To follow is a brief review of retail news from around the world:
January 4 – Future Group partners with Cognizant for FMCG arm FCL
IT major Cognizant has entered into a strategic partnership with Kishore Biyani-led Future Group to transform its FMCG arm Future Consumer Ltd (FCL) into a connected enterprise. Under the pact, the New Jersey-based firm will build a platform for FCL to simplify, automate and secure business processes, speed up collaboration and maximise synergies across all lines of business, the companies said in a joint statement. The platform will enable FCL to optimise its supply chain and improve business throughput, it added. Read more at India Times.
January 4 – Aeon Vietnam Launches Online Store
Aeon Vietnam has launched an online store, AeonEshop.com, offering discounted Japanese goods and local brands. The Japanese-headquartered retailer says its AeonEshop.com B2C platform in Vietnam will stock a majority of Japanese and imported products, along with Aeon’s own brand Topvalu which has been available at its physical stores nationwide. Products span various categories, including fashion, cosmetics, furniture, electronics, household items, food and office stationery. Similar to Aeon’s other eCommerce sites in the region, AeonEshop will provide discounts up to 50 per cent for specific product types. Ho Chi Minh City is the first market for AeonEshop with other Vietnamese cities to follow in the near future. The company plans to develop an English-language version and mobile app by mid-2017. See Retail News Asia.
January 5 – Carrefour to open major Middle East DC
Carrefour will open a major new distribution center for Carrefour at the National Industries Park (NIP) in Dubai, UAE, according to a Majid Al Futtaim company statement. The center, once operational, will be the largest and most advanced distribution hub of its kind for Carrefour in the region, said a statement from the company. The facility is constructed on a land area of 1.5 million sq. ft. and offers a built-up area of over 800,000 sq. ft., almost four times the size of Carrefour’s current largest distribution center building in the region, it said. For additional details, read ME Construction News.
January 5 – Fallabella – Mexico
Leading Chilean retailer Falabella is projecting investment of approximately US$4 billion over the next four years to expand operations in Latin America, particularly in Mexico, the company reported. Falabella operates department stores, home improvement stores, supermarkets and shopping centers in six Latin American countries and has reported plans to enter the Mexican market in association with Mexican retailer Soriana this year. More details in El Comercio.
January 12 – Chedraui – Mexico
Mexican grocery and general merchandise retailer Chedraui announced plans to open 25 new stores in the country in 2017. The chain’s expansion plans also include two new locations for its El Super format stores in the United States. See the article in Exprés for additional information.
January 12 – Lowe’s to Cut Thousands of Store Workers, Shuffle Jobs
Lowe’s Cos. is cutting thousands of workers and shuffling the jobs of thousands more, according to people familiar with the matter, as the home-improvement retailer tries to adapt to shifting shopping habits. For more, go to Wall Street Journal.
January 17 – Grupo Exito Begins 2017 with Expansion Projects
Grupo Éxito begins the year with two important real estate projects: the construction of two mega commercial centers in Antioquia and Boyacá. For the construction of the shopping center Viva Envigado, which is projected to be one of the largest in the country, Grupo Exito will invest at least 600 billion pesos. “There are more or less 137 thousand square meters of commercial area, including the store Homicienter, more or less more or less offering 280 commercial premises, is linked to Las Vegas Avenue and River Avenue and connected with The Medellín Metro, “said Carlos Mario Giraldo Moreno, president of Grupo Éxito. For its part, Viva Tunja will have 35 thousand square meters of commercial area and 140 merchants. Both will open their doors next year (2018). See America Retail.
January 18 – First freight train from China to Britain arrives in London
The first China-to-Britain freight train arrived in London on Wednesday after a 7,500-mile journey, marking a milestone in China’s push to build commercial links across Europe and Asia. The train pulled in to Barking, east London after an 18-day journey from Yiwu, a wholesale market town in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang. The consignment would have taken nearly twice as long to reach Britain by sea. For further reading, see Reuters.
January 23 – Crate & Barrel – Costa Rica
Crate & Barrel announced plans to invest US$4 million to open by mid-2017 its first store in Costa Rica. This will be the retailer’s first store in Central America. See the The Costa Rica Star for more details.
January 24 – Alibaba Group Raises Outlook as Revenue Surges
Buoyed by China’s insatiable online shoppers, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. posted a strong third quarter, raised its revenue outlook and said it would step up investments to expand its digital media and cloud businesses. Alibaba, which runs China’s most popular e-commerce websites Taobao and Tmall, said Tuesday that fiscal year 2017 sales would rise 53%, up from an earlier forecast of 48%. The Chinese e-commerce giant is riding the wave in the country’s online retail growth as internet purchases continue to outstrip overall retail sales. For more, see Wall Street Journal.
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