Amazon's Whole Foods sees 25% more shoppers after takeover

Spar China appoints new managing director
Spar International has announced it is appointing Jerome Chevrier as the new managing director of Spar China, effective immediately. Chevrier has held a number of senior roles in China's retail sector, having lived and worked in the country for over twenty years. (esmmagazine.com)

French Carrefour to expand 'Bon App!' store concept
French retailer Carrefour has announced that it is expanding its 'Bon App!' (short for Bon Appétit) food-to-go stores, after beginning testing two years ago. In 2015, the retailer opened its first two trial stores in Paris, followed by several openings in other French cities since last May. However, the company now confirms that even more stores are to be rolled-out, with several new openings scheduled before the end of the year. (esmmagazine.com)

Thai's CP may takeover E-Mart's remaining stores in China
Leading South Korean discounter, E-Mart, is in talks with Thailand's Charoen Pokphand Group to sale its five remaining stores in China. In May, E-Mart announced that it was to shut operations in China by end of 2017. E-Mart China has struggled for profitability over the last few years, gradually scaling down its operations since 2011. (igd.com)

Aldi spent over €700m with Irish suppliers in 2016 agriculture
In 2016, Aldi contributed to the generation of more than €1 billion to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the Irish economy through job creation, spending with Irish-based businesses, tax contributions and capital investment. This is according to a report by leading economics consultancy, Cebr, which charts the rise of Aldi from opening its first two stores in 1999 in Dublin and Cork through to the 129 stores across all 26 counties that it operates today along with its two Regional Distribution Centres at Naas and Mitchelstown. (businessworld.ie)

Amazon's Whole Foods price cuts brought 25% jump in shoppers
Amazon.com Inc.’s splashy takeover of Whole Foods, complete with deep price cuts, did more than bring a surge of publicity to the chain: It boosted customer traffic by 25 percent. That’s the finding of Foursquare Labs Inc., which compiled location information during the first two days after Amazon completed its acquisition of the grocer. The data, culled from shoppers’ mobile devices, was compared with the same period a week earlier. (Bloomberg)

Tesco's rivals slam watchdog over £3.7bn Booker deal
Tesco's £3.7 billion power grab to buy wholesale supplier Booker could destabilise the whole grocery market and severely diminish competition, rival food operators fear. Bestway Cash & Carry, which has a turnover of £2.3 billion, has raised grave doubts about the acquisition. It accused the Competition and Markets Authority of failing to address Tesco’s potential domination over the food, wholesale and convenience store sector. Bestway, which is half the size of Booker, said: ‘We believe the proposed merger will have a major impact and significantly distort competition.’ Bestway said: ‘We believe the proposed merger will have a major impact and significantly distort competition.’ (thisismoney.co.uk)

Lotte not withdrawing from the Chinese mainland market
South Korea-based Lotte Group has not considered withdrawing from the Chinese mainland market, an executive from the Lotte China told the Global Times on Monday, denying media reports that the company will end all of its retail business in the mainland. The executive, who asked not to identified, nevertheless said that if the current grim situation the company confronted with should continue, and if the company faced huge losses, it would "have to make some changes." (globaltimes.cn)

Survey: Physical stores still dominate US grocery
Discount stores and traditional supermarkets are U.S. shoppers' most popular choices when it comes to buying food. At least for the time being. Nearly all — 99% — of adults buy some or all of their groceries in-person, according to a survey by the International Council of Shopping Centers. The immediate access to products (71%) and the ability to select fresh meat, dairy and produce (70%) were the top reasons driving in-store shopping, along with the ability to see all other items in person (69%). (chainstoreage.com)

Fresh Market gets new CEO
The Fresh Market appointed Larry Appel as the company’s president and CEO, effective immediately. Appel brings nearly 30 years of experience in retail, legal and corporate strategy, and most recently served as CEO of Skeeter Snacks. From 2002 to 2012, he served at Winn-Dixie Stores in a variety of senior leadership roles including COO. Prior to that, he was senior VP of legal at The Home Depot. (chainstoreage.com)

Kroger withdraws private label lawsuit against Lidl
Kroger has withdrawn its private label lawsuit against Lidl, according to Coupons in the News. Court documents show the two sides agreed to dismiss the suit with prejudice. As a result, Kroger cannot revisit the case or file a similar lawsuit in the future. (fooddive.com)

The most popular grocery store in every state
The app Foursquare studied users' check-in habits to assemble a list of the most-visited grocery stores in every state. Click here to see the list.