Supply Chain & Merchandising

The nation’s largest supermarket retailer is stealing customers from Whole Foods Market.    That’s according to a report by Cincinnati Business Courier, which cites a new study by Barclays investment analyst Karen Short.    Whole Foods has lost up to 14 million customers during the past six quarters, according Short.    

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings Inc. is on track for store growth in 2017.   The retailer, which beat the Street in the fourth quarter, ended the year with a total of 234 stores in 19 states, an increase of 15.3% year over year. It expects to open 33 to 35 stores in 2017, with no planned closures.   Ollie’s reported fiscal fourth-quarter net income increased 52% to $24.4 million, surpassing Wall Street expectations.   

The online giant is about to break ground on another fulfillment center.   The new facility, which will be more than 1 million sq. ft., will be located in Clear Brook, Virginia. The fulfillment center will employ more than 1,000 full-time associates who will be responsible for picking, packing and shipping larger customer items, such as big-screen televisions, kayaks and patio furniture.  

Things are looking up at RH (formerly known as Restoration Hardware) which capped a busy year with better-than-expected results for its fourth quarter.    RH reported that revenue fell 9% to $586.7 million in the fourth quarter, beating analysts’ estimates.    

A growing supermarket retailer in the Adriatic region has deployed a solution to better manage its disparate inventory levels.   Konzum, part of the 2,000-store Agrokor group with 2,000 stores in the Adriatic region, has been expanding its footprint through accelerated acquisitions have accelerated Konzum’s growth.  But the strategy has created a diversified store network, each with different store layouts and inventories. These issues also force the grocery chain to manage disparate inventory files, and deal with order exceptions.

The pizza chain is getting ready to introduce the newest member of its delivery team.   Through its partnership with Starship Technologies, Domino’s will begin using wheeled robots to deliver pizza in Hamburg, Germany. The first deliveries could begin in the next two months, according to ReCode.   

On March 7, Edward Stack, CEO and chairman of Dick’s Sporting Goods, announced the company is dropping 20% of its brand offerings. This news is part of a larger redirection for the sporting goods retailer, one designed to optimize its inventory for increased sales.