Italy: Conad appoints Claudio Alibrandi as new president
The board of directors of Conad Consorzio Nazionale Società Cooperativa has appointed Claudio Alibrandi as its new president, a role he had previously held in the past. Most recently, Alibrandi served as the president of PAC 2000A Cooperative.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Australia: Woolworths unveils first Queensland CFC to meet shoppers’ growing online grocery needs
Woolworths has unveiled Queensland’s first new multi-million dollar online Customer Fulfilment Centre (CFC) at Goodman’s Rochedale Motorway Estate, to better serve the growing demand for online grocery shopping in Brisbane. The approximately 10,000sqm facility is the only CFC in the Woolworths network to offer Direct to Boot and will support up to 30,000 home deliveries and Direct to boot Pick up windows a week, while creating up to 800 jobs.
Source: woolworthsgroup.com.au
Italy: Coal performs 'better than expected' in 2021
Italian regional food distribution cooperative Coal reported a better than expected performance in 2021, ending the year with turnover of more than €290mln. The result was slightly down (-3.64%) on the previous year, when the retailer's performance was influenced by the COVID-19 lockdown. EBITDA for the year stood at €5.5mln, the group said, while net profit amounted to €1.1mln.
Source: esmmagazine.com
UK: Aldi officially named the UK’s Cheapest Supermarket
With the cost of living continuing to rise, putting more families under pressure, consumer group Which? has highlighted just how much money can be saved by switching to Aldi naming the discounter as the UK’s Cheapest Supermarket.
Source: aldipresscentre.co.uk
Jumbo extends online delivery subscription across Holland
Dutch retailer Jumbo is set to roll-out its online grocery delivery subscription Jumbo Bezorgeloos across the entire country in the coming weeks. The retailer is celebrating the expansion of the service with a promotion for new subscribers, with customers who take out a three-month delivery subscription during the promotional period from 7 July to 21 August receiving one month for free.
Source: esmmagazine.com
UK: EnviroTech 50 star Modern Milkman backed by Praetura Ventures
Online grocery service Modern Milkman has secured a £2.25mln investment from Praetura Ventures, the Manchester-based venture capital investor. Modern Milkman, which has 16 hubs across England, also works with independent suppliers and farmers to deliver grocery products, including eggs, yoghurt and bakery items to fruit and vegetables.
Source: businesscloud.co.uk
Retailers expand refund, compensation policies to attract customers
SSG.com, an e-commerce affiliate of Shinsegae, said it will expand its refund policy nationwide for all the fresh food it sells on its online grocery platform. "Often, there is a stereotype among shoppers that they need to buy fruit and vegetables after checking their condition with their own eyes at a store. To break this expectation, we have come up with a refund marketing strategy to let customers judge the products after they are delivered. This is how confident we are with our items' quality", an SSG.com official said.
Source: m.koreatimes.co.kr
Costco shopping: Inside the new chain coming to Auckland
In just a few months, Costco will open its first-ever New Zealand store. The New Zealand Herald Focus team took a look inside the Ipswich branch in Brisbane, Australia to get a sneak peek at what Kiwis can expect. While it was difficult to compare prices in Australian dollars and many of the fruit and vegetables locally imported, bulk buying was again the trend. Some fruit such as apples were able to be bought individually, but most produce was sold in larger amounts in a bid to keep prices low.
Source: nzherald.co.nz
Pepco revenue rises as inflation-hit shoppers lean on discount stores
Poundland and Dealz owner Pepco Group posted a 17.1% rise in third-quarter revenue as cash-strapped shoppers fuelled demand at its discount stores. Revenue rose to 1.21bln euros ($210.44mln) on a constant-currency basis in the three months ended June 30, with like-for-like sales gaining 4.9%.
Source: reuters.com
Aldi opens its supermarkets in Telde and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Food company Aldi opened two supermarkets in Gran Canarian Lower Miller (The Gran Canarian palms) and at the Melenara Crossing (Telde), and two in Tenerife in San Cristobal de La Laguna Y Arafo.
Source: tenerifeweekly.com
UK: Morrisons / McColl's merger inquiry
The CMA is investigating the completed acquisition by Wm Morrison Supermarkets Ltd of certain assets of McColl’s Retail Group Plc, Martin McColl Limited, Clark Retail Limited, Dillons Stores Limited, Smile Stores Limited, Charnwait Management Limited, and Martin Retail Group Limited.
Source: gov.uk
Bord Bia launches retail partnership to support growth of Irish organic produce
Bord Bia has announced that it is collaborating with major Irish retailers to raise awareness of the range and availability of organic produce from Ireland among consumers. Bord Bia highlighted that it has developed digital and in-store promotional materials for the Organics from Ireland campaign, which can be used by retailers to highlight their organic Irish beef, lamb, dairy, seafood, eggs, fresh produce and prepared consumer foods.
Source: checkout.ie
Belgium: Louis Delhaize Group opens innovative supermarket concept 
Shopping versus buying: the new Louis Delhaize Open Market is making an interesting appearance in Belgian Gembloux. The emphasis is more than ever on differentiation, transparency and sustainability, but price and promotion also play their part.
Source: retaildetail.eu
US: Online grocery market sees uptick in June
U.S. online grocery sales swung back up for June following sequential decreases in the previous two months, according to the latest Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey. Sales for the U.S. online grocery market came in at $7.2bln in June, up 1.4% from $7.1bln in May, when sales were down 12.3% from $8.1bln in April. The market in April also marked a 6.9% month-to-month decrease from $8.7bln in March.
Source: supermarketnews.com
US: Apollo-backed supermarket Fresh Market Holdings withdraws initial public offering
The Fresh Market Holdings Inc. said in a filing it's withdrawing its initial public offering. The Greensboro, North Carolina-based supermarket chain did not provide a reason for the move, but it said it does not intend to pursue the IPO at this time.
Source: marketwatch.com
US: All hail Mama Cozzi’s Pizza, the first Fan Favorite inducted into the ALDI “Hall of Fame”ALDI US reported: "For the fourth year in a row, we surveyed shoppers about their favorite ALDI products. Over 100,000 loyal fans took our annual ALDI Fan Favorites survey, resulting in a variety of historic firsts. This year’s Fan Favorites winners by category are: Dynamic Duo: Specially Selected Indulgent Greek Yogurt and fresh blueberries. Produce Pick: Fresh strawberries (repeat winner)".
Source: corporate.aldi.us
US: Walmart holds grand opening of Pennsylvania e-commerce fulfillment center
Walmart held the grand opening of its more than 1.8mln-square-foot e-commerce fulfillment center, located at 1410 United Drive in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. The fulfillment center stores millions of items, available at Walmart.com, that are then picked, packed and shipped directly to customers. The cutting-edge facility also fulfills Marketplace items shipped by Walmart Fulfillment Services, the retailer’s end-to-end fulfillment service for third-party e-commerce sellers.
Source: progressivegrocer.com