As Lidl prepares to open its first US stores this week, German rival ALDI has unveiled a $3.4bn plan to expand its US store base to 2,500 by 2022, on top of a $1.6bn store remodeling plan unveiled in February to revamp 1,300 stores by 2020.
‘Amazon Choice is becoming increasingly important as we transition to this world of voice’
It’s well known that the brands that are growing the most rapidly on Amazon are not necessarily growing the most rapidly in grocery stores, so what are the most successful CPG players on Amazon doing differently?
More retailers are adapting new technology to keep them at the forefront—what does this mean to manufacturers? At Sweets and Snacks Expo 2017, we met with several exhibiting tech companies to chat about how their products can disrupt the landscape of...
A “powerful and emotional brand connection,” “constant product innovation,” “attractive unit economics,” a “hard-to-replicate value chain,” and “proprietary technology and data,” help Blue Apron stand out in the burgeoning meal kit market, says the company....
Thanks to its unique partnership model, wider selection, and no subscription fees, customer acquisition costs at meal-delivery firm Chef’d are significantly lower than rivals,’ claims founder and CEO Kyle Ransford, who says Chef’d has been “first order...
Associated Wholesale Grocers (AWG) has joined a growing number of high-profile names – from Ahold and Whole Foods to Target – that have signed up with online platform RangeMe to help streamline the product and supplier discovery process.
The first Lidl US stores will open on June 15 in the Carolinas and Virginia, the company announced at an exclusive press event in Manhattan on Tuesday.
Meal-kit delivery services account for less than 1% of US food and beverage retail sales, and most are likely to remain stubbornly in the red in the short term. That said, they are already having a “compelling” impact on consumer behavior, and “will play...
Retailer Kroger is testing coolers in the baby aisle in 10 stores around Dallas and Houston, responding to demand from Millennial parents for fresh baby food.
The private equity arm of global CPG giant Unilever, called Unilever Ventures, led the $9.2m Series C-2 funding of organic meal kit company Sun Basket.
Sales of food and beverage online may be lagging significantly behind those of other consumer packaged goods, but analysts expect them to pick up exponentially in the coming years – meaning now is the time for brands and manufacturers to develop a game...
All eyes have been on Whole Foods since activist investors demanded radical action to address its recent “chronic underperformance." But is Albertsons – rumored to be courting the Austin-based retailer – the right suitor?
As a percentage of the overall grocery retail market, Amazon’s $350m in Q1 grocery sales (annualized – that’s $1.4bn) is pretty small fry. But its mouthwatering 30% year-on year-growth suggests that CPG manufacturers that don’t have a clear strategy for...
It was a record-breaking year for in-store convenience store sales, which hit $233bn in calendar year 2016, data from the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) 2016 indicated. Among the top performers were non-alcoholic beverages and sweet...
Activist investors led by Jana Partners have acquired 8.3% of Whole Foods’ stock according to an SEC filing, which says Whole Foods must take radical action to address its recent “chronic underperformance."
What keeps US food & beverage retailers awake at night? Amazon? Deflation? Competition from new channels? The prospect of a border adjustment tax? We quizzed retail experts to get their take on the biggest challenges facing grocers today.
Not many US grocery stores stock mangosteens or passion fruit, but Baldor Specialty Foods, a produce wholesaler deeply rooted in New York City’s culinary scene, is catering to the increasingly curious consumer and home cook by making these uncommon ingredients...
Private label sales now account for more than one in every ten dollars spent at Sprouts stores, said the Phoenix-based retailer, which posted a 0.7% rise in same store sales in the latest quarter while rival Whole Foods Market has continued to see its...
As natural and organic goes mainstream, Whole Foods’ differentiator is, well, not that different from the rest of the market anymore, says one retail analyst.
When nutpods burst onto the scene in 2015 with its almond and coconut non-dairy creamers, it pretty much had the market to itself. Within months, however, a phalanx of better-known - and better-funded - competitors, had muscled into its territory. But...
The consumer packaged goods sector may lag behind other industries in terms of e-commerce, but IRI’s experts and analysts say shopping online is increasingly becoming the new norm, even for groceries.
What keeps food & beverage industry CEOs awake at night? Declining returns on promotional spending? Lackluster topline growth? An uninspiring innovation pipeline? Anxiety about how to tap into the e-commerce revolution?
Whole Foods Market’s global buyers and experts compiled the trends to watch in 2017. From purple foods, to products from byproducts, to mindful meal prep, here are just a few top predictions according to the trend-spotters (you can catch the full list...
E-Market Insights – Private Cloud Solutions, a new service from IRI and Clavis Insights, offers “in-depth e-commerce and in-store cause and effect analytics” for sales and growth strategies in CPG marketing.
Whole Foods Market – which has historically not shared its sales data with syndicated data providers - has selected Nielsen as its primary US analytics provider for point of sale (POS) data, consumer insights, and industry metrics.
