German Netto launching a new fruit and vegetable range
Carrefour China expands 'easy' convenience stores
German retailer Metro, recently demerged from consumer electronics group Ceconomy, denied a report on Thursday that is chief executive has held talks about a possible delisting from the stock exchange. Metro, which runs wholesale stores in 35 countries as well as Real hypermarkets in Germany, listed separately from Ceconomy in July but has seen its share price sag since then. (esmmagazine.com)
Carrefour expands 'easy' convenience stores in China
French retailer Carrefour has strengthened its presence in China, having opened nine new Carrefour Easy stores since the start of the year. The company has recently expanded the Carrefour Easy convenience banner further with the opening of three new stores in Shanghai in July, August, and September. (esmmagazine.com)
German Netto launching a new fruit and vegetable range
Edeka’s discount operator Netto Marken Discount has launched a new produce line called Markttag, which focuses on quality and transparency. The new private label range combines popular items from its existing range and will focus on providing clear origin labelling. The range will include over 40 fruit and vegetables, each with a unique QR code. Customers can scan their code to trace the produce back to its origins. The packaging will highlight one of four product categories: regional, German, international or premium. (igd.com)
'Deflationary' euro strength clouds Spanish grocer Dia's outlook
Spanish discount grocer Dia warned that the rising euro will deflate food prices through next year, joining companies in businesses ranging from apparel to alcoholic drinks in citing headwinds from the currency’s strength. CEO Ricardo Curras said he will highlight his concerns about the euro when the company updates analysts next month. While downward pressure on prices might help cash-strapped consumers, it erodes retailers’ profit margins. (esmmagazine.com)
US: Retailers triple same-day delivery options
Retailers have tripled their same-day delivery options over the past year, according to the 2017 Digital Commerce Benchmark Survey from Boston Retail Partners. Fifty-one percent of retailers currently offer this service, up from 16% last year. Sixty-five percent of retailers report they will offer same-day service within the next year, according to the survey. Brands will also be exploring autonomous fulfillment, self-driving vehicles and “helper robots” to speed up delivery. (esmmagazine.com)
US: Harris Teeter's new service builds shopping lists from online recipes
Harris Teeter has partnered with online recipe platform Myxx to create a customized site, HarrisTeeterRecipes.com, where customers can select online recipes and then have a shopping list automatically created for them, according to Retail Leader. (fooddive.com)
UK: Aldi crowned favourite supermarket
Discount supermarket Aldi has been voted the nation’s Favourite Supermarket at this year’s Good Housekeeping Food Awards, beating competition from Sainsbury’s and Waitrose. The award, which has been running for over a decade, allows Good Housekeeping readers to vote for their most loved supermarket, taking into account value for money, general shopping atmosphere, and crucially, quality of products. (internationalsupermarketnews.com)
US: Eat Smart® launches online home delivery
Apio, Inc., a leading producer of Eat Smart® fresh-cut vegetables and restaurant-inspired vegetable salad kits for the United States and Canada, today announced EatSmartatHome.com, an online home delivery service for the Eat Smart portfolio of fresh products. The new service offers Eat Smart vegetable bags, trays and salads in a premium online shopping experience and is available in select Western states. With delivery directly from Apio™ headquarters in Guadalupe, California, consumers receive product shortly after harvest – with nearly two weeks of remaining refrigerated shelf life. (markets.businessinsider.com)
US: Aldi now accepts contact-free payment
Hard-discount grocer Aldi now accepts all forms of contact-free payment – including Apple Pay, Google Wallet and Android Pay – at all of its stores nationwide, helping speed up its already fast checkout process. (progressivegrocer.com)
US: Meijer to sell discolored, scarred produce for reduced prices
Meijer will sell packaged fresh produce that is discolored, scarred or odd-sized for discounted prices. The Misfits program rolled out at all Meijer locations earlier this month, and customers have already purchased nearly a quarter of a million pounds of fresh, perfectly-imperfect produce. “Meijer offers more than 600 types of produce, so the Misfits program has been an incredible extension to our overall selection,” said Peter Vail,vice president of Produce, Deli and Bakery for Meijer. (daytondailynews.com)