Nearly half of UK shoppers go to Aldi or Lidl each month
Smart & Final plans 100 stores over four years
The DNZ Property Fund, soon to be renamed Stride Property, is to buy 19 Countdown supermarket sites in a deal worth $287m, which it says will boost earnings. The Auckland-based property investor will buy the supermarket sites, which are scattered around the country and leased to Woolworths, from Antipodean Supermarkets and Antipodean Properties. DNZ chairman Tim Storey said the acquisition would lift the company's distributable profit per share by between 1.3 and 1.8% in the first three years of ownership. He said the company was also looking at broadening the scope of its business, which the latest deal may help them achieve. (radionz.co.nz)
Turkey’s retail market busy with domestic and international takeovers
Retail has been Turkey’s most dynamic sector since 2011, reports borsagundem.com. In that year, Yilldiz Holding, owner of Ulker, purchased the supermarket chain Sok for €177m. The group also bought Spanish chain Dia for €103m and 119 stores from Istanbul based Onurex chain. French group Carrefour are also busy meeting with Izmir-based Pehlivanoglu group, but these meetings are not progressing well. The Pehlivanoglu side wanted €118m, considered too much by CarrefourSA, which recently paid €127m for an 85% share in the Kiler retail group. Begendik has been prominent for acquisitions recently: they purchased 13 Real stores, and in the past month, 10 Kipa stores. The company’s CEO Haci Begendik is now negotiating to buy two Istanbul-based chain stores, (names being kept secret). The year’s biggest acquisition was made by the Anadolu Group with their takeover of Migros.
US: Smart & Final plans 100 stores over four years
Smart & Final Stores said Tuesday it plans to open more than 100 stores in the next four years as part of “Project 100.” The expansion will encompass Extra! and Cash & Carry stores, the company said. According to Dave Hirz, CEO, “We have achieved strong financial growth during our first year as a public company and have accelerated the expansion of our Extra! store format." He said the company plans to build "upon our established footprint throughout the Western U.S. We believe our consistent focus on value, quality and convenience resonates powerfully with our business and household consumers and gives us an edge in a competitive market.” (supermarketnews.com)
France: Metro and Auchan extend partnership
Germany's Metro and France's Auchan said on Tuesday they were extending cooperation on purchasing to France to boost efficiency as a price war among retailers continues. The deal, effective this month, follows a flurry of similar alliances sealed in France in recent months by Auchan with Systeme U, Casino with Intermarche, and market leader Carrefour with Cora/Supermarches Match. Under the deal Metro is giving Auchan a mandate to negotiate the buying terms of national and international brands in France, the statement said. Each retailer will continue to be responsible for its own commercial strategies and sales policies. (Reuters)
Spar Slovenia opens first franchised store
Food retailer Spar Slovenia has opened its franchise store in the country. Spar’s partner Blatnik in Lavrica will soon be joined by other franchised stores to be independently managed by partners that will sell products from Spar’s distribution centre. (esmmagazine.com)
Haggen trying to sell supermarket assets back to Albertsons, Safeway
The floundering Haggen supermarket chain is looking to sell $12.16m in assets back to Albertsons and Safeway. The proposed sale, filed last week in the U.S. District Court of Delaware as part of the company’s bankruptcy proceedings, adds yet another twist to the ongoing saga of a Bellingham, Wash-based grocer whose rapid expansion backfired. Under terms of the proposed sale, Albertsons and Safeway would buy back more than $3.5m of Haggen’s inventory as well as more than $8.9m in “records and goodwill,” including prescription records, customer records, lists, medical profiles and all other written or recorded information related to operation of the pharmacies. Both sides must agree to the sale, and if they do not agree on a transfer date by Oct. 15 the deal will automatically terminate. Approval of the proposed agreement ultimately may be subject to approval by federal regulators. (sgvtribune.com)
Canada: Couche-Tard’s plans to launch a new global convenience brand
Couche-Tard is launching a new global convenience brand, Circle K, which will replace its current retail brands. These include its existing Circle K brand, Statoil, Mac’s and Kangaroo Express which are used on stores and service stations across Canada, the US, Scandinavia, and Central and Eastern Europe. The new Circle K brand will also appear on licensed stores across Asia and will be a fundamental part of Couche-Tard's future growth. The Couche-Tard brand will be retained in Québec, where the retailer is based.(igd.com)
Retailer Auchan begins exporting Russian products
Auchan is sending goods from Russia abroad, initially to Tajikistan, where the retailer is opening a test store, reports tass.ru. The company is exporting their own brand goods and those of vendors wishing to enter the Tajikistani market with Auchan's help. Auchan helps suppliers and manufacturers with the paperwork, and their longtime partner, French Schiever, provides the logistics. Goods will be despatched from a warehouse in Novosibirsk, close to the point of delivery. More than 80% of the first shipment's goods were produced by Russian companies. The share of food and non-food products to be exported is unknown, but foodstuffs will dominate. The next delivery will be November 2015, when preparation for the hypermarket's opening in Dushanbe March 2016, will begin. If successful more Auchan hypermarkets will open in the country over the next 5 years. At present, the local population prefers markets.
Tesco could scrap Dunnhumby sale - reports
Tesco will decide this week whether to call off the sale of Dunnhumby after nearly all the bidders withdrew from the sale process. Dunnhumby is the supermarket’s data arm which utilises data gathered from its Clubcard loyalty scheme. All but one bidder withdrew from the process after financing concerns, according to Sky News. It’s understood that Tesco's CEO Dave Lewis will now meet with colleagues and advisers this week about whether to go ahead with the sale, or abandon the process. (digitallook.com)
Field Agent survey says Walmart grocery pickup idea popular with users
Around 74% of those participating in a recent survey like the grocery pickup models being tested by Walmart, however, just barely one in 10 of customers in the test markets have used the grocery pickup service. Shoppers using Walmart’s grocery pickup option say they like the service, and 74% of the Walmart Grocery Pickup shoppers in a recent case study conducted by Fayetteville-based Field Agent said they’d rather purchase the same grocery order from Walmart Pickup as opposed to a store. (thecitywire.com)
Aldi hiring 50 shift managers for new SoCal stores
Aldi, the grocery chain planning to open 11 Inland Empire stores next year, will host its first hiring events on Friday and Monday. Between the two events, Aldi hopes to hire 50 shift managers to staff new stores in Palm Springs, Palm Desert, La Quinta, Beaumont, Redlands, Yucaipa, Highland, Menifee, Moreno Valley, Lake Elsinore and Fontana. These locations are scheduled to open between March and July 2016. (desertsun.com)
Nearly half of UK shoppers go to Aldi or Lidl each month
Around half of the number of families in the UK now shop at budget supermarkets Aldi and Lidl, it has been revealed. Figures have shown that the two stores have enjoyed an increase in sales of more than 20% over the last three months, while supermarket giants such as Morrisons and Tesco have been struggling. It has been calculated that £350m worth of sales have been lost by the big name grocery stores as consumers opt for smaller prices at Aldi and Lidl. Nielsen's UK head of retailer and business insight, Mike Watkins, said: "These discounters are attracting new shoppers by opening new stores and using ads that communicate not just value, but quality and freshness too. (grimsbytelegraph.co.uk)
ABC in Myanmar (Burma) looking to expand
ABC Group, the largest convenience operator in Myanmar is seeking international partners in order to expand. ABC Group has been trading for eight years and currently operates 100 convenience stores in Yangon and Mandalay. With the right partner, the retailer hopes to expand into new formats over the next few years, including supermarkets and hypermarkets. Although the the business is still in its infancy it has a huge opportunity to grow. The retailer is keen to explore partnerships with Asean retailers, with its managing director, flagging Thai firms as potential investors. In addition, ABC Group plans to grow its existing network through franchising for the first time. The retailer plans to expand to 1,000 stores within the next five years. According to ABC Group, modern grocery trade in Myanmar, accounts for 10% of total retail sales, with this forecast to increase to 25% by 2020. (igd.com)
E-commerce in CEE: hot developments to watch
IGD retail analysis rounds up some of the latest e-commerce developments to watch from the region’s leading retailers including advancements in Poland, Romania and Hungary; Agrokor’s strategic online project and what’s happening in click & collect. Please, click here to read the article.
Sainsbury's and Lidl stand out in new market shares
New data from Kantar Worldpanel reveals no change in GB market growth at 0.9% with deflation also steady at -1.7%. However there were significant developments in trading performance among major retailers with Sainsbury's and Lidl delivering noticeable uplifts from August. (igd.com)
US: Walmart's core business is getting crushed
Walmart's grocery business is getting crushed by competitors, according to analysts. The retailer is plagued by negative customer feedback "due to lack of convenience in shopping Supercenter formats, below-average customer service, and below-average quality, freshness, and breadth of produce," Wayne Hood, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets, wrote in a recent research note. As a result, Walmart is losing grocery market share to rivals like Kroger and Publix, which have higher customer satisfaction ratings than Walmart, according to Hood. (sj-r.com)
7-Eleven to change profit model as franchisee flees Australia
Convenience store giant 7-Eleven's wage fraud scandal has led to at least one franchisee "abandoning" a store and flying home to China as franchisees struggle to pay full wages. It comes as 7-Eleven chairman and major shareholder Russ Withers is preparing to announce radical changes to its business model, including increasing the share of profit it pays to franchisees from the current 43%. (smh.com.au)
Conad Adriatico to open new stores in Italy, Albania and Kosovo
Italian food retailer Conad Adriatico is investing €65m over the next three years in its home market, as well as in Albania and Kosovo. According to CEO Antonio De Ferdinando, the company aims to cover all areas of the market that are open in Southern Italy, as well as to expand in Albania, where it already has 36 sales points, and in Kosovo, where it has plans for new stores, in an area that is seeing economic recovery. (esmmagazine.com)
Billionaires’ startup brings Black Friday to Pakistan’s shoppers
The billionaire Samwer brothers want to help introduce Pakistan’s shoppers to a local version of Black Friday, the November sales binge that kicks off the year-end holiday retail season in the US. It doesn’t matter that Black Friday is an American invention, said Bjarke Mikkelsen, co-chief executive officer of Daraz, the online retailer backed by the brothers’ incubator Rocket Internet SE. Daraz - operating in Pakistan, Myanmar and Bangladesh - will team with brands, wireless carriers and advertisers to offer “hundreds of deals” on 27 November, he said. (esmmagazine.com)
US: Lower Whole Foods pricing may require leveraged buyout: analyst
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