Logistics

Hangzhou, China - Alibaba Group is providing the Chinese arm of a major global CPG company direct access to the Chinese consumer market. Alibaba and Unilever China are launching a comprehensive strategic partnership focused on areas including rural China penetration, cross-border e-commerce, Big Data-driven advertising, and supply chain optimization.

This agreement builds on a partnership that started five years ago with a single Tmall store. Through this strategic partnership, Alibaba Group and Unilever China will work together to:

San Francisco - Instacart  is expanding a program that lets some contract workers become part-time employees. The online grocery delivery service is now offering its contractor in-store shoppers in Houston and Austin, Texas, the option of applying for new employee roles with expanded responsibilities.

Cincinnati — The Kroger Co. is sustaining efforts to be more environmentally sound and humane in its business practices.

The grocery giant released its 2015 sustainability report, which included 33,000 tons of waste recycled at 1.061 stores in 2015, a 12% year-over-year increase.

Other highlights from the report include:

Few retailers make as big an impact on the environment as Kroger, but the high performing supermarket chain has made huge progress against sustainability priorities during the past decade and now is ready to take on a new set of goals.

The company released its 2015 Sustainability Report on July 17, which chronicles progress made during the past nine years and establishes new directional priorities.

Washington, D.C. - The National Retail Federation (NRF) and more than 100 other business groups are formally calling for passage of legislation that would require the Transportation Department to track port statistics.

In a letter addressed to John Thune (R-S.C.), chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, the NRF and its allies said this would help prevent a repeat of the congestion and slowdowns that occurred along the West Coast during the labor dispute resolved earlier this year.

Dollar Tree Inc. has promoted one of its senior executives to be its next chief operating officer.

The company announced that Michael Witynski has been named COO and be responsible for store operations of Dollar Tree bannered stores in the United States, real estate for Dollar Tree bannered stores in the U.S. and all retail operations and real estate in Canada.

New York -- A former chief information officer at Walmart is joining retail technology firm Newgistics.

Gene Wojciechowski has been named CIO of Newgistics, where he will be tasked with providing executive leadership and strategic direction for all of Newgistics’ core technology operations.

West Chester, Pa. - QVC will open a state-of-the-art distribution center in Ontario, California. When the new facility begins operation in third quarter 2016, it will serve as a West Coast distribution hub for QVC.

As QVC ramps up operations, the center is expected to employ more than 500 team members by 2018. QVC anticipates hiring approximately 1,000 team members in total by 2020 as the distribution center expands fulfillment to all product categories.