News

Bacchi named chief information officer at Choice Logistics
Robert Bacchi, Choice Logistics’ SVP of information systems has been named the company’s EVP and chief information officer. Bacchi will continue to report to Michael Katz, CEO of Choice.
Delhaize to sell Bottom Dollar stores to Aldi for $15 million
Brussels, Belgium -- Delhaize Group has signed an agreement to sell its Bottom Dollar Food stores to deep-discount grocer Aldi Inc. for approximately $15 million, including the assumption of associated lease liabilities. The transaction, which involves 66 Bottom Dollar stores in the greater Philadelphia and Pittsburgh markets, is expected to result in an asset impairment and other charges for Delhaize Group of approximately $180 million.

ADM promotes its president to CEO

Archer Daniels Midland Company has appointed Juan R. Luciano the next CEO and also has elected him to the company’s board of directors, effective immediately. Luciano previously served as company’s president and COO responsible for leading and running the company’s global operations.

Luciano succeeds Patricia Woertz, who will continue in the role of ADM’s chairman of the board and is expected to retire in May 2016.
Survey: Free shipping makes consumers more likely to shop online

Jeffersonville, Ind. -- A majority of consumers (88%) say free shipping makes them more likely to shop online, while 30% shop online to find the best deal possible and 20% to avoid holiday crowds, according to a new survey from omnichannel customer engagement technology vendor Accent. Other notable findings include:
IBM predicts record mobile holiday sales

IBM is forecasting a record holiday season heavily influenced by digital sales. IBM research based on digital analytics predicts a total online sales increase of more than 15% over a 5-day period between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday.

The biggest increase in online sales is expected on Cyber Monday with a predicted 15.8% increase over the last year, followed closely by Thanksgiving with an increase of 15.6%
ShopRunner in partnership with Alipay for U.S. retailers

Mateo, Calif. -- ShopRunner announced a new partnership with Alipay which will pave the way for Chinese online shoppers to buy directly from U.S. retailers’ ecommerce sites. Alipay is China's leading e-payments provider and is widely used by hundreds of millions of Chinese online shoppers.
Whole Foods healthier than thought

The nation’s leading natural and organic grocer proved its doubters wrong with a better than expected fourth quarter earnings report, a rosy outlook for the coming year and dedication to a long-term growth strategy.
Guest Commentary: Retailers Prepare for Same-Day Shipping Options on Cyber Monday

Dan McNutt, Retail, Exel With the holiday season right around the corner, the coveted shopping season is even closer with Black Friday and Cyber Monday merely weeks away. In years past, holiday shopping was targeted to brick and mortar, Black Friday foot traffic, but with the steady boom in e-commerce, the shopping frenzy is now taking place in the digital world as well.
Target names GM exec to new role

Jacqueline Hourigan Rice will join Target Dec. 1 as the retailer’s SVP of risk and compliance after holding a similar role at General Motors.

In her new role Rice will assume some responsibilities previously held by Ann Scovil who retired in March as vp of assurance, risk and compliance. Rice will also have responsibility for corporate security and Target’s suppliers. She will report directly to Target CEO Brian Cornell who joined the company in August.
Tech Guest Viewpoint: Application Management Improves Cybersecurity

By Jason Ausburn and Karl Fruecht You’ve acquired a new storefront. While doing your final walk-through, you notice an unlocked door that opens to a side alley. You can’t use the alley for storage. It doesn’t give your customers an additional entrance. It’s just an additional access point. How are you going to secure it?