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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Tops is Tops But Losing Share
Business First of Buffalo (NY) reports that Tops Friendly Markets (Ahold) has the greatest share of the area’s supermarket sales according to research conducted by the publication and Goldhaber Research…
Penta Tops in Health Food Water Sales
A press release from Bio-Hydration Research Lab (San Diego, CA), citing SPINSscan, claims Penta water’s 500ml bottle is the best selling water item in health food stores. According to the…
What’s a Little Snow
The blizzard of 2003 has passed, but the cleanup and the cost accounting continues. Fortunately, according to a Reuters’ report, “The massive storms that paralyzed most of the U.S. Northeast…
Campbell’s in On-The-Go with Soup Expansion
Campbell Soup Co. announced its biggest product launch since the 1970’s today with an expansion of ready-to-eat soups. The Wall Street Journal reports “The latest effort includes a new package…
Are Farmer Jack and Foodtown in Trouble?
An article in the Toledo Blade says that local Farmer Jack (A&P), Foodtown (Spartan Stores), or both could be sold or closed this year. What do you believe is likely…
Building Relationships and Brands
The Gallup Management Journal says businesses more concerned with creating transactions than building relationships with customers is at the heart of the growing consumer cynicism about marketing messages. How do…
Prices Jump at the Pump
Oil prices reached a 28-month high yesterday as the prospect of a war in Iraq cast doubt on nations’ ability to meet their supply needs. How will higher prices at…
Grocery Store Sales Up Nearly 4%
The Food Institute, citing Bureau of Census numbers, reports that “During January, sales at the nation’s grocery stores rose 3.9% over the same month of 2002 to $36.6 billion -…
Positive Attitude Transforms Businesses
Larry Johnston, chief executive, Albertsons has done quite a bit since arriving at the chain from GE a couple of years back. In the March 3 issue of Forbes, Mr…
Asda Sells Love Connection
An Asda store in Huddersfield, England is holding a singles’ evening to give its shoppers a chance to make a love connection. Store associates will don evening wear and serve…
FreshDirect Delivers Ahead of Expectations
FreshDirect, an online grocery home-delivery service operating in New York City has announced that it is now filling more than 2,000 orders per day and adding approximately 3,000 new customers…
Connecticut Investigates Stop & Shop
The Attorney General’s Office of Connecticut is investigating Stop & Shop for alleged “restraint of trade.” Stop & Shop (a division of Ahold) has been accused of leasing property…
Greenspan Says Forget Tax Cuts, Decrease Deficits
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan supports President Bush’s plan to eliminate double taxation on dividends but sees little evidence to support the belief that administration’s proposals will spur economic growth…
Terror Alert Drives Retail Sales
Consumers, particularly those in New York City and Washington, D.C., have gone shopping in large numbers to stock up on food, water and other emergency supplies. This shopping wave follows…
Coca-Cola Gains Share, Cuts Jobs
Coca-Cola’s market share reportedly reached 37 percent last year after a gain of 0.7 percent of category sales. Despite the gains made, Coke is cutting jobs as part of…
Aisle Experts Have Competitive Edge
Paul Weitzel, Willard Bishop Consulting writes, “When you’re an aisle expert, you’re in a position to offer a complete understanding of and vision for delivering greater value across the entire…
Home Depot’s Nardelli Seeks Successor
Bob Nardelli, chairman, chief executive and president, Home Depot has told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution he is developing a succession plan to appoint a number two executive at the DIY chain…
Europeans Just Say No to GMOs
The New York Times reports, “Many supermarket chains across France, Britain, Italy and Austria, among others, yanked all genetically modified products from their shelves three years ago and are in…
Women Neutral on DIY Retailers
A study from Forrester Research says that female shoppers have no clear preference when it comes to shopping in either Lowe’s or Home Depot. Do you agree? Is Lowe’s or…
Wal-Mart on the Plus Side
Mary-Kate and Ashley are putting on weight for followers of their fashion merchandise. Wal-Mart announced yesterday that it will begin selling mary-kateandashley and Faded Glory apparel in plus sizes at…
Loblaw Takes On All Competitors
Loblaw’s is on a roll. The Toronto Star reports that Canada’s largest supermarket chain grew total sales 7.4 percent and profits by 29 percent last year. The company said that…
