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☆ Retailers see a tough year ahead, so they're rolling out the recession playbook
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Melissa Repko | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Now, major retailers are dusting off their playbook for a recession — or at least for a period of slower sales. Target shoppers can soon get a Starbucks coffee, make a return and retrieve an online purchases without leaving their cars. Some retailers are rethinking their approach to discounts while questioning other costs, such as giving away free shipping or deliveries without strings attached. Some retailers have also turned free shipping into a perk for only engaged or higher spending customers. Nike , for instance, offers free shipping for shoppers – if they share their personal data by joining its membership program.

☆ Canada petrol king shows belated faith in own plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, March 16 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.TO) is expanding its empire of petrol station rest stops. On Thursday, the $44 billion Canadian gas station giant said it would buy some of TotalEnergies’ (TTEF.PA) European assets for 3.1 billion euros. The swoop is also a sign that Couche-Tard is more confident in its own business model than in the recent past. Back then, it seemed Couche-Tard was looking to diversify its empire of highway rest stops. But if EV battery power or home-charging facilities improve, Couche-Tard’s business model may not stack up.

☆ Canada's Couche-Tard to buy some TotalEnergies stations in $3.3 bln deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Dominique Vidalon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The companies said that under the deal the Canadian firm would buy all of TotalEnergies' service stations in Germany and the Netherlands, as well as purchasing a 60% stake in the French company's stations in Belgium and Luxembourg. "Service stations must expand from just selling fuel to become fully-fledged service hubs," TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne said in a joint statement. Since 2015, TotalEnergies has divested its service station networks in Italy, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Couche-Tard said it plans to fund the deal with available cash along with existing credit facilities and new debt. In January 2021, Couche-Tard's $20 billion approach for Carrefour, Europe's largest food retailer, was rejected by the French government on food security concerns.

☆ Self-driving startup Gatik to double workforce, strikes Kroger deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Abhirup Roy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SAN FRANCISCO, March 15 (Reuters) - Self-driving trucking startup Gatik will double its workforce by year end, a top executive said, after it announced a deal on Wednesday with grocer Kroger Co (KR.N) to transport goods within its Dallas, Texas network. Gatik, which operates traditional mid-sized trucks fitted with its autonomous technology, aimed to expand to 15 new U.S. states over five years, CEO Gautam Narang told Reuters. Many investors in the self-driving industry have grown sceptical as complicated technology and tough safety regulations have delayed large-scale commercialization. Autonomous truck company Embark Technology (EMBK.O) said this month it would lay off 70% of its employees and start evaluating options, including winding down the business. Microsoft (MSFT.O)plans to invest more than $10 million in Gatik at a valuation above $700 million, sources told Reuters in January.

☆ Cleveland has the most generous tippers in the U.S.—San Francisco comes in dead last
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Ryan Ermey | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Cleveland ranked No.1 on the list with diners there adding a 20.6% gratuity to their checks, on average. San Francisco brings up the rear, with a 17% average tip. Just about every transaction you make these days, it seems, comes with a tablet being flipped in your direction with suggested tip amounts. As long as the server doesn't stick a fork in my eye, they get 20% — more if they're especially good. I recently picked a few things up at a local grocer/convenience store/deli, and when the touchscreen flipped, I was prompted to tip 20%, 22%, or 25%.

☆ Amazon to close eight Go convenience stores in cost-cutting move
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Annie Palmer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The company will shut two Go stores in New York City, two locations in Seattle, and four stores in San Francisco. The stores will close on April 1, and Amazon said it will work to help affected employees secure other roles at the company. "In this case, we've decided to close a small number of Amazon Go stores in Seattle, New York City, and San Francisco. We remain committed to the Amazon Go format, operate more than 20 Amazon Go stores across the U.S., and will continue to learn which locations and features resonate most with customers as we keep evolving our Amazon Go stores." Amazon executives previously confirmed the company would close some Fresh supermarkets and Go stores following its fourth-quarter earnings results.

☆ Kroger is the latest retailer to spend big on employee wages as the job market tightens
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Kroger is latest retailer to say it will spend more this year on worker wages as companies fight to keep employees in a tight labor market. The grocery chain will spend $770 million more on employee pay and benefits in 2023, it said after reporting earnings on Thursday. Kroger operates stores under 19 different names, including Ralph's in Southern California and Mariano's in Chicago. The Ohio-based grocer follows companies like Home Depot and Walmart in committing to raise wages this year. Walmart said in January that it would increase its minimum wage to $14 from the previous $12-an-hour rate.

[1/5] An employee prepares online grocery orders in the storage area of Czech online grocer Rohlik Group in Prague, Czech Republic February 1, 2023. HUGE GROWTH POTENTIAL Rohlik, founded in 2014, leads the Czech market by mainly targeting customers in big cities through its string of distribution warehouses. "Competition is still mainly driven by stationary retail but a small number of online grocery players are gearing up in each market to become leading e-grocery platforms." KOSIK TURNS EASTAs Rohlik bets on Germany, Kosik is looking eastward, entering the Slovak market and expanding in Bulgaria. CEO Ivan Utesil said the company would also seek to cut into Czech market share by capitalising on its tie-in with German wholesaler Metro (B4B.DE) in some regional areas.

☆ UK government calls in supermarket bosses for salad crisis talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] An employee checks stock levels at the tomatoes section of a partially empty fruit and vegetable aisle at a Sainsbury's supermarket in London, Britain, February 26, 2023. Food and farming minister Mark Spencer will meet the bosses of Britain's major grocers later on Monday. Spencer said the crisis had shown how dependent Britain can be on certain trade routes for some types of food. Last week, Therese Coffey, minister for the environment, food and rural affairs, warned shortages could last up to another month. She has been widely mocked for saying Britons who can't get hold of salad vegetables might want to consider turnips instead.

☆ A day in the life of a delivery driver in NYC working 10-hour shifts and covering 100+ miles
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Emma Cosgrove | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Native New Yorker Andy Zhicay makes deliveries for the same-day and next-day courier called MetroSpeedy. On any given day, he makes hundreds of deliveries in New York's boroughs, Long Island, or Connecticut. Zhicay says his detailed knowledge of the city makes him good at his job. On a long shift through multiple New York City boroughs and the areas outside, a driver can easily cover 100 miles. "It takes me to spots I would never go without the job," Zhicay said.

☆ Stocks struggle to make headway as rate rises loom
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Tom Westbrook | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) touched its lowest since Jan. 6 in early trade. Nasdaq futures (.NQc1) rose 0.9% after a revenue beat at chip designer Nvidia (NVDA.O) sent its shares up 9% after-hours. Oil nursed sharp overnight losses, and Brent crude futures clung to support around $80 a barrel on Thursday. "Markets have been forced to reprice interest rate expectations, not just higher, but also questioning the view that once peak rates are hit, central banks will pivot quickly to cutting interest rates," said ANZ economist Finn Robinson. The Bank of Korea did, however, offer some dose of relief by ending a year-long run of uninterrupted rate hikes with a pause.

☆ Singapore ride-hailing firm Grab beats on revenue, pulls forward profitability timeline
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Revenue for the fourth quarter of 2022 grew 310% to $502 million, up from $122 million a year ago. We should be getting back to pre-Covid levels by fourth quarter this year. The company said that it is bringing forward its group adjusted EBITDA breakeven guidance to the fourth quarter of 2023, half a year earlier than its previous guidance. Deliveries reboundDeliveries revenue increased to $268 million in fourth quarter 2022, up from $1 million in the same period in 2021. Incentives dropped to 8.2% of gross merchandise volume in the fourth quarter from 9.4% in the previous quarter.

☆ Here's how much money you'd have if you invested $1,000 in Walmart 10 years ago
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Cheyenne Devon | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The company also reported earnings per share of $1.71 compared with the $1.51 analysts expected. Here's how much money you'd have as of Feb. 21, 2023 if you had invested $1,000 into the company one, five and 10 years ago. If you had invested $1,000 into Walmart a year ago, you'd have about $1,084 as of Feb. 21, according to CNBC's calculations. If you had invested $1,000 into Walmart five years ago, your investment would have increased to $1,728 as of Feb. 21, according to CNBC's calculations. And if you had put $1,000 into Walmart a decade to grow, it would have more than doubled and risen to $2,390 as of Feb. 21, according to CNBC's calculations.

☆ British supermarkets confront their German discounting demons
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

And the discounters' supermarket sweep still has a long way to run, industry executives say, with Aldi UK CEO Giles Hurley pledging Britain's lowest prices "no matter what". "Over the Christmas period alone shoppers switched 58 million pounds ($70 million)(of purchases) to Lidl from Tesco and Sainsbury's," Lidl GB CEO Ryan McDonnell told Reuters. Tesco and Sainsbury's are now matching Aldi prices on hundreds of key items and using customer loyalty schemes, while they have accepted a profit hit to keep prices down. Sector executives, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the further rise of Aldi and Lidl is inexorable. "Nobody's going to take Tesco out but at some point somebody might take Sainsbury's out," the sector veteran said.

Woolworths and smaller rival Coles Group Ltd (COL.AX) have experienced wild swings in Australian consumer behaviour since COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 sparked grocery stockpiling. As with Coles' interim result reported on Tuesday, the Woolworths profit gain was helped by a sharp decline in COVID-19 related expenses. Woolworths shares were up 2% by midsession, against a 0.3% dip in the broader benchmark(.AXJO), as analysts cheered the prospect of profit margin growth at a company exposed to rising supply costs. "Momentum in the key Australian Food business remains solid, with sales growth rates better than expected in early 2H23," E&P Financial retail analyst said Phillip Kimber in a client note. Woolworths declared an interim dividend of 46 Australian cents per share, compared with 39 Australian cents a year earlier.

☆ Australia's Coles sees shoppers tightening wallets after first-half profit jump
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 21 (Reuters) - Australian grocer Coles Group Ltd (COL.AX) on Tuesday posted a 17% jump in first-half profit and forecast cost pressures would ease in the second half, but the country's No. 2 grocer warned that shoppers may cut spending as higher interest rates bite. Net profit after tax for the six months ended December rose to A$643 million ($444 million) from A$549 million reported a year ago. Cole's cost reduction program, Smarter Selling, brought savings of about A$100 million in the first half, while COVID-19 related costs dropped to A$20 million from A$150 million a year ago. Separately, Coles said it has promoted Leah Weckert to chief executive officer from May 1 to replace Steven Cain, who is retiring.

☆ Asda retail boss Towle leaves after less than ten months
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Feb 20 (Reuters) - British supermarket group Asda said on Monday retail director Ken Towle is leaving the business less than ten months after starting the job. Asda also said on Monday it had appointed Aldi UK veteran David Hills as its new chief customer officer. Hills has been at the German-owned discounter since 2007 and is currently group director, marketing & communications. Asda said acting chief customer officer, Sam Dickson, will continue in the role until Hills arrives later this year and will then assume a strategy role for the Asda and George brands. Asda had a tough 2022 but in November reported a return to quarterly sales growth, while industry data has shown its sales growth matching that of Tesco and Sainsbury's.

The stores that Kroger and Albertsons may sell could be worth more than $1 billion, the sources said. Kroger and Albertsons will choose to proceed with the spin-off if they are unable to strike a deal with a potential buyer. Kroger, Albertsons and the FTC declined to comment. Haggen filed for bankruptcy months later and blamed the deal with Albertsons for its demise. Albertsons then agreed to buy many of the Haggen stores back for $300 million.

☆ Seven out of ten UK households fear cost-of-living hit -NielsenIQ
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Scales to weigh loose fresh produce are seen in the UK supermarket Asda in Leeds, Britain, October 19, 2020. NielsenIQ said UK grocery sales on a value basis rose 7.6% in the four weeks to Jan. 28, due to an increase in food price inflation to 13.8%. However, volume sales fell 6.9% - the lowest volume growth recorded in over nine months, which reflects the concern shoppers have about cost-of-living increases, it said. It said Lidl overtook Morrisons to become the UK's fifth largest grocer with a market share of 8.9%. NielsenIQ said online's share of all FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) sales was 11.1% - similar to its share in the latter part of 2022.

☆ Meet the typical Whole Foods shopper, a highly educated West Coast millennial woman earning $80,000
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Dominick Reuter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Whole Foods' average shopper is a West Coast woman who is 29 years old and earning $80,000 per year. Numerator found that Whole Foods' typical shopper is a West Coast millennial woman between 25 and 34 years old. About 5% of the typical shopper's spending takes place at Whole Foods — about half of what she spends on Amazon. Whole Foods shoppers also tend to choose the store's in-house 365 brand, as well as Organic Valley dairy products and Applegate meats. Across all retailers, Whole Foods shoppers buy a lot more kombucha than the typical US shopper.

☆ Grocery consumers sue to block Kroger’s $25 bln buy of Albertsons
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Mike Scarcella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Kroger is the biggest grocer in the U.S. by revenue, and Albertsons is the second-largest supermarket chain. Nearly 5,000 grocery stores would be under one corporate umbrella if the deal, announced in October, goes through. A representative for Albertsons declined to comment on Friday, and a Kroger spokesperson did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment. Kroger operates stores under banners including Harris Teeter, Pay Less and King Soopers. U.S. antitrust law lets private consumers sue over proposed mergers and acquisitions, apart from any enforcement action brought by a state or federal agency policing competition laws.

☆ Amazon is shutting some Fresh and Go stores as the company cuts costs
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Annie Palmer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Amazon will also temporarily halt expansion of its line of Fresh grocery stores until it can find a format that differentiates the company's offering from others in the industry. Amazon currently operates several dozen Fresh grocery stores and 28 Amazon Go convenience stores, according to its website. The Information reported in December that a handful of built-out U.S. Amazon Fresh stores sat vacant, signaling a pullback in the company's grocery strategy. Amazon has been determined to crack the grocery segment since the launch of its Fresh grocery delivery service in 2007. Last March, Amazon announced it would slim down its physical stores portfolio by shutting all its Amazon Books, 4-star and Pop Up shops.

☆ Whole Foods Asks Suppliers to Lower Prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Jaewon Kang | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Whole Foods Market is asking suppliers to help the retailer bring prices down on packaged groceries as inflation moderates. The Amazon.com Inc.-owned grocer told suppliers at a recent virtual summit that it wants to bring down retail prices in its store aisles as companies’ own costs start to decline, according to a recording of the meeting viewed by The Wall Street Journal.

☆ Whole Foods Asks Suppliers to Lower Prices as Costs Ebb
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Jaewon Kang | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Whole Foods is sick of high prices, too — so it's pulling the Walmart trick of squeezing suppliers to bring prices down
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Whole Foods is reportedly asking suppliers to help the chain lower grocery prices. The Amazon-owned grocery chain told suppliers of packaged food products in December that it wants to lower on-the-shelf prices, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. The pressure to lower prices mostly applies to packaged foods, the prices of which have tended to remain the same even when inflation plateaus, the Journal reported. Walmart, which is even more focused on keeping prices low, often puts pressure on its vendors when it needs to lower prices or limit increases. Last year, Whole Foods raised prices on some packaged food brands, especially upstart products, Insider reported in October.

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