English news 28 novembre 2007

ADITYA BIRLA plans to double store network

According to unconfirmed reports in the press, Aditya Birla Retail is planning to double its retail outlets to 600 before the year end. Aditya Birla Retail CEO Supermarkets Andrew Denby said, "As of now, we have 299 outlets. | read more

AEON links up with Sanyo in home electronics

Japan's AEON is to jointly develop its private label home electronics range in conjunction with Sanyo Electric Co. Under the agreement, AEON will start selling a range of Sanyo-manufactured home electronics under the Top Value private label at its Jusco hypermarkets from May next year. | read more

ALDI USA eyes Rhode Island

In the USA, discount retailer Aldi has announced store projects in Rhode Island, stating that it is planning to open its first outlets there in the capital of Province, East Province, Cranston and West Warwick. | read more

CARREFOUR to sell Dell computers

Carrefour is to sell Dell PCs in its French, Spanish and Belgian hypermarkets for the first time. The stores will begin selling the Dell branded products from January 2008. | read more

CARREFOUR to deploy Payback loyalty scheme in Spain

Carrefour Spain has chosen to work with business intelligence software from Emnos, a wholly-owned subsidiary of German Loyalty Partner GmbH, the operator of the Payback bonus programme. | read more

More details on CARREFOUR in India talks

According to press reports, Carrefour is in talks with real estate firm Parsvnath Developers Ltd to open hypermarkets in India. Parsvnath said it plans to venture into the retail business with a chain of hypermarkets that it will set up in partnership with an overseas retailer. | read more

Hypermarket boss leaves CARREFOUR in Belgium

Following the chain's recent poor performance in Belgium, Carrefour's hypermarket director Rudi Schautteet has been replaced by Frédéric Boone, the managing director of Electrolux in Belgium. | read more

COOPERNIC acquires 80% of IKI

The Coopernic buying group has confirmed that it has purchased an 80% stake in Lithuanian supermarket group IKI. The remaining 20% of IKI will be retained by its founders, the Ortiz family. | read more

Denner launches new premium private label

In the run-up to Christmas, Swiss discounter Denner is launching a new premium private label. The 'Primess' range consists of 23 high quality items; of which 14 are food products and the remaining nine are fresh products. | read more

DOHLE offers prepaid mobile phone service in Hit stores

Dohle in Germany is launching a prepaid mobile phone service in its Hit hypermarkets and superstores in Germany. 'Hitmobile' calls, operated by Simply, cost EUR0.15 (USD0.21) per minute, or EUR0.05 (USD0.07) for calls to other Hitmobile users. | read more

HARRIS TEETER partners with EPA

As reported by Supermarket News, Harris Teeter has become the latest retailer to join the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)'s GreenChill Refrigeration Partnership. | read more

HY-VEE opens first Maid-Rite sandwich shop

Hy-Vee is partnering with Maid-Rite to open sandwich shops in its convenience stores across the Midwest. The first Maid-Rite Sandwich Shoppe Express opened this week in Omaha, NB and there are plans for similar ventures in Iowa (Ankeny and Dubuque) and Missouri (Gladstone and Osage Beach) over the next year. | read more

HY-VEE offers Hippo Sak bags

Hy-Vee has partnered with Los Angeles-based Crown Poly to offer the Hippo Sak front-end bagging system. Hippo Sak is a patented, reinforced, bottom seal T-shirt bag which can carry over 26 one-pound cans without breaking or tearing holes at the bottom. | read more

KROGER partners with SAFEWAY'S Blackhawk Network

Safeway-owned Blackhawk Network has signed an exclusive agreement with Kroger for its Gift Card Mall programme. "We are delighted to bring Blackhawk Network's Gift Card Mall, which carries over 100 best in class retail branded gift cards, to Kroger's nearly 2,500 stores across the country," said Don Kingsborough, president and chief executive officer of Blackhawk Network. | read more

PRICE CHOPPER refills ink cartridges

Price Chopper is expanding its ink cartridge refill programme. In partnership with iFill Inkjets, Price Chopper refills the cartridges for half the price of buying a new one. | read more

Jewellery store plans at RELIANCE RETAIL

Local reports state that Reliance Retail is planning to set up 300 Reliance Jewels stores across India over the next three years. The company has spent INR120 million (USD3 million) setting up the first store in Bangalore offering over 10,000 jewellery designs. | read more

SPAR (AUSTRIA) to expand in Croatia

Spar (Austria) will open its second Interspar outlet in Zagreb today. The store is the largest Interspar in the country so far with a sales area of around 9,000 square metres. | read more

1,000 stores up for SUBHIKSHA

According to reports in the Indian press, Subhiksha now operates 1,000 stores across five states in the country. The company is planning to increase the total number of stores to 1,500 by June 2008 and 3,000 by 2010. | read more

TENGELMANN USA deal cleared

In the US, the Federal Trade Commission has given the green light for Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea's acquisition of Pathmark Stores on the condition that the companies agreed to sell six supermarkets in New York. | read more

IFS opens Italian office

By January 2008, the third office of International Food Standard (IFS) will open in Milan. IFS already has offices in Berlin and Paris. Italian retailers like Coop Italia and Conad are then likely to expect their food suppliers to fulfill the requirements of IFS. | read more

Joint produce traceability initiative in the US

In North America, the United Fresh Produce Association (UFPA) along with Produce Marketing Association (PMA) and the Canadian Produce Marketing Association (CPMA), has formed a joint produce traceability initiative to drive broad adoption of consistent traceability best practices throughout the produce supply chain. | read more

WAL-MART committed to Brazil

Speaking at a press conference, Wal-Mart Brasil CEO Vincente Trius announced the company's plans to invest BRL1.2 billion (USD649 million) in the market over the next year. | read more

ACCC cool on A&R WHITCOULLS' plan to acquire rival BORDERS

According to reports in Australia, Pacific Equity Partners, the private equity group behind A&R Whitcoulls, is believed to want to roll the combined operations of A&R Whitcoulls and Borders into a company it can float on the stock market. | read more

BEST BUY reveals roll out plans for Best Buy Mobile

Best Buy has announced that it will roll out 170 Best Buy Mobile instore departments and 10 more standalone stores by February 2008. Following positive results from a test of five standalone sites and eight instore shops in New York City this year, the chain feels confident enough to plan as many as 1,000 Best Buy Mobile locations by 2010. | read more

BLOCKBUSTER in talks with handset maker

Blockbuster has announced that it is in talks with all the major mobile phone makers about partnerships aimed at making it easier for consumers to watch movies on-the-go. | read more

DARTY offers online customers service guarantee

In France, Kesa-owned Darty has announced the launch of two new services. At its website Darty.com, clients are able to order goods online and then pick them up from a store of their choice within two hours. | read more

DSG's first half profits drop 25%

DSG has announced that its profit for the first half of 2007, which ended on 13 October, dropped 25% to GBP52.4 million (USD105.8 million) compared with GBP70.3 million (USD129.3 million) in the first half of 2006. | read more

JB HI-FI signs exclusive deal with Freshtel

In Australia, JB Hi-Fi has signed an exclusive deal with VoIP services and handset manufacturer Freshtel to distribute its internet phone products in the country. | read more

STAPLES' net income declines, but still profitable in Q3

Staples has announced the results for its third quarter ended 3 November, 2007. Total company sales increased 9% to USD5.2 billion compared to the third quarter of 2006. | read more