Supermarket/Grocery

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid has appointed David Kelly as group VP construction, the retail pharmacy chain said Monday.

Kelly, who has worked in real estate and development for more than 25 years, will start work May 31 and will have overall responsibility for all store planning and construction services, in addition to having a role in various segmentation initiatives such as Wellness stores, value stores and co-branded Save-A-Lot Rite Aid stores, reporting directly SVP, CFO and chief administrative officer Frank Vitrano.

Rochester Hills, Mich. -- Birmingham, Mich.-based Robert B. Aikens & Associates LLC announced the addition of two new tenants, Portrait Innovations and Flat Top Grill, to its Village of Rochester Hills lifestyle center project in Rochester Hills, Mich.  

The Village of Rochester Hills Portrait Innovations location, which opened May 10th, is the company’s eighth store in Michigan.  Flat Top Grill will replace Baja Fresh as one of the center’s nine eating establishments. 

New York -- Bombay Company said Kroger Co. has introduced select Bombay furniture, accessories and gifts at 180 of its stores, Furniture Today reported. 

The merchandise mix includes “mirrors, vases and novelty accents, as well as furniture pieces such as chairs, upholstered pieces, accent tables and iconic Bombay coffee tables," Bombay said in a release. 

Chelmsford, Mass. -- Kronos announced that Bi-Lo has renewed its contract for Kronos’ selection and hiring solution.

The Kronos solution is designed to allow Bi-Lo to identify candidates who are likely to perform better and stay longer. Also, hiring managers spend less time weeding out unqualified applicants and are able to fill positions more quickly.

Sales at Walmart’s international division increased 11.5% to $27.9 billion, aided to a large degree by a $1.3 billion currency exchange benefit, without which the sales increase would have been a more modest 6.2%.

It’s true. Sam’s Club smoked its first quarter same-store sales guidance that called for a 1% to 3% increase by hanging a 4.2% increase on the board and managed to grow operating profits by 7% to $459 million, easily outpacing the performance of Walmart’s U.S. stores and international division.

New York City -- Borders Group on Thursday said it planned to end its relationship with Seattle's Best Coffee and begin operating its own in-store cafes. 

The move will allow Borders to reduce licensing fees as it works toward emerging from bankruptcy, a spokeswoman said on Thursday, and also to tailor its menus to customer needs.

The company said in a filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan that it will seek the court's approval of the move to reject its leases with Seattle's Best.
 

FAIRFIELD, Conn. — The Stop & Shop Supermarket Company announced that it has finalized its acquisition of five New Jersey Shore-area Foodtown supermarkets previously owned by Norkus Enterprises Inc. The transaction involves stores in Freehold Township, Manalapan, Neptune City, Point Pleasant Beach and Long Branch. Stop &Shop currently operates 10 stores in Monmouth and Ocean counties.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart reported first-quarter earnings that were above the company's guidance, reflecting stability and strength in global operations, according to president and CEO, Mike Duke.

Walmart's net income was $3.4 billion, or 98 cents per diluted share, compared with net income of $3.3 billion, or 87 cents per diluted share. 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Winn-Dixie president, chairman and CEO Peter Lynch expressed confidence in the grocer as it heads into its fourth quarter, maintaining that the grocer's estimated adjusted EBITDA will come in at the lower end of the $100 million to $130 million range for fiscal 2011, a 52-week period ending June 29, in light of relatively flat third-quarter results.