All articles by Planet Retail – Page 30
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Ikea plans first Croatian store
Home furnishings retailer Ikea plans to open its first store in Croatia at the end of 2013, the Croatian Times reported.Following a meeting with company officials, the Swedish ambassador to Croatia, Fredrik Vahlquist, said long-term plans included the opening of two more stores in Rijeka and in the Dalmatian city ...
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Metro Group’s Real hypermarkets to lose chief executive
Joël Saveuse, the chief executive of Metro Group’s Real hypermarkets business, has stepped down and will leave the business on March 31. Saveuse was reportedly considered for the group chief executive role when Dr Eckhard Cordes stepped down last October but then chief finance officer Olaf Koch was appointed.
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Amazon begins trial with Poste Italiane
Amazon has begun a trial with the Italian postal service, Poste Italiane, to deliver goods from Amazon.it and accept credit card payments on delivery, it has been reported. As part of a test operating from 6,500 post offices, postal workers are being equipped with palm-sized card-reading devices.The pilot, which began ...
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Lowe’s uses Vitrue to link Pinterest and Facebook pages
Lowe’s has linked its Pinterest presence to its Facebook page through a new tool from social marketing firm Vitrue, it has been reported.A custom Pinterest tab on the Lowe’s Facebook page automatically pulls content and activity from its Pinterest site.Fans can see the home improvement chain’s various Pinterest boards, become ...
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H&M to open Cos store in Warsaw
Clothing retailer H&M has revealed it will open a Cos store in Warsaw, Poland, this summer.It will be in the Mysia 3 development near the central Wolf Bracka district. Trading from two floors and 5,382 sq ft, it will carry the full collection – women’s, men’s and childrenswear.There are 46 ...
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Hard discounter BIM to enter Egypt
Hard discounter BIM says it will enter Egypt in the first half of 2013. Investments are planned to reach TRY25m (£8.7m) by 2014, according to Today’s Zaman. Algeria would also be of interest, the retailer said.During 2011, BIM’s net sales for the full year climbed 24.6% to TRY8.19bn (£ 2.8bn) ...
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Carrefour launches transactional smartphone app
Carrefour has launched a transactional smartphone application in its home market. Using the My Carrefour shopping tool, customers can log in to their account on Carrefour.fr and select products either by using a keyword search or scanning the barcode on an item.Shoppers can choose whether they would like to have ...
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Mercadona reports gross sales increase
Mercadona’s gross sales rose 8.2% to E17.8bn (£14.98bn) in 2011 over 2010. Net income increased 19% to E474m (£398.8m).The retailer invested approximately E540m (£454m) in opening a total of 46 new stores and hired 6,500 new employees in 2011, bringing the total to 70,000. Mercadona said it is ready to ...
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Foot Locker updates strategic plans
Foot Locker has updated on its strategic plan for the period 2012 to 2016. In 2010, the retailer outlined a five-year plan to achieve sales of $6bn (£3.84bn) and $400 (£256) sales per gross square foot, up from $360 (£230) that year. Foot Locker has set out new financial objectives ...
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Target plans fresh food addition to stores
Target plans to add fresh food to more than 100 stores this month. The remodels will result in a new 10,000 sq ft grocery department featuring fresh produce, fresh packaged meat and pre-packaged baked goods in addition to dry and frozen offerings. The revamps will be the first of three ...
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Walmart to consider China expansion
Walmart may consider acquiring local retailers in China as it expands into new regions. Walmart International chief financial officer Cathy Smith said: “There are whole provinces in China that we haven’t even begun to think about.”However, she added that acquisitions are generally Walmart’s least-preferred way of growing because they are ...
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Competition Appeal Court rejects Walmart and Massmart merger
The Competition Appeal Court has dismissed an application by the government to review the decision to approve the merger between Walmart and local retailer Massmart. According to Judge Dennis Davis, there was not enough evidence to conclude that public concerns regarding the impact on employment and small and medium-sized businesses ...
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Amazon seeks growth in Australia
Amazon is taking steps towards growing in Australia with the creation of a data centre for its Amazon Web Services operation. The etail giant is also “actively assisting” domestic retailers in selling on Amazon.com, according to Australia’s Professional eBay and ecommerce Sellers Alliance (PeSA). PeSA Australia president Shaun O’Brien said ...
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Penny updates refurbishment plans
Grocer Rewe’s discount division Penny has updated refurbishment plans in its domestic market. The discount division hopes to convert 600 stores to the new model this year following the recent start of the programme in Berlin and Cologne. The revamp is expected to be completed by the end of 2014. ...
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Grocer Delhaize reports profit decrease
Grocer Delhaize reported underlying operating profit down 10.2% to E935m (£789m) for the full year 2011. According to the retailer, the decline was due to soft sales and price investment in the US partly offset by cost savings across the group. Net profit slipped 17.4% to E475m (£400m) primarily as ...
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Metro’s cash and carry operation to launch online shop
Metro’s cash and carry operation in China is to launch an online shop for local business customers later this year. The assortment will include mainly ambient products although the business also plans to add non-food ranges in the future. In addition, the retailer intends to open at least 10 cash-and-carries ...
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Aeon to set up China headquarters
Japan-based Aeon is to set up its China headquarters in Beijing. The retailer is likely to expand its business operations in the country and diversify into property development, general financial services, speciality stores and supermarkets. President Motoya Okada said: “We aim to entrust local executives with management decisions.”Given the sluggish ...
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Gap opens its first store in Panama
Fashion retailer Gap has opened its first stores in Panama and plans to expand into Colombia, Uruguay and Peru as it increases its presence in Latin America over the next two years.The retailer opened one Gap store and a Banana Republic shop in Panama City, marking its first locations in ...
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Inditex to remodel its Zara fascia stores
Clothing retailer Inditex will remodel all its Zara fascia stores in its home market.The revamp of the 336 Zara and 159 Zara Kids stores is part of the retailer’s efforts to roll out a new brand image, which was launched at a store in the Marineda City mall, Corunna in ...
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Best Buy to lauch Perfect Match Promise
Best Buy is to launch its Perfect Match Promise, which consolidates the electricals retailer’s service offerings.The initiative dubbed ‘30.30.30’ in that customers get 30-day free phone support to get a product up and running, 30 days to return with no restocking fees and 30 days of competitor price matching.Senior vice-president ...