Supermarket chain A&P poised to file bankruptcy

EBRD to invest in first Auchan hypermarket in Central Asia
Auchan franchise holder Schiever Tajikistan will receive investment from European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for its first Auchan hypermarket in Central Asia, retail-business-review.com reports. EBRD will provide €5m in loan to Schiever Tajikistan, under a loan agreement signed last year. To be spread over an area of around 5,000 m², the proposed hypermarket will sell products at lower prices while maintaining new standards in food quality, hygiene and logistics.

Amazon gets fresh with UK rivals in grocery deliveries
Amazon is preparing for the imminent launch in Britain of its online grocery delivery service, thetimes.co.uk reports. Plans for Amazon Fresh are at an advanced stage and it could begin operating in London in September, a development that will have the UK’s already punch-drunk supermarkets reaching for the smelling salts. The service will pit Amazon against online delivery businesses such as Ocado, as well as Tesco and Sainsbury’s, and pile the pressure on a sector that is already battling with falling prices and the rise of the discount chains. It will also increase the scrutiny of Amazon’s financial affairs.

AU: Metcash hires former Coles, Woolies execs
Struggling grocery wholesaler Metcash has recruited two former senior Coles and Woolworths executives to help lead its turnaround efforts, yahoo.com reports. Metcash has appointed former Coles managing director Steven Cain to head its core IGA business, while Mark Hewlett has been recruited from Woolworths to lead the company's search for new business.

China: Online sales of food grew more than 45%
The government agency says online retailers in China sold $265.3bn worth of goods in the first six months of the year, an increase of 39.1 % over the same period a year ago, internetretailer.com reports. Online sales of food grew 45.9% over the prior-year period, apparel 30.1% and household products 41.8%.

Turkey: Anadolu Group acquires 40 % of Migros
The Migros supermarket chain confirmed the completion of the sale of 40.25% of its shares to the Anadolu Group, according to an announcement that Migros made to the Public Disclosure Forum (KAP) on Wednesday evening, todayszaman.com reports. Anadolu Group currently owns the Ekonomi supermarket chain, which operates 1,000 stores in Turkey.

US: Supermarket chain A&P poised to file bankruptcy
The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, better known as A&P, is on the verge of filing for bankruptcy, a move that will likely spell the end as we know it of one of the nation’s largest supermarket chains, patch.com reports. The New York Post reports that the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing is expected any day now, and it could affect the many stores the company has in the Hudson Valley. In addition to A&P, the chain also owns Pathmark, The Food Emporium and Waldbaums.

Auchan to open 3 hypermarkets in Rep. of Mordovia
Retail group Auchan will immediately open 3 hypermarkets in the republic’s capital Saransk, as reported by arendator.ru, following a meeting between Head of the Republic Vladimir Volkov and Auchan Russia’s company president. The hypermarkets will be opened under the “Our Rainbow” brand. The French retailer has been in the Russian market since 2002. Grocery retail in Saransk is mainly represented by supermarkets and shops, namely Magnit, Spar and Perekrestok. The only hypermarket in the region is a Magnit, but a Lenta store is also expected. Interest from Russian retailers in the region is also growing.

Brazil/Columbia: Click and collect core to Cnova growth
Online business Cnova reported net sales up 17.5% for the quarter, at constant rates, igd.com reports. Cnova is rapidly rolling out click and collect, with more than 3,600 pick-up points added over the past year as customers turn to this quick option. In Brazil, more than 400 points have been established since the start of 2015 and there are now 266 in Colombia.

US: Key Food to debut Windsor Farms banner
Key Food Stores Co-operative said it would debut a new banner, Windsor Farms Market, later this month in Brooklyn, supermarketnews.com reports. The store in Brooklyn’s Windsor Terrace neighborhood will offer customers a full deli department with prepared foods made by on-site chefs, fresh seafood including sushi along with fresh produce and organic and non-organic products.

US: New Seasons sets Seattle debut
New Seasons Market said Wednesday it plans to open its first store in the Seattle marketplace at a former Albertsons on Mercer Island, with an opening planned for the fall of 2016, supermarketnews.com reports.

CA: Iqaluit grocery shelves left bare as ice and fog hinder food shipments
A rare lingering fog and thick ice have caused majors delays in food shipments to Iqaluit, where store shelves that were bare for nearly a week are only now beginning to be restocked, theglobeandmail.com reports. Cargo planes that deliver perishable goods were not able to fly in or out of Iqaluit for five of the last seven days, according to First Air spokeswoman Anubha Momin, leaving people hustling for other options.

Lidl continues investments in Romania
Lidl continues investments in Romania by opening a new 1,200 sqm store in Bucurestii Noi, show company representatives, balkans.com reports. Lidl prides itself in collaborating with local producers, many of their brands originating in Romania.

Germany: Tengelmann report solid FY growth
The Tengelmann group has reported solid growth for their respective fiscal years, despite tough market conditions, kamcity.com reports. Tengelmann said its sales rose by a currency-adjusted 5.8% to €8.1bn for the year ending 31 December 2015. Sales at Kaiser’s Tengelmann declined by 4% to €1.86bn, but the group said results were “affected profoundly” by the proposed sale to Edeka.

Dutch PLUS announces positive H1 performance
PLUS has announced that it has enjoyed growth ‘well above the average market’ during the first half of 2015, with sales advancing by 5.9% despite only a marginal rise in store numbers to 257, from 255, igd.com reports. The retailer quoted figures from Nielsen that said market growth stood at 1.9% for the period.

Netherlands: Deen spotlights strong first half results
Deen, which said that the market had grown by 2.2% in the first 25 weeks of its financial year, said that total sales had risen by 6.5%, igd.com reports. Deen said that like-for-like sales were up by 3.5%, with the difference made up by the addition of new stores.

Dutch EMTÉ sales fall
Despite enjoying growth in the first half, the Sligro-owned EMTÉ chain appears to have lost shares, with net sales falling by 0.2%, to €415m, but with like-for-like sales rising by 0.7%, igd.com reports. Overall Sligro said that total sales rose by 1.1% to €1,274m, with its foodservice subsidiary (net sales up by 1.8%, like-for-likes 0.8%) offsetting the contraction at EMTÉ.

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