News

Faith Popcorn: McDonald’s profits from serving people, not burgers
Chain Store Age recently had the chance to speak with noted consumer trend expert Faith Popcorn, founder and CEO of marketing consulting firm Faith Popcorn’s BrainReserve, about steps McDonald’s can take to reverse its struggling fortunes. Popcorn’s insights come on the heels of McDonald’s reporting a 33% year-over-year drop in profits for first quarter 2015.

Bigger Isn’t Always Better
According to Popcorn, McDonald’s vast size is not necessarily an asset anymore.
Hy-Vee launches online shopping service
Hy-Vee is joining the legion of grocery chains with online ordering, delivery and store pickup.

According to KCCI-TV in Des Moines, Iowa, the regional supermarket is rolling out a service called Aisles Online in select stores.

The news site quotes Hy-Vee as saying that the average order has about 30 items and takes a worker about a half-hour to compile. The items are scanned, loaded up and delivered. Or customers can pick them up at the store. Delivery costs $4.95 per order, and pick-up costs $2.95 per order, with the charges dropped for orders of $100 or more.

NRF, RILA: Micro-union decision made in error

The National Retail Federation (NRF) and Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) have filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals saying the National Labor Relations Board’s decision to recognize a “micro-union” of workers in a single department at a Macy’s store in Massachusetts was incorrect.
Chilly weather nips Container Store profits

Winter storms and lower sales of its Elfa closet system led to decreased profit for the Container Store in the fourth quarter.
Family Dollar board member dies

Family Dollar Stores Inc. has announced the passing of Mark R. Bernstein, a member of the company's board of directors, on April 27.
Petco expands partnership with Instacart

Leading specialty retailer Petco has expanded home delivery with Instacart.
Shoppers flocking to Supervalu's stores

Cost-conscious consumers are continuing to seek out bargains at Supervalu's stores, prompting the company's profit to soar 50% in the fourth quarter.
Overstock.com's growth slows down in Q1

The CEO of Overstock.com says the majority of its sales are coming from mobile as the Internet retailer reported a $1.2 million decrease in profit for the first quarter.
Toys“R”Us unveils omnichannel campaign for 'Star Wars'

Toys“R”Us and Toysrus.com are set to bring customers to a galaxy far, far away with a year-long omnichannel celebration in honor of the epic Star Wars saga.
Amazon takes aim at the B2B market

Amazon may be looking to grab a piece of the B2B pie from retailers such as Staples by launching an Amazon Business marketplace stocked with hundreds of millions of business products.

The e-commerce giant says Amazon Business customers will also benefit from free two-day shipping on tens of millions of eligible items, multi-user business accounts, approval workflow, payment solutions, tax exemptions, dedicated customer support and much more.
Trust tops agenda for retail/CPG execs

When CEOs from Walgreens, Procter & Gamble, PepsiCo and other global leaders gather in New York in late June for the Consumer Goods Forum’s Annual Summit, one of the thorny issues to be addressed is that people don’t trust them to do what is right.
Sam's Club card lauded once again

Sam’s Club’s MasterCard 5-3-1 Cash Back program, which has created keen customer engagement and memorable customer experiences since it launched less than a year ago, has won more awards.

The program, featuring a co-branded MasterCard including chip-enabled technology issued by Synchrony Bank pursuant to a license by MasterCard International Incorporated, won a silver award in the Customer Experience & Engagement category; a bronze award in the Creative Campaign category and a silver in the 360 Degree Loyalty Award for Excellence in North America.