Supermarket/Grocery

Amazon isn’t wasting any time in entering the booming meal kit category.  

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has stepped up its efforts to combine physical retail with online in the supermarket space.   

The newest batch of start-ups are making their way to Minneapolis for the second annual Target + Techstars retail accelerator program.   After receiving applications from more than 3,000 technology start-ups — 70% of which had a co-founder who is either female or comes from an ethnically diverse background — Target whittled the list down to 10 finalists for this year’s tech accelerator. Companies range from online advertising to rebates to clothing alterations, and hail from Minneapolis to as far as Belgium.

Chain Store Age’s “Fastest-Growing Acquirer” for 2016 continues to be hard at it in 2017.   Phillips Edison has purchased Sierra Del Oro Towne Center in Corona, California, about midway between Los Angeles and Palm Springs, for $28.6 million, it was announced this week.  

Amazon has found a way to further expand its foothold in the grocery industry.   The online giant has submitted a trademark application that will enable it to enter the meal kits business. The move will directly rival meal kit provider Blue Apron, according to CNBC.  

When it comes to energy-efficient refrigeration systems, Sprouts Farmers Market is on the leading edge of technology.    Hillphoenix said it has installed the first CO2 Booster System with ejector technology in North America at Sprouts' store in Woodstock, Georgia. The supplier is the first manufacturer in North America to introduce the technology as developed by Danfoss in the marketplace.  

The queue-free checkout is dominating retail headlines these days. Amazon's recent deal with Whole Foods Market, when combined with the online giant's visionary Amazon Go concept, has everyone imagining a new and improved process across the organic chain’s hundreds of stores.   

The Marketplace at Potomoc Towne Center in Ranson, West Virginia, has been acquired for $35.9 million by Heidenberg Properties Group and Strategic Real Estate Partners (SERP) in a joint venture deal. The seller was Carl Freeman Companies of Rockville, Maryland.  

An uptick in college student enrollment will give a big boost to retailers' second biggest shopping season.    Combined back-to-school and back-to-college spending is projected to reach $83.6 billion, up more than 10% from last year’s $75.8 billion, according to the National Retail Federation’s annual survey conducted by Prosper Insights and Analytics.   

Walmart is making it easier for parents to stay on their game during this year's back-to-school shopping season.   According to the National Retail Federation, this year's season is expected to be a strong one and start early. Walmart is rolling out new services to help shoppers easily find what they are looking for — in stores and online.