English news 29 novembre 2007

CARREFOUR products named on list of substandard goods in China

The Chinese government has published a blacklist of substandard products which includes drawing pens sold at Carrefour and toys and children's shoes sold at Wal-Mart. | read more

COSTCO selling live concert tickets

Costco has begun selling tickets to live concerts as part of a new partnership with Live Nation. This is the first time Live Nation, which owns and manages concert venues across the US, has distributed tickets through retail outlets. | read more

DELHAIZE looking to grow organically

Speaking at the group's annual investors conference, Craig Owens, the chief financial officer of Belgian supermarket chain Delhaize, told investors that the company is focusing primarily on organic growth rather than growth through acquisitions. | read more

DM plans 30 new store openings

As reported by Prager Zeitung, drugstore retailer dm drogerie markt is planning to open 30 new stores in the current business which began on the 1st October, driving its total number of stores up to 160. | read more

DOLLAR TREE gives FY sales guidance

Dollar Tree has announced that full year sales are expected to be in the range of USD4.25 billion to USD4.29 billion. Fourth quarter sales are forecasted to be in the range of USD1.31 billion to USD1.35 billion. | read more

Energy saving EL CORTE INGLÉS opens in Jaen

A new El Corte Inglés department store has opened in the centre of Spanish city Jaen. The store has a sales area of 85,000 square metres. The new store operates IT systems that ensure energy savings by regulating the entry of air from outside depending on weather conditions. | read more

Profit slump at PHARMACY CHAIN 36.6

Russia's Pharmacy Chain 36.6 has reported a net loss for the nine months to end September 2007, which the company blamed on disruption to its supply chain. | read more

PRESIDENT CHAIN STORE forms online joint venture

President Chain Store Corp has announced it has established a TWD174 million (USD5.3 million) joint venture with Japan's Rakuten to operate an online shopping portal. | read more

SAFEWAY workers may strike in N.California

Safeway workers in Northern California may strike if a new contract is not agreed by this weekend. The UFCW Local 8 is set to ask its members for a strike authorisation as early as Sunday, December 2, as the current contract, which covers 30,000 workers at 267 stores, expires on Saturday. | read more

SCHNUCKS unveils latest concept

As reported by Progressive Grocer, Schnucks will unveil its latest concept when its DeKalb Marketplace store opens in Missouri on December 4. The 5,388-square-metre store is a variation of a floor plan that recently debuted elsewhere in St. | read more

SYSTÈME U unveils plans for EMD buying group

Système U, which joined EMD in February 2006, has announced that it is working with three other members of the group to reinforce the Retail Group, an operational structure within EMD. | read more

Court approves THE WAREHOUSE bid in NZ

In New Zealand, Woolworths and Foodstuffs have both won court clearance in their long running battle to bid for The Warehouse Group. The court decision upheld an appeal by all three companies against an earlier ban on bidding by New Zealand's Competition Commission, which believed that any takeover of New Zealand's third largest retailer would damage competition in the market. | read more

  EEO (Entertainment, Electronics & Office Supply)

AMAZON expands Fresh service

Amazon has expanded its AmazonFresh grocery service in Seattle and is now giving away a free bag of produce in order to entice customers. The online grocery store delivers in Seattle's Montlake, South Lake Union, and West Seattle areas and home delivery is available to all people living in the zip codes 98004, 98007, 98008, 98033, 98039, 98040, 98102, 98109, 98116, and 98136. | read more

AMAZON wins customer privacy battle

US prosecutors have given up on their efforts to subpoena the names of thousands of people who have purchased used books on Amazon.com. Last year, as part of an investigation into the online book selling habits of a city official in Madison, Wisconsin, a federal grand jury subpoenaed records on 24,000 Amazon Marketplace sales between 1999 and 2003, including the names of thousands of buyers. | read more

ARGOS faces strike threat in Ireland

Retail staff at the Home Retail Group owned Argos chain are set to stage a one day strike over pay on Saturday. The strike could close the company's 31 Irish branches, unless talks at the National Implementation Body break the deadlock between management and the Mandate trade union. | read more

FNAC's première on TV

French electronics and entertainment retailer Fnac, owned by the PPR group, will make its debut on French television today. The advertisement will feature the retailer's new marketing slogan "Agitateur de curiosité". | read more

GOME to adopt no-commission sales model

According to reports from Reuters, GOME, China's biggest electronics retailer, plans to adopt a low-pressure, no-commission sales model similar to US based Best Buy's model. | read more

HMV top retailer in Canada

The Canadian music industry is now selling about half as many CDs as it did in 1999, according to figures from the Canadian Recording Industry Association. | read more

Saks enters into a license agreement with SANBORNS in Mexico

Retailer Saks has announced it has expanded its international presence by opening its first Saks Fifth Avenue store in Mexico. The company entered into a license agreement with Tiendas Internacionales, a wholly owned affiliate of Grupo Sanborns to locate and develop appropriate sites for potential Saks Fifth Avenue stores in Mexico. | read more