Albertsons says Haggen suit is 'attempt to deflect attention'
South African tycoon Christo Wiese eyes UK supermarkets
The Manchester headquartered Co-operative Group is back in profit, but warned annual results would see a drop in earnings due to investment under a sweeping overhaul. The group said its supermarket business saw sales growth of 0.8% and posted a 21% rise in underlying profits to £120.4m during a period when 35 new convenience stores were opened and 1,000 new workers recruited. (manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
South African tycoon Christo Wiese eyes UK supermarkets
The South African billionaire who has recently snapped up Virgin Active, the gym chain, and New Look, the high-street retailer, is now training his sights on Britain’s struggling supermarket industry, it can be revealed. Christo Wiese, who has an estimated £4.2bn fortune, said there were parallels between the grocery sector in his home country, where he has built up the ShopRite empire into the continent’s largest food retailer, and the highly competitive UK market. He suggested his investment firm, Brait, could be making its next venture in the UK’s supermarket sector. Morrisons’ share price jumped nearly five per cent on Thursday following renewed takeover rumours and a positive analyst note from UBS. (telegraph.co.uk / yorkshirepost.co.uk)
US: Albertsons says Haggen suit is 'attempt to deflect attention'
Albertsons said Wednesday the $1bn lawsuit filed against it earlier in the week by Haggen is “an attempt to deflect attention from [Haggen’s] failure to comply with basic contractual obligations. "The allegations are completely without merit, and we will vigorously defend ourselves in court," the company said in a statement. “Albertsons has not engaged in anti-competitive or inappropriate practices, as alleged by Haggen. (supermarketnews.com)
Turkey Hill to buy Giant's c-stores
Turkey Hill Minit Markets said Thursday that it has completed a deal to acquire two Giant to Go convenience stores from Ahold’s Giant-Carlisle chain. (supermarketnews.com)
US: Albertsons splits supply chain function
Albertsons Cos. said responsibilities for supply chain will be split between two executives following the retirement Wednesday of Jerry Tidwell. Tidwell was EVP, supply chain, following the merger with Safeway. At Safeway he had been SVP, supply operations, since 2003. Going forward, the company said responsibilities for supply chain will be added to the duties of Rick Bunnell, SVP, distribution and procurement, and Evan Rainwater, VP, manufacturing. Both will report to Justin Dye, chief administrative officer. (supermarketnews.com)
US: Local products driving shopping behavior shift
With the spring “buy local” under retailers’ belts and autumn products about to hit shelves, a survey by Precima shows that 85% of American shoppers say buying local products is important to them, and more than one-third are willing to pay a 15-30% premium for local items. In addition, 82% report they would increase their monthly grocery spend if local alternatives were more readily available and 87% are more inclined to purchase a local product when they know the story behind the grower or processer. (loyalty.com)
Germany: Edeka wants to keep job arrangements at Tengelmann
After a possible takeover of competitor Kaiser's Tengelmann, food retail trader Edeka wants to comply with the local company agreements for keeping work places. “We will completely carry on with the agreements. We have contractually secured this for the workers' council,” said Edeka-chief Markus Mosa to “Handelsblatt”. Previously, the workers' council and management of Kaiser's Tengelmann had made company agreements for the regions of Berlin and its surrounding area, as well as the North-Rhine region. However, from documents presented by AFP it shows that in the North-Rhine region, a work place guarantee has been given for only 80% of employees, and for only 18 months. Therefore, the closing of branches is still intended leading up to the planned merger with Edeka. (freenet.de)
Tuscany named cheapest region in Italy for groceries
Tuscany is the cheapest region in Italy for supermarket shopping, while Valle d’Aosta is the most expensive, according to the annual survey of Italian consumers association Altroconsumo. (esmmagazine.com)
Carrefour opens new hypermarket in Morocco
According to boursier.com, Carrefour have announced that their partner, the Label’Vie group, have opened their 6th hypermarket which was the first in Casablanca in Morocco on the 27th August. The Sidi Maarouf Carrefour covers 8,000m2 and recruited 350 employees. The store references 30,000 products of which 4,000 are exclusively Carrefour’s own brands.
Istanbul: Retail prices increased 0.90%
According to data from the Istanbul Chambers of Commerce (ITO), retail prices in Istanbul in August rose by 0.9% and wholesale prices rose by 0.8%, reports bloomberght.com. On the ITO, 1995 based Cost of Living Index, an average annual increase of 10.3% was seen in August this year and the Wholesale Price Index showed an annual average increase of 10.6%. Retail prices in August 2015 increased 9.18% in comparison with August 2014, and wholesale prices increased 8.5%. .
Impact of Hungary's no-work Sunday gone from retail sales index
The impact of Hungary’s no-work Sunday is apparently gone for good, as consumers have adapted to their altered shopping opportunities, the latest retail sales statistics suggest. In July 2015, the volume of retail sales, according to both raw and calendar-adjusted data, grew by 7.0% compared to the same period last year. Adjusted for calendar effects, the volume of sales rose by 6.3% in food, drinks and tobacco stores, by 7.2% in non-food retail trade and by 8.3% in automotive fuel retailing. (portfolio.hu)
Tunisia: Monoprix’s net income increases by 14%
Businessnews.com.tn reports that Monoprix is pleased with the clear improvement in recent figures. Commercial margins are up 170 points and turnover (incl VAT) has generated operating revenues of 5.48m Dinars, i.e. triple that of the first semester 2014. The net income has increased by 14% to 2.73m Dinars. These results were achieved under difficult circumstances with tourism suddenly ending and impacting economic activity.
Woolworths (SA): strong FY group sales
South Africa-based Woolworths said that total revenues, including its purchase of Australia-based David Jones, rose 58.9% to US$4.6bn, while excluding the acquisition revenues rose 12%. In its food-focused business it said that it gained market share through ‘building larger format stores and extending our catalogue to offer a complete shop at competitive prices’, with sales up by 13.5% driven by a price movement of 7.7% and comparable store growth of 6.6%. (igd.com)
Ireland: SuperValu owner Musgrave gets green light for selling division
Irish retail giant Musgrave has received regulatory clearance to sell its UK operations to a rival firm in a deal worth €57m. (independent.ie)
Sonae signs franchise deal for UAE market entry
Portugal-based Sonae has signed a franchise deal with UAE-based Fathima Group, which it expects will lead to its first Continente hypermarket to be opened in 2017. Discussing the franchise agreement, Sonae MC’s chief executive, Luis Moutinho, appeared to suggest that it could be the first of a number of such deals, enabling it to expand through ‘capital light formats’. (igd.com)
Latin America: Falabella earnings rise
Latin American retailer Falabella reported revenues and net profits both up around 10% in the second quarter compared to a year ago, as its diversified operations buffer it from a slowdown in many of its markets. The company reported net profit for the quarter of 115bn Chilean pesos ($163m), in line with forecasts, on sales of $3.1bn. (Reuters)
Switzerland: Migros Click & Collect at Zurich station
Migros has launched a Click & Collect trial at Zurich station, aimed at commuters. Customers can order from a choice of 1,000 products, including fresh produce, meat, bread and non-food products, from an online shop. (igd.com)
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