Supermarket/Grocery

Brussels, Belgium -- Delhaize Group has signed an agreement with Tropic Group B.V. to divest all of its 39 Bosnian & Herzegovinian stores. Tropic Group B.V. is an entrepreneurial organization founded by retail executive Bojan Risović.

The transaction is expected to complete in third quarter 2014, subject to regulatory approval and working capital adjustments. Terms were not disclosed. Delhaize originally purchased the stores from Serbian retailer Delta Maxi in 2011.

Matthews, N.C. -- Family Dollar is expanding its food assortment with the introduction of more than 400 new food items in each of its more than 8,000 stores across the country.

"At Family Dollar our focus is on our customer," said Jason Reiser, Family Dollar executive VP and chief merchandising officer, in a statement. “It’s important for us to constantly evaluate our assortment, making sure that we have the products and national brands that are relevant to her and her family, always at a great everyday value."

Pacoima, Calif. — A new Vallarta Supermarket will open in Oxnard, Calif., on April 2. It will be Oxnard’s second Vallarta. The 64,000-sq.-ft. location will house a bakery, full-service meat counter, fresh produce, and a hot food deli with in-store dining.

Founded in 1985, Vallarta Supermarkets is an independent chain with 43 locations throughout California.

Austin, Texas -- Whole Food Market will purchase four stores from New Frontiers Natural Marketplace. The stores, which average 22,000 sq. ft., are located in Flagstaff, Prescott and Sedona, Ariz.; and San Luis Obispo, Calif. The two companies expect the transaction to be finalized in the next few weeks.

The stores will continue to operate under the New Frontiers Natural Marketplace banner until they are re-signed as Whole Foods Market stores.

It’s official. Loblaw has completed its acquisition of Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation, which is now a separate operating division of Loblaw.

"The most successful partnerships are grounded in strengths that complement each other," said Galen G. Weston, executive chairman, Loblaw. "Loblaw and Shoppers Drug Mart are perfect partners. We will drive growth and profitability through our unmatched mix of store formats, products and offerings. This is truly a case of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts."

Oceanside, Calif. — Doerken Properties Inc. has acquired Flags on Mission Shopping Center in Oceanside, Calif., for $12.6 million. El Super grocery and dd’s Discounts anchor the 107,600-sq.-ft. property.

The Carlsbad, Calif., office of Lee & Associates brokered the transaction representing both the buyer and the seller, Mission Avenue Investors.

New York -- Pinterest, more than Facebook or YouTube, is supplying the greatest percentage of downstream traffic to retail sites, according to new research from Experian Marketing Services. The company’s 2014 “Digital Marketer: Benchmark and Trend Report” also reveals that after visiting Facebook, YouTube or Pinterest, consumers go to Amazon.com more frequently than any other retailer website.

Here’s how the downstream traffic from social media sites to retail sites shapes up in the Experian report:

WTI expects April 2014 to trend the coldest in five years and drier than last year for the U.S. as a whole. Warmer year-on-year temperature trends in the Central states will be sandwiched in between colder trends on the East and West coasts. A more active severe weather season than last year in the South Central states can be expected, especially across parts of Texas and Oklahoma. Storm cleanup supplies and plastic sheeting will see increased demand in harder hit areas.