Amazon to launch Whole Foods delivery through Prime Now in Houston, 3 other cities

Seattle-based retail giant Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) is expanding another Prime perk to Houston.

Beginning June 26, Prime members in Houston will be able to order groceries and other items from Whole Foods Market through Prime Now and have them delivered in as little as an hour. The service also rolls out to Chicago, Minneapolis and San Antonio June 26, according to a press release.

Prime Now delivery from Whole Foods is available from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day through primenow.com or the Prime Now app.

Amazon first launched Prime Now delivery from Whole Foods in four cities in February. With the addition of Houston and the other three cities, the service is now available in 19 cities with more to come in 2018. It’s just one of the services Amazon has launched in the wake of its $13.7 billion acquisition of Austin-based Whole Foods last year and amid Prime membership growth.

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Source: Business Journal

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Minnesota Holidays

Land of 10,000 Lakes

Minessota

Minnesota is a land of contrasts. Here you can follow the secluded canoe trails of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, or have a houseboat adventure in Voyageurs National Park. There are Northwoods golf and spa resorts and more shoreline than California, Florida and Hawaii combined and the state also claims world class cities with internationally acclaimed arts, unique entertainment acts and venues, and profesuntry stars sional sports teams. The Minneapolis and Saint Paul metropolitan area has a thriving theatre scene with more seats per capita than anywhere outside New York. The Historic State and Orpheum Theatres in Minneapolis and the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in Saint Paul host Broadway productions as well as other musical acts. The highly regarded Guthrie Theater’s repertory company

stages Shakespeare and contemporary American playwrights. Internationally acclaimed rock, pop and cohold forth at the Target Center and Xcel Energy Center. World-class museums abound, such as the Minneapolis Institute of Art, Walker Art Center and Sculpture Garden, and the Weisman Art Museum and Science Museum.

Grand Portage and Pipestone National Monuments preserve the rich Ojibwe and Dakota American Indian and fur trapping heritage. Minnesota is home to the International Wolf Center, North American Bear Center and National Eagle Center.

Source: Visit USA

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Walmart’s Acquisition Of Flipkart Will Be A Good Deal For E-Commerce In India

The two biggest retailers in the world, Walmart and Amazon, are speculated to be in advance talks with Flipkart around a possible acquisition of a majority stake in India’s leading online retailer.

While such rumors have floated repeatedly in the last couple of years, Mint reports that Walmart has already completed due diligence procedures and is hoping to acquire a stake of 51% or more in Flipkart, with an investment of $10-12 billion — a deal that the report asserts is likely to succeed.

The great Indian dream

Launched in 2007 and envisioned as the ‘Amazon of India’ before the latter came to India, Flipkart has raised over $6 billion so far and is valued at about $14 billion.

Flipkart owns India’s largest online fashion retailers — Myntra and Jabong — both of which it acquired. Together, Flipkart-Myntra-Jabong has a 70 percent market share of the online fashion business in India. It also owns eBay’s India business as well as popular mobile payments app, PhonePe. With over 100 million users and these popular properties, Flipkart is a valuable asset in the global internet economy for its long-term potential.

India is a huge, yet relatively untapped, market that is growing rapidly. The country had 60 million online shoppers in 2016, which is only 14% of the internet user base in the country. This will rise to over 50% by 2026, according to a report by Morgan Stanley.

Experts also believe that 2019 could be an inflection point for India’s e-commerce market. It is believed that once a consumer has been online for over five years, they are more likely to buy online. Right now, that’s only 30% of India’s 432 million internet users because a bulk of the addition in the internet base has happened in the last three years — primarily piggybacking on the wave of growing smartphone adoption and affordability of mobile internet.

The huge potential of Indian e-commerce makes it an important market for any business looking to expand its global footprint. And that brings the two suitors — Walmart and Amazon — into the picture.

Walmart vs Amazon: The race to retail dominance

While Flipkart continues to lead online retail in India, albeit by a slender margin, Amazon is looking at the endgame, and is set to back its Indian business till it wins. Launched in 2013 in India, the company has already invested more than $2 billion in India and has announced that it will invest $3 billion more.

If Amazon acquires Flipkart, the former will control close to 80% of India’s online retail market virtually doubling its market share. The combined numbers would also mean that Amazon will be a force to be reckoned with in its global domination ambitions, specially rivaling the likes of Alibaba.

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Source: Forbes

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Specialty Snacks Drive 70 Percent of Category Growth

Health, wellness, and specialty products are driving a disproportionate number of sales in the nearly $90 billion snack industry, with such items accounting for 20 percent of products and 70 percent of dollar sales growth, said Molly Hjelm, vice president of marketing for SPINS at the Sweets & Snacks Expo, Tuesday.

“Consumers are really looking for brands that help them live their best, most healthy lives, and brands that play an active stewardship role,” said Hjelm.

Among the fastest movers are items that are paleo (116.2 percent), organic (9.8 percent), and those that are labeled non-GMO (12.1 percent), allergy friendly (13 percent), and fair trade (13 percent).

The rice cake segment is the fastest growing category with sales spiking 45.7 percent, followed by frozen desserts, up 17.7 percent, and candy, growing 11.7 percent.

Skinny Pop is driving innovations with its core ingredient in the rice cake category, while Lundberg Farms is doing so with organic brown rice, and Bamboo Lane with its Rice Rollers, according to Hjelm. “All deliver a satisfying crunch and highly clean labels as well,” she said.

On the sweets side, candies making paleo and keto claims are appealing to consumers who adhere to these lifestyles, and specialty chocolate bites in resealable bags, such as Wild Ophelia Cold Brew Sea Salt Caramel Latte bites, allow for sharing and moderation.

Source: Specialty Food Association

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Organic Food Sales Increase 6.4% in 2017

Organic sales in the U.S. totaled a new record of $49.4 billion in 2017, up 6.4 percent from the previous year, according to the Organic Trade Association. The organic food market hit $45.2 billion in sales, also breaking through to a new record for an increase of 6.4 percent, while sales of organic non-food products rose 7.4 percent to $4.2 billion.

Fruits and vegetables continued to be the largest organic food category, recording $16.5 billion in sales in 2017 on 5.3 percent growth. The organic dairy and egg category had one of its most challenging years in 2017. While still the second-largest selling organic category, sales of organic dairy and eggs grew just 0.9 percent to $6.5 billion. Organic beverage sales rose 10.5 percent to $5.9 billion, making beverages the third-largest organic category. The driver in beverages was fresh juices for which sales jumped almost 25 percent to $1.2 billion and continued a multiyear double-digit growth streak.

Source: Specialty Food Association

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Iowa Holidays

The Hawkeye Stateiowa

Iowa is a land overflowing with genuine hospitality, historic sites, sophisticated cities, beautiful rolling countryside and four seasons of nature at its very best. The mighty Mississippi River on Iowa’s eastern edge provides opportunities for boating, fishing, canoeing and bald eagle watching. The Great River Road National Scenic Byway, one of the most famous and longest scenic and historic drives in the US, is a federally-designated route covering 3,000 miles of federal, state and county roads that generally follow the mighty Mississippi from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico.

In the west, the Loess Hill National Scenic Byway allows travellers to explore the rare and spectacular natural landscaping of the Loess Hills region of western Iowa, a fragile place of unique prairie flora and wildlife, farms and villages, nestled together among the Catstep hills. Bluestem and scarlet sumac ripen under the big skies atop this rich yellow-brown loess – ancient soil gathered by winds of a receding age of ice into a high wall that follows the vast Missouri River Valley. The rugged range rises abruptly from the flatlands on the west and melts into the rolling plains on the east, extending 200 miles. In between, travellers will find world-class attractions, charming communities and fabulous events.

Source: Visit USA

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Gen Z Influences Family Grocery Purchases

Members of Generation Z actively participate in their family’s grocery shopping, according to a study by IRI in partnership with The Family Room LLC. The study found that 47 percent of older Gen Z consumers, aged 18 to 21, participate in their household’s grocery shopping, as parents say their Gen Z kids influence what they buy at the grocery store.

Thirty-eight percent of Gen Z kids like to get personalized ads or promotions in their social media feeds, much higher than their Millennial counterparts. For younger members of Gen Z, personalization is seen as a great way to discover new products and services. In addition, variety is very important to the cohort, as the number of unique UPCs purchased in households with Gen Z kids are significantly higher than those without. For example, in the cold cereal category, Gen Z households purchased 12.4 unique UPCs per household, compared with only 7.6 in households without a Gen Z member. 

Source: Specialty Food Association

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Κατανάλωση και Πωλήσεις Γαλακτοκομικών Προϊόντων στην Αμερική

Η διείσδυση των γαλακτοκομικών προϊόντων στα αμερικανικά νοικοκυριά αγγίζει το 97,7%, με τον μέσο όρο των νοικοκυριών να αγοράζει γαλακτοκομικά προϊόντα 44 φορές το χρόνο. Σύμφωνα με έρευνα της Nielsen AOC, οι συνολικές πωλήσεις σε αυτόν τον τομέα ήταν $67,2 δις για το έτος Αύγουστος 2016-Αύγουστος 2017, παρουσιάζοντας μείωση 3,6% σε χρηματική αξία και 2,5% σε μονάδες. Μέρος της μείωσης θα μπορούσε να αποδοθεί στην αύξηση των εναλλακτικών λύσεων γάλακτος όπως το γάλα αμυγδάλου, που σημείωσε αύξηση σε δολάρια κατά 6,6%.  Σύμφωνα με τα στατιστικά δεδομένα, οι Αμερικανοί ξοδεύουν ένα δολάριο την ημέρα σε γαλακτοκομικά προϊόντα, με τα νοικοκυριά να σημειώνουν κατά μέσο όρο αγορές $365 στα γαλακτοκομικά ετησίως.

Όσον αφορά στο λιανεμπόριο, το υγρό γάλα είναι το Νο2 σε πραγματικό κέρδος σε όλες τις κατηγορίες, ξεπερνώντας κατηγορίες όπως τα αλμυρά snack, μπύρα, νερό και καφές, δημητριακά και αυγά. Σύμφωνα με την έρευνα Dairy Case Dynamics της MilkPEP’s, το γάλα παραδίδεται με ελάχιστες ενέργειες προώθησης και σταθερά «εκτός αποθέματος» προβλήματα.  Το βιολογικό γάλα αντιπροσωπεύει περίπου το 11% όλων των πωλήσεων υγρού γάλακτος.

Παρόλο που το γάλα (υγρή μορφή) παραμένει δυνατό ως κατηγορία, οι πωλήσεις του έχουν μειωθεί πρόσφατα και οι εναλλακτικές επιλογές έχουν αυξηθεί. Ενώ το γάλα αμυγδάλου αντιπροσωπεύει μόνο το 10% των πωλήσεων των γαλακτoκομικών προϊόντων, κατά μέσο όρο αποδίδει $1δις σε πωλήσεις από 18 μοναδικούς κωδικούς. Συνεπώς, κάθε μοναδικό προϊόν γάλακτος αμυγδάλου δημιουργεί πωλήσεις κατά μέσο όρο $55 εκατομμυρίων. Εντωμεταξύ, οι πωλήσεις των $11,2δις από 43 κωδικούς αγελαδινού γάλακτος, οδηγούν σε SKU αποδοτικότητα από $261 εκατ. ανά κωδικό. Άρα, η SKU αποδοτικότητα του γάλακτος αμυγδάλου είναι 20% περίπου της αποδοτικότητας SKU του αγελαδινού.  Το γάλα αμυγδάλου καθώς και άλλα γάλατα φυτικής προέλευσης αποτελούν μια μακροπρόθεσμη τάση παρά απάτη. Αν και οι πωλήσεις τους είναι χαμηλότερες του αγελαδινού, η αποδοτικότητα SKU εξηγεί τους λόγους για τους οποίους οφείλουμε να τους αφιερώσουμε αρκετό χώρο στο ράφι.

Παγκόσμιες πωλήσεις και κατανάλωση

Είναι γεγονός πως ο κλάδος των γαλακτοκομικών προϊόντων θα συνεχίσει να κινείται ανοδικά παγκοσμίως καθώς οι άνθρωποι σε όλη την υφήλιο θα συνεχίσουν να τα καταναλώνουν προκειμένου να ικανοποιούν τις ανάγκες τους σε πρωτεΐνες. Η Euromonitor προβλέπει μεγάλη αύξηση στις περισσότερες κατηγορίες –ιδιαίτερα στο γιαούρτι, εναλλακτικές λύσεις γάλακτος, ξινόγαλα και τυρί- μέχρι το 2022. Το γάλα με γεύσεις, αν και αυξάνεται στις ΗΠΑ, αναμένεται να μειωθεί σε παγκόσμιο επίπεδο κατά 5,1% την ίδια περίοδο.

Οι drivers των αγορών

Σύμφωνα με την DMI, υπάρχουν πολλοί παράγοντες που επηρεάζουν την κατανάλωση γάλακτος στις ΗΠΑ. Η ανάπτυξη του πληθυσμού, το branded/checkoff marketing, οι τιμές λιανικής, η αύξηση των γαλακτοκομικών προϊόντων χωρίς λακτόζη και τα γάλατα με γεύσεις, τα ειδικά εμφιαλωμένα ροφήματα με καφέ που περιέχουν γάλα, τα ροφήματα που περιέχουν γαλακτοκομικά προϊόντα και η αυξημένη κατανάλωση πλήρους γάλακτος συμβάλλουν στις θετικές πωλήσεις. Στον αντίποδα, η μείωση της κατανάλωσης δημητριακών, ο ανταγωνισμός από όλα τα υπόλοιπά ροφήματα καθώς και θέματα σχετικά με την υγεία και το περιβάλλον, έχουν πιθανώς αρνητικό αντίκτυπο στις πωλήσεις. Επιπρόσθετα, τα περισσότερα νοικοκυριά αγοράζουν γάλα σε γαλόνια, καθιστώντας έτσι το γάλα ένα ρόφημα κυρίως για κατανάλωση στο σπίτι παρά «φορητό», όπως οι περισσότεροι χυμοί και τα αναψυκτικά. Προς το παρόν, ο αντίκτυπος των αρνητικών επιρροών ενδεχομένως να είναι πιο δυνατός.

Γιάννης Μωύσογλου

Υπεύθυνος Εξαγωγών “TradeUSA”, Ελληνο-Αμερικανικό Εμπορικό Επιμελητήριο

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5 Trends Defining The Food And Beverage Industry, And Retail In General

If you’re in the retail real estate business, there are likely two words you’ve heard incessantly over the past year: “dining” and “entertainment.” But while they are certainly buzzy terms at this point, they are not in the same league as the most dreaded buzz word of all.

Food and entertainment options, in various forms, are actively being implemented across the industry. New food uses in particular are serving up some of the most interesting concepts for shopping centers to pay attention to, which is particularly important given that American now spend more money on dining out than they do on groceries.

Dating back to the days of the Greek agora, shopping centers have been social, well, centers of their local areas. While food has always played a role in shopping centers, as more channels evolve to handle the mere transactional nature of commodities, shopping centers would be wise to place greater focus on the experiential.

According to a study released from JLL, shoppers who stop to eat spend 35 minutes and 12% more at a property, than those who forgo a bite. That’s quite a lot of dough, when you extrapolate it over thousands of shoppers. To take advantage of that, the report outlined five mega-trends in consumerism that are impacting the F&B and retail real estate industries.

  1. The Experience Economy
  2. Supply Unchained
  3. Better Business
  4. Youniverse
  5. Conveni-Tech

Read more here.

Source: Forbes

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