OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

Kroger elevates two to division president roles
The retirement of Kroger’s Nashville division president Rick Going and the earlier appointment of a new Fred Meyer president gave the supermarket company the opportunity to elevate two other executives.
Macy’s creates two new C-level positions
Macy’s named longtime executive Peter Sachse to a new position with added responsibility for merchandising and said Justin S. MacFarlane joined the company as chief strategy, analytics and innovation officer.

The company said the changes were part of the company’s plan to, “aggressively to grow its omnichannel business based on intensive insight into evolving consumer preferences and changing shopping patterns.”

Vertical shoe retailer steps up store operations

For footwear manufacturer Red Wing Shoe Company, operating more than 500 stores is an added network complexity.

The Red Wing, Minnesota-based company also has a wider variety of in-store needs, such as operating a business-to-business sales environment as well as a direct-to-consumer channel, than many other retailers. Thus, when Red Wing decided to implement Oracle Retail Xstore POS software, it enlisted the help of system integration and development services provider BTM Global.
Cracker Barrel CEO joins Lowe's board

Lowe's has added a retail veteran to its board of directors who serves on the boards of Dollar General and Books-A-Million.

Lowe's announced that Sandra B. Cochran, 57, has been appointed to its board of directors, effective immediately. The announcement brings Lowe's board of directors to 13 members, 12 of whom are independent.
Report: Kroger asks alcohol producers to pay for shelf space

Kroger is changing the way it organizes beer, wine and liquor on its store shelves by asking a private distributor to charge alcohol companies for placement, according to a report from Time magazine. (Time)
New service brings home delivery to some Kroger customers

While Kroger has been offering a click and collect service at certain stores for about two years, outside of the Denver market home delivery has not been available. A new service aims to change that for some Kroger shoppers in its hometown of Cincinnati. [Cincinnati Business Courier]
How far have retailers come with EMV?

The intense focus directed on EMV compliance in fall 2015 has faded, but it is still a critical issue for the retail industry.

Away from the spotlight, progress in EMV compliance since the Oct. 1, 2015 mandate passed has moved more slowly than many in the industry may realize. According to a survey of 200 retail professionals conducted during the January 2016 NRF Convention by ACI Worldwide, the majority of respondents are not compliant.
Report: Wendy’s suffers possible data breach

Fast-food chain The Wendy’s Co. may be the first big retailer to suffer a public data security incident in 2016.

According to the Krebs on Security blog, Wendy’s is investigating possible fraudulent activity related to credit cards used at some of its store locations. Wendy’s was notified earlier this month by partners in the payment industry that unusual activity was occurring.
More Google drone details come to light

Google is being secretive about its “Project Wing” delivery drone program, but a patent filing gives some additional information about the effort. According to Fast Company, Google hopes to use remote wheeled delivery receptacles that will automatically guide drones to drop their packages. The receptacles will then complete the delivery on the ground. [Fast Company]
Walmart bottled water convoy heading to Flint

Walmart and three of the nation’s largest bottled water suppliers are coming to the aid of Flint, Michigan, residents who lack access to safe drinking water after the municipal water supply became tainted with lead.

Walmart, Coca-Cola, Nestlé and PepsiCo are sending 176 truckloads of water to Flint – roughly 6.5 million bottles – which is an amount estimated to meet the daily needs of more than 10,000 children for the rest of the year.