, which surveyed 100+ grocery decision makers on how their businesses are being impacted by technology. Findings from the study revealed overall cost reduction measures (48%) and a growing preference for fresh food and the need to maintain its quality (43%) are the main drivers for automating grocery store operations. Increasing margins (28%) and reducing food waste (27%) were perceived as the biggest challenges that technology can solve for the grocery industry.
Source: invafresh.com
US: Target to hire up to 100,000 holiday workers, offer deals earlier
Target Corp said it plans to hire up to 100,000 seasonal workers for the holiday season and start offering festive deals earlier than previous years as it gears up for the critical shopping period amid a slowing economy.
Source: reuters.com
Interview with Richard Wardwell: Latino community drives Superior Grocers' growth
Supermarket chain Superior Grocers took a giant step forward in its growth plans in Southern California by acquiring 22 stores from Hispanic retailer Numero Uno. Superior Grocers President Richard Wardwell spoke with Abasto about the supermarket chain’s expansion, the importance of the Hispanic community in its growth, and how they are navigating turbulent times due to the pandemic and inflation.
Source: abasto.com
Amazon, Microsoft and Google face UK probe over dominance in cloud computing
Ofcom, the U.K. media watchdog, is set to launch a study examining the role of Amazon, Microsoft and Google in the cloud services market. Further action could be taken by the regulator if it finds the companies are harming competition.
Source: cnbc.com
Holland: Instant Commerce raises 5.4mln euros
Ecommerce software startup Instant Commerce has raised 5.4mln euros in seed capital. The Amsterdam-based company will use the money to expand in Europe and the United States.
Source: ecommercenews.eu
UK: Top Morrisons executive feels Strain with exit after 10 years
A top executive at Morrisons is in talks to leave, days after it emerged that the Bradford-based grocer had been displaced as Britain's fourth-biggest supermarket chain. Sky News has learnt that Trevor Strain, Morrisons' chief operating officer and previously its finance chief, is close to finalising his departure.
Source: news.sky.com
HappyFresh to cease operations in Malaysia after 7 years
While grocery delivery service provider HappyFresh has managed to secure fresh funding and resumed online grocery operations in Indonesia, the group announced that it is ceasing its operations in Malaysia. The Jakarta-based startup said the company was left with no choice but to cease operations due to the current economic situation.
Source: theedgemarkets.com
Britain's Tesco under pressure to raise staff pay rates after rivals hike
Tesco, Britain's biggest retailer and one of the country's largest private sector employers, is facing union calls to increase store workers' pay after several rivals raised hourly rates for a second time this year.
Source: reuters.com
SPAR Supermarket opened in Al Ghubrah, Oman
SPAR Oman opened a new company-owned SPAR Supermarket in a suburb of the capital city, Muscat. In this 570m² SPAR store, located in the busy market area of Al Ghubrah, a team of twelve colleagues running the store provide service at all destination departments including the fish, butchery, deli, hot meal and food-to-go counters, as well as fruits and vegetables.
Source: spar-international.com
Walmart and Tiger Global backed Ninjacart launches agri export-import platform ‘Ninja Global’ for UAE & GCC in a mega event
Walmart and Tiger Global backed Ninjacart, India's leading agri-startup that leverages technology and data to organise the Indian agriculture ecosystem, has expanded its footprint globally by launching ‘Ninja Global’ platform for agri export-import businesses in the UAE and GCC countries. The T4 Agri EXIM Summit launch event was held in Dubai, UAE.
Source: businesswire.com
UK: Lidl remains fastest growing grocery retailer
Lidl remains the fastest growing retailer in the last 12 weeks ending 10 September, as food inflation accelerates and UK shoppers focus on buying little and more often to help manage rising food bills, reveals new data by NielsenIQ.
Source: talkingretail.com
Second rise this year at Lidl makes it best-paying UK supermarket
Lidl is increasing staff wages for the second time this year in a £39.5mln investment that propels it to the top of the supermarket pay league table. Entry-level hourly rates will increase from £10.10 to £10.90 outside London and from £11.30 to £11.95 within the M25 that circles the capital.
Source: theguardian.com
New Zealand: Into the weird, wonderful and vast world of Costco's Auckland mega store
Patrick Noone, Costco’s New Zealand managing director took media on a tour of the global retail giant's store in the Auckland suburb of Westgate with its towering shelves almost stocked to capacity. Globally, Costco bought around US$250mln of New Zealand products each year. A lot of it was fresh fruit, dairy and meat, but Noone hoped to see an increase in value-added manufactured goods from New Zealand.
Source: stuff.co.nz
Alibaba Cloud unveils strategic roadmap for international business
Alibaba Cloud, the digital technology and intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group, has announced its latest international strategic roadmap at the 2022 Alibaba Cloud Summit. During the three-day summit, the trusted cloud provider has revealed new products to support technology innovation among enterprises, an investment of USD1bln for a global partner ecosystem upgrade, and enhanced customer services to provide comprehensive support throughout a customer’s digitalization journey.
Source: alibabagroup.com
France: Carrefour management increases offer in wage talks with unions
France's biggest retailer Carrefour has increased its offer in the third round of wage talks with unions, suggesting a 2.5% pay hike from November this year, a company spokesperson said.
Source: reuters.com
Over 250 new supermarkets opened in Portugal in 2021
In 2021, approximately 257 new supermarkets opened in Portugal, accounting for 3.8% growth in retail space, according to the latest report by Alimarket. Despite being a highly concentrated market, in which the top four players account for 67.6% of the sales area and half of the stores, the market still offers growth opportunities, the study noted.
Source: esmmagazine.com