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Commentary and Discussion From the Retail Community
Nash Finch’s Marshall Can’t Sign Off on Report
Chief executive of Nash Finch, Ron Marshall, has written the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to inform regulators that he still can not sign off on the accuracy of the…
Independent’s Day Out
RetailWire Commentator Ron Margulis returns from this week’s NGA convention with renewed optimism over the future of the community-based supermarket retailer. “The unifying message of the convention was creating differentiation,”…
A Ludacris Situation
Russell Simmons of Run DMC fame has called on lovers of the music to boycott Pepsi-Cola products, saying there is a double standard in Pepsi’s decision to drop the performing…
Cola Wars Takes on New Meaning
Cola brands such Mecca Cola and Qibla Cola are seeking to take advantage of anti-American feelings in the Middle East and elsewhere to grab market share and make a political…
Convenience Store Chain Dropped the Ball
Cindy Sherlin was doing her civic duty when she called 911 from her job at a Wilco convenience store to alert police she had spotted a wanted fugitive in the…
Workers Sue Over Clothing Policies
Two separate lawsuits filed in San Francisco Superior Court allege that workers at Abercrombrie & Fitch and the Gap were pressured by the retailers to buy clothes sold in company…
Friday’s Look Good for Pathmark Shoppers
Consumer shopping habits have changed and beginning this week, Pathmark will alter the timing of its sales to reflect that. The NJ-based chain has announced that it will no longer…
Kohl’s Sale Rumored
A&P may reportedly be looking to sell 31 stores in Wisconsin operating under the Kohl’s grocery store banner. A&P has admitted publicly that it will consider selling assets to stay…
Sixty Percent Fail E. coli Test
The US Department of Agriculture said yesterday that 60 percent of the nation’s largest meat processing plants “failed to meet federal food safety regulations for preventing a deadly E. coli…
Auditors: Eddie Bauer in Trouble
Eddie Bauer, part of The Spiegel Group, has debts exceeding $1 billion and same-store sales fell 12 percent last year. How can Eddie Bauer keep its employees focused on the…
Wal-Mart Envy and Other Supermarket Issues
The announcement of the death of supermarkets may be premature, although that may be simply a matter of time if the grocery industry does not reinvent itself in a hurry…
Category Management Leads to Sameness
A Business 2.0 article, ‘Who’s Minding the Store?’, says category management may limit the ability of retailers to differentiate themselves from competitors. Are the critics correct? Is category management “the…
Study: Wal-Mart Pays Sam More than Samantha
An analysis of Wal-Mart’s payroll demonstrates the company pays men more than women for doing similar jobs. The payroll data is part of the discovery in a federal lawsuit alleging…
Independents Grow in Massachusetts
Big Y Foods, Demoulas and Roche Bros. all have something in common, says the Boston Business Journal. Each is a smaller independent chain thriving in New England despite competition from…
Albertsons to Sell Fair Trade Coffee
Albertsons Supermarkets will sell Fair Trade Certified coffee in its 140 stores in Oregon and Washington. The decision was prompted by letters sent to Albertsons during their recent ‘Dear Albertsons’…
Life Blurring
Employees surfing the web for personal reasons during work hours might be good for productivity, says an article in this month’s Business 2.0, while electronic monitoring of employees has led…
Analysts No Better Than Groundhogs Predicting Future
A column in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette contends that when it comes to predicting the future, Wall Street analysts and groundhogs looking for their shadows have a lot in common. What…
Heinz Baby Food is GMO Free
Heinz is being applauded by Greenpeace and others for guaranteeing it is not using any genetically modified ingredients in its baby foods. Heinz, along with Nestle, Mead Johnson and other…
Sell Duck and Then Duck
Industry statistics show duck consumption increased 11.5 percent between 1995 and 1998. Animal activists, however, have protested the handling of ducks farmed for their meat and foie gras and last…
Customers Rescue Kmart in PA
The Kmart store in Clinton County, Penn. was on the list of stores slated to close as the retailer seeks to emerge from bankruptcy, but Kmart has decided to keep…
The Receipts Have It: Men More Romantic
Seventy-five percent of men plan to buy a Valentine’s Day gift compared to 70 percent of women, according to a research study conducted for Wal-Mart. Men will also spend much…
