Two hot trends, personalization and frictionless retailing, are at odds with each other
After e-commerce and AI, the phrases getting the most airtime at Groceryshop 2019 last week were personalization and frictionless retailing. How can retailers a...
Is AI at the center of the retail technology universe?
Based on Ron Margulis's observations, more than half the booths at this year’s Groceryshop in Las Vegas contained some element of AI, either in their signage ...
Will meatless meat, CBD and cold brew coffee help food retailers differentiate?
While local, gluten-free and organic products still ruled the 2019 Summer Fancy Food Show in New York this week, plant-based protein alternatives and items with...
Autonomous vehicles take test drives around distribution centers
At the ProMat materials handling conference in 2017, there was only one company talking about autonomous forklifts. This year, no less than 20 vendors were hypi...
Retailers still haven’t solved last mile challenges for fresh foods
Retailers, suppliers and third party service vendors continue to face significant challenges for the delivery of temperature-sensitive food to homes, keeping pr...
Do retailers need to reevaluate their omnichannel strategies and tactics?
Four walls and no walls. Bricks to clicks and clicks to bricks. There has been Walmart’s acquisition of Jet.com and Amazon’s purchase of Whole Foods. And mu...
Technology disruptors are causing independent supermarkets to innovate
Independent supermarket retailers were once again charged to take on the “The Big Guys” at the National Grocers Association Annual Convention in San Diego l...
Shopper technology opportunities are the focus of FMI Midwinter
There were several remarkable statistics shared at the FM I Midwinter last week. They show that supermarkets are losing their primary store status as shoppers s...
Amazon plans to become the fresh food safety leader
When it comes to food safety innovation, not many industry experts would consider Amazon.com a leader. The online retail giant is working diligently to change t...
For independent grocers, it’s innovate or die
Your neighborhood grocery store is once again caught between a rock and a hard place. In this metaphor, the rock is ecommerce competition from Amazon and larger...
Do retailers need a new approach to store brand marketing?
We’ve all heard about the impact Millennials are having on retailing and we all know Baby Boomers are still a generation of economic consequence, but what abo...
Will Lidl’s fresh approach to the U.S. grocery market prove successful?
Unlike its arch rival Aldi, the Lidl product mix includes national brands. Also unlike Aldi, Lidl is aggressively pushing its fresh lines, highlighting local pr...
How safe is America’s food supply?
The 2017 Food Safety Summit, held last week in Chicago, featured panels and keynote presentations that focused on how food safety professionals are coping with ...
What will the fourth industrial revolution mean for retail supply chains and jobs?
Both retailers and suppliers are moving to a new era of intelligent machines designed to eliminate waste in supply chains and update old business models. Severa...
What tech tools do independent grocers need to compete with e-tailers?
Amazon.com was the boogeyman at the National Grocers Association’s Annual Conference last week in Las Vegas. The Seattle-based retailer was the focus of sever...
Will store brands outcompete national rivals in fresh categories?
Store brands have seen impressive growth since the start of the Great Recession, yet one of the key areas of growth in supermarkets has been in the perimeter/fr...
Retailers go ‘local’ at Fancy Food Show
Products organically made within 200 miles of the retail outlet and without wheat were the hit of the 2015 Summer Fancy Food Show in New York this week. Which o...
The rise of the customization nation
In a session presented by Anthony Flynn, CEO of YouBar and author of Custom Nation, the premise was that grocery retailing is an industry grounded in the delive...
Store brands drive organic growth for grocers
There were two very noticeable trends at the 34th annual Private Label Manufacturers Association's Annual Conference last week in Chicago — organics and glute...
Independent grocers need new consumer engagement technology
At the National Grocers Association Show in Las Vegas this week, attendees heard all about the impending takeover of shopper marketing activities by digital mar...