Convenience Stores

Hurricanes Harvey and Harvey had a similar impact on retail sales and the toll was significant on online spending as well as spending in physical stores.  

Amazon is upping its restaurant delivery program in a move to add some of the nation's best-known chains to its menu.   Olo, a New York-based food delivery service, announced that it is integrating Amazon Restaurants’ delivery service into its ordering platform. The collaboration potentially gives the online giant access to 200 restaurant brands, including Chipotle, Denny’s, Five Guys Burgers & Fries and Jamba Juice, among others.    

If traditional supermarket retailers want to become online destinations for grocery, they need to step up their digital shopping experiences.   In fact, shoppers rated their overall satisfaction ordering food and grocery items online highest with Amazon (4.63 on a five-point scale where five is highest), followed by Walmart (4.41). Supermarkets/food stores trailed behind with a rating of 4.32.  

Three restaurants and a hotel claimed four of the seven new out-parcels The Market at Czech Hall in Oklahoma City.   Developer GBT Realty announced that Hooters, Arby’s, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen, and Sleep Inn have signed leases at the 160,000-sq.-ft. “regional neighborhood center” on Interstate 40.  

Aldi is making it easier for customers to pay for purchases.   The fast-growing deep-discount grocer now accepts all forms of contactless payment, including Apple Pay, Google Wallet and Android Pay. All options are available across Aldi’s nearly 1,700 stores nationwide.   Shoppers can pay for their groceries by tapping their contactless-enabled bank card, smartphone or other wearable device on a dedicated payment terminal.   

Walmart is changing the way it stocks merchandise in its small-format Neighborhood Market Stores.     In a blog on its website, the discounter announced that in more than 430 of its Neighborhood Market stores that are already closed overnight, it is shifting overnight stocking hours to the daytime and using technology to make the inventory management process easier. The retailer said it initially piloted day-stocking in 50 stores in and around the Tampa and Dallas areas with "very encouraging" results. 

Grocers that offer digital resources on e-commerce sites are positioned to attract, convert and retain online customers going forward.   This was according to “Beyond the Supermarket Shelves: How Consumers are Navigating the Grocery Shopping Experience Online and In-store,” a report from PowerReviews.  

Walgreens Boots Alliance is reportedly tweaking its previously announced deal with Rite Aid Corp.