UK: M&S invests over £90mln in London stores, bringing seventeen new and improved stores and creating 450 local jobs
M&S reported: "Six new food halls are opening in Clapham, Covent Garden, Fulham Broadway, Putney, New Malden and Leytonstone and a further eleven stores are being renewed across London including a full refresh of the Pantheon on Oxford Street. The store in Clapham South has been renewed with a fresh look including a revamped produce section with a wider selection of fresh fruits and vegetables, ambient and frozen sections twice the size and a larger bakery".
Source: corporate.marksandspencer.com
UK: Futureproofing convenience the focus at SPAR Inspire retailer event
Almost 600 delegates heard category success stories and case studies of redefining store offers at James Hall & Co. Ltd's SPAR Inspire retailer event. Held at Harrogate Convention Centre, an insight-rich agenda was put together to support SPAR independent retailers to futureproof their business in the changing world of convenience retail.
Source: jameshall.co.uk
Ireland: New Lidl store in Carndonagh officially open
Supermarket Lidl opened the doors to its brand-new store in Carndonagh Co. Donegal, taking the retailer's store count to nine in the county and creating 30 new jobs for the local area.
Source: retailnews.ie
Network investments boost SPAR Hungary's FY 2024 turnover
SPAR Hungary saw a 4.8% year-on-year increase in turnover in its 2024 financial year to HUF1.11tln (€2.7bln), driven by investments in network expansion. The company invested over HUF5bln (€12.2mln) to open two new SPAR supermarkets (in Békéscsaba and Hajdúböszörmény) and modernise nine Interspar hypermarkets and seven supermarkets.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Italian ecommerce grew 6% in 2024
Online sales reached a total of 85.4bln euros in Italy last year. Compared to a year earlier, this is an increase of 6%. These data come from the 19th annual report about ecommerce in Italy by Casaleggio Associati.
Source: ecommercenews.eu
Ukraine: Novus opens third new supermarket in 2025
The Novus supermarket chain will open a new store in Kyiv's BalticSky shopping center (23a Baltiysky Street), this is the third opening of the chain's establishment in 2025, the company's press service reported. The assortment includes more than 17,500 product items focused on daily needs: from fresh vegetables, fruits, meat to ready-made culinary dishes.
Source: en.interfax.com.ua
"TOP 500 B2C Cross-Border Retail Europe": An annual ranking of the TOP 500 European cross-border online shops
Cross-Border Commerce Europe, a leading platform fostering cross-border e-commerce throughout Europe, has released a comprehensive research paper. This annual report ranks the top 500 European e-commerce players, focusing on their cross-border performance. The TOP 10 "Elite" European etailers for 2024 are: TOP 1: IKEA; TOP 2: Lidl; TOP 3: H&M; TOP 4: Zalando; TOP 5: Jysk; TOP 6: Notino; TOP 7: Lego; TOP 8: Adidas; TOP 9: Decathlon; TOP 10: Zara.
Source: cbcommerce.eu
Spar Scotland launches 'Discover…' campaign
Spar Scotland has unveiled its new Discover Spar Scotland campaign, a six-month initiative designed to highlight the unique benefits of joining Spar and working with CJ Lang & Son. The campaign aims to drive awareness, engagement, and business growth opportunities among independent retailers who have yet to partner with Spar Scotland.
Source: talkingretail.com
Sainsbury's urges UK government to close 'de minimis' duty loophole
The British government should move at pace to end a duty exemption which allows shipments worth up to 135 pounds ($179) to be imported from overseas without incurring customs duty, the boss of supermarket Sainsbury's said. Britain's retail industry has expressed concern about the risk of lower quality goods being rerouted from the United States to Europe as a result of President Donald Trump's tariffs and wants the government to review the so-called "de minimis" rules.
Source: reuters.com
US: Save Mart cuts prices on thousands of grocery items
The Save Mart Companies has introduced a substantial price reduction campaign, cutting costs on more than 4,000 grocery items in Save Mart and Lucky stores throughout California and Nevada. The Save Mart Companies shoppers will now find thousands of items marked with red "Lower Price" tags across every department, including produce, meat, dairy, frozen, bakery, deli, floral and pantry essentials.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Walmart opens new distribution center in Jacksonville, Florida
Walmart reported: "Associates, elected officials and community members celebrated the grand opening of a new 1mln-square-foot distribution center in Jacksonville. The facility located at 1511 Zoo Parkway, receives and processes items for delivery to 18 Sam's Club locations across Florida, Georgia and South Carolina as well as seven clubs in Puerto Rico. Located just 10 minutes from the Port of Jacksonville, the facility also stores and sorts imported goods for delivery to four distribution centers across the Southeast".
Source: businesswire.com
US: Whole Foods Market announces annual Supplier All-Star Awards
Whole Foods Market reported: "The 16 brands recognized exemplify excellence through quality, innovation, value, reliability and sustainability, while supporting Whole Foods Market's purpose to nourish people and the planet: Acme Smoked Fish Co.; Aurora Organic Dairy; Café Spice; Driscoll's; E&E Foods, Inc.; Golden West Food Group; Homegrown Organic Farms; Jovial Foods, Inc.; Laoban; Siggi's; TCHO; Teton Waters Ranch; The Campbell's Company; Tony's Chocolonely; Vive Organic; Willamette Valley Pie Company".
Source: media.wholefoodsmarket.com
US: Walmart, Target among retailers bracing for another boycott this holiday weekend
Shopper boycotts have been ongoing for the past couple of months and are expected to continue this holiday weekend under the banner of Economic Blackout 2.0. The protest -organized by People's Union USA, which also led earlier boycotts involving Walmart and Target - is set to begin on Good Friday and run through Easter Sunday. The campaign targets all retailers, protesting what organizers call corporate greed.
Source: supermarketnews.com