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THIS WEEK'S NEWS
BLAKEMORE LOOKS TO NEW OPPORTUNITIES
SPAR WHOLESALER BLAKEMORE USED ITS FIRST VIRTUAL TRADESHOW YESTERDAY TO ASSURE RETAILERS THAT IT HAS ALL THEINDUSTRY-LEADING INITIATIVES RETAILERS NEED TO MAKE THEMOST OF NEW OPPORTUNITIES.
Spar wholesaler AF Blakemore held its first ever virtual trade show yesterday with over 1,000 guests attending. Free to all Blakemore retailers, the show was themed around New Opportunities and the wholesaler told retailers that it has everything they need to thrive and exploit the new opportunities that are springing up at the moment.
The main message from Group Commercial Managing Director Jerry Marwood to retailers was one of continuous investment and backing from AF Blakemore. He said: “It is important that we keep building our businesses to support you, and you keep building your businesses to give customers what they want.”
ACS EXPRESSES CONCERN AROUND ALCOHOL SALES CURFEW
THE ASSOCIATION OF CONVENIENCE STORES HAS HIT OUT AT THE DECISION TO BAN OFF-LICENCE ALCOHOL SALES IN NOTTINGHAM FROM 9PM.
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has reacted with disappointment to the introduction of additional tier 3 restrictions in Nottingham and the surrounding areas that include a ban off licence alcohol sales from 9pm, a ban that is unique to the area even though other areas are classed as tier 3.
The additional tier 3 restrictions, which will come into force on Friday, affect the whole of Nottinghamshire. No alcohol sales will be allowed between 9pm and 5am on off-licensed premises. Pubs and other on-trade premises will still be able to sell alcohol until 10pm, after which time they are required to close.
Data from the 2020 Local Shop Report shows that almost half (46%) of convenience stores in the East Midlands are open after 9pm.
ACS Chief Executive James Lowman said: “We are disappointed that these additional restrictions have been introduced in Nottinghamshire with very short notice, which will likely lead to confusion from customers and significant stress for colleagues in stores. There is a real risk that theft of alcohol will increase where it is not able to be shuttered or locked down, and we are extremely concerned about the increased risk of confrontation between customers and colleagues.”
ACS has made a poster available to retailers to help communicate the restrictions to customers, which is available to download.
REGISTER NOW FOR THE VIRTUAL SLR REWARDS!
This year’s SLR Rewards will now be held in a virtual format on Friday 11 December at 6pm. The most rewarding awards in retail were originally scheduled to be presented in June but the champagne was put on ice because of the coronavirus outbreak.
Antony Begley, SLR Publishing Director, said: “Clearly, it’s not how we had envisaged the Rewards and we would have much preferred to bring the entire Scottish local retailing industry together for a great night as we’ve been doing for almost 20 years – but coronavirus has made that impossible. The safety and wellbeing of all our industry friends is paramount. Register on the awards website.
BESTWAY ADDS ‘SOCIAL PROOFING’ TECH
Bestway Wholesale has invested in new innovation and technology to enhance the customer experience with the introduction of Taggstar, a tool for ‘social proof messaging’ which has been added to the Bestway website and functions as a virtual sales assistant, helping customers navigate around the site and offering support and advice as they go, optimising individual search requirements.
Bestway MD Dawood Pervez said: “This is just one of the many tools that we are looking to bring on board to drive the digital experience further in line with our customers’ changing buying needs.
“We know how important social proofing is to our retailers and initial feedback is 100% positive. Customers are receiving insights into each category as they shop, which is influencing and informing their purchase decisions.”
Furthermore, the new functionality of the Bestway Wholesale site means that customers can now choose alternative SKUs when products are not in stock – or opt to receive an email as soon as the product becomes available at the depot.
M&S £87.6M LOSS
M&S has suffered a 15.8% fall in revenue and a pre-tax loss of £87.6m in the 26 weeks to 26 September 2020. The retailer said this represents a “better than expected” performance, having predicted a 22.8% drop in sales for this period.
SGF GOLF DAY
The Scottish Grocers’ Federation is to host its annual golf day on 2 June 2021 at Turnberry King Robert The Bruce Golf Course. The event includes breakfast, evening drinks and dinner in addition to use of the golf facilities and participation in the tournament. Anyone interested in attending should contact the Federation’s Irati Ugarte.
OCADO PROFITS
Ocado says its joint venture with M&S has remained strong throughout the fourth quarter of its current financial year and consequently has revised its full year EBITDA up from £40m to £60m.The company will also acquire two US robotic companies for a total of around $287m to exploit the opportunities it sees in robotic manipulation solutions.
BRITVIC GREEN BOSS
Britvic has appointed TomFiennes as its new CommercialSustainability Director for GreatBritain. With over 25 years ofFMCG experience, Fiennesmoves from his role as Britvic’sDirector of Strategic ChangeProgrammes, with previousroles at Heineken, Carlsberg,Premier Foods and Mars.
SPAR SHOW
Spar Scotland wholesalerCJ Lang kicks its first evervirtual trade show off tomorrowwith over 150 suppliersparticipating. The theme for theevent is ‘2020 Vision’ and willbe an opportunity for suppliersto promote NPD and newways of working, as well assharing industry and categoryknowledge.
SNAPPY GROWS
Snappy Shopper has appointed Pamela McLaren as its new Marketing Controller, responsible for the development and implementation of the home delivery app’s marketing strategy, brand and service. She joins from Hutchison Technologies where she was Head of Sales.
