Ireland: Applegreen M&S Food partnership reaches milestone as new Tipperary Town store reopens
Applegreen, one of Ireland's leading roadside hospitality brands, has added a new Marks & Spencer Food "shop-in-shop" outlet at its Tipperary Town location. Local customers and those passing through the area will benefit from over 400 M&S products available in-store, including fresh fruit and salads, convenient and tasty lunch and dinner options, and high-quality fresh flowers.
Source: retailnews.ie
REWE earmarks €3bln to expand Penny in Romania
German retail group REWE has announced a €3bln, ten-year investment plan for the expansion of its Penny discount brand in Romania. Forty new stores are planned for 2025, along with the completion of its fifth warehouse in Mihăilești. The company aims to expand its current network from 417 stores to 1,000 by 2035, according to media reports.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Aldi slashes strawberry prices to back British growers
Aldi is encouraging shoppers to Buy British produce by slashing the price of its home-grown strawberries in stores. The discounter is cutting the price of its Nature's Pick strawberries by 20% for two weeks from 24 April until 7 May. Aldi UK chief commercial officer Julie Ashfield said: "We work closely with British growers all year round to be able to provide our customers with great quality produce at unbeatable value. It's thanks to our strong, long-term relationships that we can bring even better value to shoppers this spring, offering the very best of British strawberries at a standout price earlier than ever".
Source: grocerygazette.co.uk
Carrefour keeps 2025 goals, French sales improve in Q1
Carrefour, Europe's largest food retailer, reported higher first quarter sales that reflected solid sales in Brazil and an improving performance in its core French market where the company has cut prices to lure cash-strapped shoppers. Sales reached 22.674bln euros ($25.78bln) in the first quarter, marking like-for-like growth of 2.9%. In the French market, sales declined 1.7% like-for-like in the quarter but showed a sequential improvement from a 2.1% decline in the fourth quarter 2024.
Source: reuters.com
Industry first as Tesco partners with GS1 UK to test out QR codes in place of traditional barcodes in select stores
As part of an expanded pilot, Tesco is trialling QR codes powered by GS1 in a small number of stores. This replaces traditional barcodes on 12 own brand meat and produce lines in a small number of locations across southern England. Developed in collaboration with GS1 UK and ten supplier partners, the initiative is primarily focused on capturing use by dates and batch numbers. This is pitched as the first trial of its kind and scale by a UK supermarket.
Source: retailtechinnovationhub.com
Japanese supermarket sales up for fifth straight year in fiscal 2024
Supermarket sales in Japan in fiscal 2024 rose 1.4% from the previous year on a same-store basis, up for the fifth consecutive year, the Japan Chain Stores Association said. Sales at all stores totaled ¥12,764.3bln.
Source: japantimes.co.jp
Sweden: Axfood reports double-digit growth in retail sales in first quarter
Axfood has reported retail sales growth of 15.7% year on year, to SEK 18.8bln (€1.7bln), in the first quarter of its financial year. Excluding City Gross, which the company acquired in 2024, retail sales increased 3.0%, the company noted. Net sales for the quarter grew 3.9%, to SEK 21bln (€1.9bln), while operating margin stood at 3.4%. Net profit for the period amounted to SEK 453mln (€41.3mln) and earnings per share before dilution was SEK 2.09.
Source: esmmagazine.com
UK: Fresh Direct launches 25 new products for summer
Fresh Direct has announced the introduction of 25 new products as part of its summer season launch. British produce spearheads the impressive list of new products, extending the range of premium tomatoes from Isle of Wight Tomatoes with the launch of Mixed Heritage Tomatoes, while Fresh Direct is also introducing a vertically-grown, British-produced Zesty Salad bag as part of its 'Taste Like Summer' launch.
Source: wholesalemanager.co.uk
Greengrocer flogging UK's most expensive apples for eye-watering sum as rival scoffs 'are you serious?'
A greengrocer is flogging Britain's most expensive apples - for £15 each. The fruit, flown in by Notting Hill Fish + Meat Shop from Japan, costs the equivalent of nearly £42 a kilo - 14 times the price at a market stall within half a mile. A melon - also imported from the Far East - will set shoppers back almost £100, while a punnet of extra-large grapes is £80.
Source: thesun.co.uk
7-Eleven owner says will need to cut costs as US tariffs hit consumer confidence
Seven & I Holdings, the owner of 7-Eleven convenience stores, said it expects it will have to take a hard look at its supply chain and rein in costs as U.S. consumers grapple with the impact of U.S. tariffs.
Source: reuters.com
Canada: Empire announces Michael Medline's intention to retire in May 2026
Empire Company Limited and its wholly-owned subsidiary Sobeys Inc. ("Empire" or the "company") announced that Michael Medline, President and Chief Executive Officer has informed them of his intention to retire from the company in May 2026, allowing the Board of Directors to conduct a thorough internal and external search for his replacement.
Source: newswire.ca
The Fresh Market keeps expanding across the U.S.
Following two high-profile store openings in the Chicagoland area last month, The Fresh Market has taken its ribbon cutting on the road. The grocer opened locations in Jensen Beach, Florida, and Wethersfield, Connecticut, marking its 170th and 171st stores, respectively. Both new locations feature high-quality meat and seafood options, fresh produce, ready-to-cook, heat and eat meals, a curated selection of local products, global specialty items, private label offerings, and more.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Aldi introduces itself to Las Vegas and gets ready to add 14 stores in FloridaAldi plans to open more than 225 stores in 2025, marking the most store openings in a single year for the German discount grocer. The Batavia, Illinois-based retailer entered the Las Vegas market for the first time, debuting two new locations. The stores opened at 621 Marks St. in Henderson, Nevada, and at 2106 W. Craig Road in North Las Vegas. A third store is set to open in May at Rainbow Boulevard and Arby Avenue.
Source: supermarketnews.com
Expect Walmart's 650 remodels to follow its Store of the Future format
Walmart announced earlier this year that it plans to remodel more than 650 stores across 47 states and Puerto Rico. The Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer said the refresh will follow its Store of the Future concept.
In other news: Walmart releases 2025 Annual Report and Proxy Statement.
Source: supermarketnews.com
Lidl US is bringing its iconic quality to Brooklyn as part of the brand's growing presence in New York
Lidl US reported: "We're opening a new Lidl US location at 490 Fulton Street, Second Floor, Brooklyn, New York, 11201 on Friday, May 23. If you miss our grand opening celebration, don't worry - our Brooklyn store will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily".
Source: mediacenter.lidl.com