Retail and consumer goods industry news

Morrisons has acquired seven former Jessops stores for its growing M Local format 50 new stores this year The retailer has today announced it has acquired seven former Jessops stores from administrators which are expected to open under the M local banner.  Morrisons has reported its intention to open 50 new M Local stores this year, highlighting the strategic focus the retailer is placing on...

Reports in Kenya’s Business Daily suggest that locally-based Nakumatt is looking to sell a 25% stake to finance expansion in its home market and neighbouring countries. Investment to build on Nakumatt’s strong foundations The reports suggest that Nakumatt’s managing director Atul Shah will dilute his family’s stake in the business, which stands at 90%, by selling a 25% stake to either institu...

Costco's performance in Australia appears to be going from strength to strength, with revenue for the 53 weeks to 2 September 2012 more than doubling on the previous year and profits turning positive for the first time. Strong sales and profits In the retailers FY to 2 September 2012 Costco Australia saw revenues more than double to AU$609.5m and net profits reach AU$9.73m. The rapid incre...

Edeka has launched a baby food private label range, according to German press reports. Premium pricing for 30-strong range The SunSan range of 30 organic products has been introduced by Edeka's  regional operators Minden-Hannover and Südwest, according to Lebensmittel Zeitung.  They are priced at around one euro less than the leading baby food brand. Opportunities for suppliers to deve...

Sephora (part of LVMH's Select Retail division) is to open a flagship store in Shanghai. Sephora to open flagship store in China Sephora (part of LVMH's Select Retail division) is to open a flagship store in Shanghai. Further expansion expected The new flagship store will be in one of the most popular areas of Shanghai, at the junction of Nanjing Road and Maoming Road. With 1,500 ...

Grupo Pão de Açúcar (GPA) has announced plans to add 25 Assaí wholesale outlets in north-eastern Brazil over the next three years. Part of plans to open 60 units in total There are currently 62 Assaí stores in eight Brazilian states.  The 25 new outlets are part of a wider plan in which GPA intends to open 60 more over the next three years.   In Brazil , wholesalers play a key role in t...

Russian retailer, Maria-Ra, has announced its results for 2012 and is confident about the forthcoming year 32.7% revenue increase Maria-Ra has reported sales of RUB 40.8bn for 2012 which represents a 32.7% increase compared to last year. Consumer traffic also increased by 1.1% and the average basket spend grew by 8.3%. The retailer opened 132 new stores over the year, bringing its total s...

Waitrose has announced Jackie Wharton as the new convenience director, replacing Diana Hunter. 15 years experience at Waitrose Following the announcement of Diana Hunter leaving to take up the role of chief executive of Bargain Booze, Waitrose has today announced  Jackie Wharton as its new convenience director.  Wharton has worked at Waitrose for 15 years, most recently as director of c...

With online, convenience and discount becoming ever more popular channels for shoppers, we explore how retailers are working to boost sales through large format stores.  In the year to April 2013, we expect sales through large format stores (25,000 sq ft and over) to grow by 0.7%, far below the 2.9% for the grocery market as a whole. Shoppers increasingly turning to alternative channels and the ...

Sainsbury's is to launch "What's Cooking? From the Sainsbury's Kitchen,"   a daily lunchtime cookery show on Channel 4. Recipes for all budgets and tastes The programme will show viewers how to prepare dishes from scratch ingredients that "suit every budget and taste" and provide a high profile opportunity to showcase Sainsbury's products alongside other ingredients. The programme will be pr...