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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Online Grocery Lives
Webvan, Streamline and Publix may not have made a go at online groceries but that hasn’t stopped others from aggressively going after the affluent and time-pressed consumers who want the…
Duane Reade’s Front-End Slips
Duane Reade has been successful by building a front-end business that accounts for approximately 75 percent of the company’s sales. Last quarter, however, the company said profits would fall below…
Circle Kanada
Canada’s largest convenience store operator, Alimentation Couche-Tard, has agreed to purchase 1,600 Circle K stores in 16 states from ConocoPhillips for $830 million, reports Reuters. What will Couche-Tard need to…
Dot-Com Survivors
While the spectacular failure of high profile e-tail operations such as eToys and Webvan has been widely documented and discussed, a number of less publicized dot-com stores not only survived…
McNuggets Lose Fat and Calories
McDonald’s has taken another step in answering critics of its fast food fare. The chain is rolling out a new, smaller all-white-meat Chicken McNugget. What are your thoughts on McDonald’s…
Analyst: Organic Everywhere In Five Years
Although organic items currently account for only two percent of food sales, there are those who believe, “In five years, organic products will be everywhere.” How can a retailer carve…
Small Stores Growing
Retailers are learning that when it comes to store size, bigger isn’t necessarily better. Chains such as Publix with its 29,000 square foot store in the Jacksonville, FL market are…
K-VA-T Breaks Up Dollar Section
Supermarket News reports K-VA-T Food Stores has abandoned a single stand-alone dollar merchandise section in its stores for four-foot sections inserted into aisles with category-related items. What “how to” advice…
World Wide Woman’s Web
The profile of the online shopper is changing says Chuck Davis, chief executive of BizRate.com. “We’re seeing a shift to women and 62 percent of purchases are now by women.”…
McDonald’s Hires Worldwide Nutrition Director
Yesterday, the company named Cathy Kapica, Ph.D., R.D. as its director, worldwide nutrition, reports Reuters. What is your reaction to McDonald’s appointing a director of worldwide nutrition?
Insider Trading at Safeway Raises Eyebrows
The word coming from the nation’s capital and executive offices across the country is the economy is on the rebound, even if the unemployment rate remains high. with so many…
Editorial: Council Should Limit Single-Serve Beer Sales
An editorial running in the Pantagraph says the Bloomington (IL) City Council is right to consider whether limits need to be placed on the sale of single-serve alcoholic beverages, primarily…
Sales Look Promising, Not Jobs
Don’t look for retail hiring to go up significantly this holiday season, even if the industry achieves the nearly six percent year over year growth it is expecting, says the…
Who Is In First, Walgreens or CVS?
The Monday Matchup feature on the Forbes’ Web site this week looked at how drug store chain competitors, Walgreen and CVS, stacked up against each other. Which is the stronger…
BJ’s Life-Size Strategy
BJ’s Wholesale Club is trying out a new tactic for fighting off competition from Costco, Sam’s Clubs and all the other retailers it competes with for consumer dollars. “The big…
Amazon’s CEO Focused on Customer
Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com’s chief executive is focused on the customer. In a recent interview, he told BusinessWeek, “The vast majority of my time goes into customer-experience issues, because that’s what…
Target to Become SuperTarget
The first SuperTarget in Southwest Florida will open next year in Fort Myers after the retailer expands an existing Target Greatland store. What is your assessment of the SuperTarget format…
The Bottom Line: DVD Rentals Good for Profits
The Video Software Dealers Association (VSDA) 2003 Benchmarking Report says DVD rentals helped independent video rental stores to increase average net profits by five percent last year. Have DVDs enabled…
Best Buy Goes Dual Branding Route
Best Buy Co. is the largest consumer electronics retailer in Canada. It just happens that most of its sales are coming from its Future Shop business. A couple of years…
C-Store Goes Into Supermarket Business
Just-Food.com reported yesterday that Mace, an Irish convenience store chain with more than 450 stores, plans to open 30 supermarkets by 2004. Do you see US convenience store operators opening/acquiring…
Sales and Profits Up for Grocery Manufacturers
A new study from the Grocery Manufacturers of America (GMA) conducted by Swander Pace & Company reports the consumer packaged goods industry was able to generate sales and a return…
