September 30 – France’s Fnac Opens First Nature & Découvertes Shop-in-Shop
A few months after the accusation of a leading omnichannel retailer of products in the natural and well-being sector, Fnac opens its first shop-in-shop location. Article written in French From LSA Commerce & Consommation
September 30 – Germany’s Kaufland Expands Delivery Service in Romania
Kaufland has added locations outside of capital city, Bucharest, to its delivery in Romania. The retailer opened in Romania in 2005 and is operated by Germany’s Schwarz Group, which also owns the Lidl retail network in Romania. From Romania Insider
September 29 – Walmart Flipcart and Amazon India See Large Festival Sales
Walmart-backed Flipkart and Amazon India have both indicated record sales on the first day of sales in the festival season. From Live Mint
September 27 – UK’s Sainsburys Rolls Out Five-Year Plan Less than six months after the merger with Asda was blocked, Sainsburys has announced a new plan that touches on new openings, changes in product assortment and private label products. From The Grocer
September 25 – No Deal is Likely Between Amazon and Reliance Retail India
Although in exploratory talks for several months with Reliance Retail India, Amazon’s anticipated 10-25% minority stake in Reliance Retail is unlikely given the high valuation of Reliance’s business. From ET Retail
September 25 – New Zealand’s The Warehouse Increases Profits
The Warehouse Group has increased net profit by 25.6% to NZD 74.1 million during FY19, sighting higher sales and a higher gross margin. The Warehouse Group operates The Warehouse, Noel Leeming, The Warehouse Stationery, and Torpedo7. From Inside Retail
September 25 – UK’s Debenhams Expands in Middle East
In September, UK’s Debenhams opened one store in Oman and one store in Abu Dhabi, increasing its store count to 29 in eight Middle East countries. From Housewares Live
September 24 – Carrefour Partners with Basket.jo in Jordan A leading on-demand delivery retail application in Jordan, Basket.jo and Carrefour Jordan have joined forces with several Carrefour stores in the region. The partnership on paves the way for future collaborations with Carrefour planning to add 10 more Carrefour stores by the end of the year. From Zawya
September 20 – Hong Kong’s Watsons Adds 50 Stores in the Philippines
Adding to its current count of more than 780 outlets in the Philipines, Watsons plans to open an additional 50 stores in 2019. Watson is partnered with SM Prime Holdings in the Philippines since 2002. From Inside Retail
September 20 – Dutch Retailer Albert Heijn Adds Mobile Payment
The new service, which Albert Heijn indicates is a first of its kind in the Netherlands, allows users to pay for their online orders through a payment request instead of a PIN. From European Supermarket Magazine
September 19 – France’s Casino Likely to Sell Retailer Leder Price
France’s Casino is likely to sell its Leder Price to German competitor, Aldi, as a means to reduce debt burden. From European Supermarket Magazine
September 19 – Amazon Launches Amazon Hub Lockers in Japan
Amazon plans to open Amazon Hub Lockers in Tokyo and Kanagawa by the end of September and by the end of the year Amazon plan to expand these lockers to about 200 locations in Tokyo and Kanagawa. From Japan Times
September 17 – Co-op Expands Click & Collect
UK retailer Co-op and John Lewis have expanded their click and collect network trial to more than 50 stores. From Retail Insight Network
September 17 – UK’s John Lewis Reports 1.2% Sales Decline in First Half of 2019
UK retailer, John Lewis has reported a decline in sales in the first half of 2019. In addition, sales from John Lewis’ home department were down 10.7% due to annualizing a competitor price match event. From Retail Gazette
September 17 – Carrefour to Expand Presence in Central and Southern Italy
Through two franchising agreements, the French retailer will add more than 540 stores to the Carrefour Italia network after the new year. From European Supermarket Magazine
September 12 – SPAR Netherlands Opens New Distribution Center to Foster Growth of Stores SPAR Netherlands has 190 SPAR neighborhood supermarkets and 67 SPAR stores and 139 SPAR Express stores and plans to convert 21 Esso and 25 Texaco stores to the SPAR Express format. The new distribution center will allow increased storage and picking capabilities, as well as its operating efficiency to facilitate the growing number of SPAR stores in the Netherlands. From SPAR International
September 10 – Carrefour Polska Introduces Referral Discounts
In an effort to encourage online shopping and establish itself as the leader in grocery e-commerce, Carrefour’s stores in Poland are offering a referrals feature that affords shoppers large discounts for recommending online shopping to other customers. From European Supermarket Magazine
September 8 – Canada’s The Brick Takes Over Former Sears Location
The Brick, a furniture and appliance store, has opened a flagship store in a former Sears location at the West Edmonton Mall. The retailer will offer in-store experiences to shoppers at Canada’s largest shopping mall. From Global News
September 4 – Carrefour to Open Supeco Stores in France
Carrefour currently operates 23 Supeco stores in Spain, 15 in Romania, two in Poland, and one in Italy and plans to open two of its cash-and-carry discount stores in France. From Reuters
