The Week in Retail 111

RETAIL THE WEEK IN

STANDARDS

SICK AGAIN

FOOD STANDARDS FACE ‘SIGNIFICANT’ CHALLENGES

UNDERAGE SALES

IDENTITY CHECK

BARGAIN BOOZE EXTENDS USE OF AGE ESTIMATION TECH

● Bestway opens second dual-branded store

● Jisp Jisp reaches

Scan & Save milestone

● Former Former M&S manager opens Nisa store

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LEGISLATION

THE FIGHT BACK

AGGRAVATED OFFENCE PROTECTING SHOPWORKERS COMES INTO FORCE

K L SPORTS DRIN IA IC F F O S E M H GAMES NA OMMONWEALT

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Issue 111 Wednesday 29 June 2022

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T H E W E E K I N R E TA I L

EDITOR’S COMMENT

Reason for celebration This week has truly been momentous for retail workers in England and Wales as new provisions come into force to make attacking an individual who serves the public, including shopworkers, an aggravated offence.

The provision was introduced in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts (PCSC) Act and will allow for stiffer penalties for those who attack and abuse shopworkers.

Quite frankly it’s about bloody time! Retailers, trade associations, and unions have spent years trying to persuade ministers that shopworkers need protection, despite attacks going through the roof.

Figures from the ACS 2022 Crime Report show that in the past year, 89% of c-store employees have faced abuse in their job, with more than 35,000 incidents of violence taking place and over 16,000 incidents including the use of a weapon.

The new legislation couldn’t come at a more crucial time, as a poll by trade body the Institute of Customer Service revealed that over a third of frontline staff believe that the public’s behaviour and tone have become more aggressive over the past six months, as the cost-of-living crisis has worsened.

Meanwhile, 33% of workers who have experienced hostility cited higher levels of anxiety among shoppers as a trigger for customer hostility and 25% specifically linked it to price increases, the poll reveals.

However, for the legislation to do its job, it’s important that all incidents of crime against shopworkers are reported, the police response has to improve, and it is equally important that appropriate and proportionate action is taken by the justice system when these incidents occur. So there could still be a long way to go before shopworkers get the protection they truly deserve.

Of course Scotland has already introduced similar legislation, which has already proved a success. In the first six months after the Protection of Workers (Retail and Age Restricted Goods and Services) Act came into effect in August 2021 more than 1,600 cases of shop worker abuse were reported to Police Scotland. This included six serious assaults, 675 common assaults, and 984 cases of threat and abuse.

So let’s hope this new legislation proves equally as successful in England and Wales.

LIZ WELLS, DEPUTY EDITOR

WEDNESDAY 29TH JUNE 2022/ ISSUE 111 / SLRMAG.CO.UK I 3

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CONTENTS

WEDNESDAY 29 JUNE 2022 / ISSUE 111

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10

17

THIS WEEK’S NEWS

COVER STORY

AWARDS

A new cyber support hub launches for independent retailers and Camelot posts “another record year” for the National Lottery.

New provisions come into force in England and Wales this week that make attacking shopworkers an aggravated offence.

Jawad and Asiyah Javed win the NFRN’s Shop Local, Shop Little Heroes Awards for going above and beyond during the pandemic.

9 8

Covid-19 update

19 Technology

27 Symbol groups

Food standards

Jisp’s Scan & Save solution is now being

Scotmid launches a menopause café to

A new report highlights ‘significant

used by 150 stores across the UK.

provide a safe and inclusive environment

challenges’ for food standards in the UK. 12 Retail crime Almost £26,000 worth of illegal tobacco is seized by Edinburgh City Council’s Trading Standards team and Police Scotland.

13 Refits Bestway Wholesale opens its second dualbranded Costcutter and Bargain Booze store, in Whiston, Prescot.

14 Licensing Further restrictions on alcohol advertising and displays could have far-reaching consequences for Scotland’s local retailers.

16 Age-restricted sales Bestway Retail extends the use of age estimation technology in its stores.

18 Store openings

20 Footfall Rail strikes slow retail footfall recovery, new BRC-Sensormatic IQ data shows.

21 Grocery sales

for women to share experiences and discuss challenges.

28 Sustainability Scotmid becomes the first UK Costa

Grocery sales at UK supermarkets

Express partner to introduce reusable

continue to improve, according to new data

Costa Coffee travel cups across its full

from NielsenIQ. 22 Retail sales

portfolio of stores.

29 Suppliers

Retail sales overall fell by 0.5% in May, as

Riverside Greetings teams up with Leeds

consumers spent less on food due to the

Beckett University to bring academic

cost-of-living crisis.

knowledge, experience, and insight into the

23 Consumer confidence Consumer confidence decreased one point to a new record low of -41 in June, according GfK. 24 Wholesale

business.

30 Picks of the week A look at the latest new products and marketing campaigns.

34 Out the box: TV shopping

Hancocks stages its biggest in-depot event

By teaming-up with streaming service

An experienced retailer takes his first step

so far this year and Parfetts recognises

Roku, Walmart aims to make shopping

into independent convenience with the

its staff’s hard work and dedication with a

launch of a Nisa Express in Watford.

cost-of-living bonus of up to £500.

through TV remotes a reality.

37 Before you go...

WEDNESDAY 29TH JUNE 2022/ ISSUE 111 / SLRMAG.CO.UK I 5

NEWS DIGEST

THIS WEEK’S NEWS FOR ALL THE LATEST NEWS, HEAD TO WWW.SLRMAG.CO.UK/CATEGORY/NEWS/

BOWEL CANCER CAMPAIGN Aldi, Asda, Morrisons, M&S, Tesco and Waitrose have joined Bowel Cancer UK’s #GetOnARoll campaign. The

ONLINE CRIME

Cyber support hub launches for independent retailers

The launch comes as report reveals cyber-attacks on retailers have increased by more than 30%.

supermarkets are adding the signs and symptoms of the cancer to their own-label toilet roll packaging. The charity asked consumers to contact their supermarkets urging them to take part in the campaign.

FUEL DUTY CUT? Chancellor Rishi Sunak has told ministers that he will carefully consider calls for a “more substantial” fuel duty cut as the price of petrol at the pumps hit a new high. His comment followed a call by former Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey for a cut of at least 20p per litre.

ICELAND CUTS PLASTIC Iceland is introducing carton board packaging for its Made in Italy ice cream range, which will see a 92% plastic reduction compared to the previous packaging. The new packs will be rolled out across five flavours and the supermarket plans to monitor customer feedback across its stores.

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The British Independent Retailers Association (Bira) has launched a new cyber support hub for its members in partnership with the Cyber Resilience Centre for the West Midlands.

A recent PwC report revealed that cyber-attacks on retailers had increased by more than 30% and, with the opening of retail businesses having increased by 8% in the past two years, the industry is becoming more and more appealing to cybercriminals.

The bub will host a surplus of content that includes easy-to-follow and simple top tips on key topics, such as two-factor authentication, the use of passwords, application, and software updates.

Andrew Goodacre, Bira Chief Executive, said: “With increased levels of online shopping it is vital for retailers to have good cyber security in place.

“Shoppers expect their details to be secure and good security will retain consumer confidence. This hub is an excellent way of informing and helping independent retailers.”

The WMCRC is one of nine cyber resilience centres that have been stood up as a network to support businesses across England and Wales.

To find your local cyber resilience centre, please visit wmcrc.co.uk/ crcnetwork.

Packaging still key concern for consumers Plastic-free and recyclable packaging is the number one demand coming from supermarket shoppers in the UK, according to a new survey from consumer app Impact Score.

Almost 90% of people surveyed indicated that accessing products with plastic-free or recyclable packaging was a priority for them – with 71% saying they ‘really cared’ about the issue and one in

five saying that sustainable packaging was the most important factor for them.

Ian Yates, Impact Score founder, said: “There’s a clear message coming from consumers here – packaging really matters to them, and they are deliberately seeking out products that are packaged sustainably. Overall, it’s the top priority driving the buying decisions of shoppers.”

NEWS DIGEST

THIS WEEK’S NEWS FOR ALL THE LATEST NEWS, HEAD TO WWW.SLRMAG.CO.UK/CATEGORY/NEWS/

SERVICES

‘Another record year’ for National Lottery

Lottery operator Camelot reported a “slight dip” in draw-based game sales, attributable to a decrease in sales of National Lottery Instants.

Camelot generated sales of £8.1bn for the 2021/22 financial year, a decrease of £283.2m on last year’s record sales.

The lottery operator said drawbased game sales stood at £4.6bn for the year, a slight dip of £43.2m, with the majority of the decline attributable to a decrease in sales of National Lottery Instants. Scratchcard sales remain below pre-pandemic levels “in line with people’s changing shopping habits”, while sales of online Instant Win Games were further affected by lower play and wallet load limits for potentially at-risk players.

However, there were 1.8 million new online registrations, Camelot said.

It reported in-store sales of £4.7bn in 2021/22 – down from £4.9bn in 2020/21 – and National Lottery retailers earned £265.4m in commission, the equivalent of around £6,000 per store.

NFRN’S NEW PRESIDENT County Durham retailer Jason Birks has been elected as the new National President of the NFRN. Birks took over from Narinder Randhawa at the organisation’s annual conference in Birmingham.

Birks has held a string of highprofile positions within the Fed.

ALDI SEEKS SITES Aldi has revealed a wish list of new store locations across the UK and offered a finder’s fee

Camelot Chief Executive, Nigel Railton, said: “Achieving National Lottery sales of over £8bn two years in a row while maintaining very high levels of public participation – despite the challenging and changing external environment – proves that our strategy of offering great consumer choice in a safe and convenient way continues to be hugely successful.”

for anyone who can help find suitable sites. The discounter wants sites that can fit a 20,000sq ft store with around 100 parking spaces, ideally near a main road with good visibility and access.

CORNWALL CHARGES UP

Retailers welcome Reach price rises

Cornwall Council has awarded

Publisher Reach has included pro-rata terms for newsagents as part of price increases for two of its national newspaper titles.

The cover price of Monday to Friday editions of the Daily Express in the UK has increased to £1.10, while copies of the Daily Star have gone up to 75p. Saturday editions of both newspapers have increased to £1.65 and £1.20, respectively.

Charging to supply, install,

Reach has confirmed that the profit paid to retailers on each copy sold will increase pro-rata.

The NFRN has welcomed the decision. Head of News, Brian Murphy, said: “We urge all news publishers to follow suit and maintain the profit margins for retailers when considering price increases of their titles, both national and regional.”

a contract to Swarco Smart maintain, and operate EV charging points across the county. The four-year agreement will see a mix of 7kW AC, 22kW AC and 50kW DC chargers installed, as part of the development of Cornwall’s strategic EV charge point network.

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F O O D S TA N DA R D S

FOOD STANDARDS REPORT

Food standards face ‘significant’ challenges A new report highlights the fall in local authority inspections of food businesses and the delay in establishing full import controls for high-risk food and feed from the EU.

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ood standards in the UK have largely been maintained despite problems thrown up by Brexit, the pandemic, and the war in Ukraine, according to a new report.

However, the Food Standards Scotland (FSS) and the Food Standards Agency (FSA) report warns of significant challenges ahead.

Two of the main concerns identified are firstly the fall in the level of local authority inspections of food businesses, which are being hampered by resourcing pressures faced by local authorities, despite some progress in getting inspections back on track. Secondly, the delay in establishing full UK import controls for high-risk food and feed from the EU continues to reduce our ability to prevent the entry of unsafe food into the UK market.

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FSS Chair Heather Kelman said: “We are under no illusions there are major challenges ahead. As the report points out, there is a significant issue in relation to local authority resourcing, which could have a dramatic effect on the ability to carry out inspections, food law delivery and, at the very core, it could cause a risk to public health.

Establishing full UK import controls is also an issue which has the potential to not only damage consumer confidence, but ultimately affect the high standards of foods being placed on the market.

“It is our collective responsibility to make sure that these current challenges in the food system are mitigated in a way that puts us on course for a safe, healthier and more sustainable future food system.”

The report – Our Food 2021: An annual review of food standards across the UK – is the first of what will be an annual report on how food standards are changing over time, so that consumers and parliamentarians remain aware of the changes and challenges to the food system and the evidence that is being shared with government decision-makers.

NEWS SPECIAL

COVID-19 UPDATE

WEARABLE DEVICE PROMISES TO TRACK COVID

Covid ‘hasn’t gone away,’ health experts warn

Scientists believe they have invented a wearable sensor technology that can enable the detection of Covid-19.

Local councils warn people to be vigilant as subvariants of the Omicron strain of the coronavirus is blamed for an increase in infections.

Preliminary research by an international team including

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of Basel and Imperial College London showed that “a wearable-informed machine learning algorithm may serve as a promising tool for presymptomatic or asymptomatic detection of Covid-19”.

Tested on 1,163 participants, the Ava-bracelet identified 68% of Covid-19 positive

test result, or if you have any Covid-19 symptoms,” they added.

What’s more, they warned the public of the risk of re-infections, noting that “just because you have had Covid-19 once doesn’t unfortunately mean that you won’t get it again”.

“Covid-19 vaccination provides a substantial added layer of protection against reinfection by boosting people’s immune responses,” said the councils.

“We would urge those who have yet to act on the invite to get their Spring Booster dose to do so as soon as they can.”

participants two days prior to

TECH SOLUTIONS

ovid infection rates are on the rise in Northamptonshire, with health experts urging people to stay vigilant and get the spring booster vaccine.

“This is [the] messaging we weren’t expecting to write,” West Northamptonshire and North Northamptonshire councils jointly announced. “This is a reminder that Covid-19 hasn’t gone away. With any increase of mixing, we are likely to see an increase in the numbers of cases which is why we need to remain vigilant.”

The increase in infections is blamed on BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants of the Omicron strain of the coronavirus, which appear to be more infectious than other more recent variants.

Health experts recommend meeting in outdoor environments where the risk of transmission is lower and ventilating homes and workplaces when meeting indoors.

“Wearing a mask in crowded indoor spaces is also a good idea. And, of course, do isolate if you have a positive

scientists from University

symptom onset.

The researchers acknowledge that their results may not be more widely applicable. But “wearable sensor technology is an easy-to-use, lowcost method for enabling individuals to track their health and wellbeing during a pandemic”, they said.

WEDNESDAY 29TH JUNE 2022/ ISSUE 111 / SLRMAG.CO.UK I 9

C OV E R

THE POLICE, CRIME, SENT

The fight back Sector reacts as new aggravated offence protecting shopworkers comes into force.

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his week saw new provisions come into force to make attacking an individual who serves the public, including shopworkers, an aggravated offence.

The provisions, introduced in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act, have been welcomed by the whole of the sector. They bring England and Wales into line with Scotland, which enacted similar legislation in 2021.

ACS Chief Executive James Lowman said: “We are pleased that the government has introduced this new aggravated offence to provide additional protection to individuals serving the public following years of campaigning from ourselves and organisations from across the industry, this is a significant step forward but will not solve the problem by itself.

“Crime is one of the biggest challenges faced by our sector and these incidents have significant financial and emotional effects on the individuals and the businesses involved and should not be seen as part of the job. All incidents of crime against our sector should be reported and it is important that appropriate and proportionate action is taken by the justice system when these incidents occur.”

Meanwhile, the NFRN – which also lobbied MPs in Westminster for years for a change in the law to protect shopworkers – also welcomed the Act’s introduction. Its

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“All incidents of crime against our sector should be reported and it is important that appropriate and proportionate action is taken by the justice system when these incidents occur.”

JAMES LOWMAN ACS CHIEF EXECUTIVE

National President Jason Birks said: “Attacks against store owners and their staff have been increasing for a number of years, so I am pleased that we are now being given the same protection in law as other frontline workers. Being attacked verbally or physically while just going

about your daily business should not be tolerated and seen as part of the job.

“The important thing now is that the police and the Crown Prosecution Service work together to ensure this new law is an effective deterrent and not just a piece of paper. It’s essential that retailers report

S T O RY

ENCING AND COURTS ACT

are taken seriously after another survey found that incidents are on the increase.

The call came as figures from The Institute of Customer Service revealed that 44% of frontline service staff have experienced hostility from customers in the past six months, a rise from 35% in February.

Paddy Lillis, Usdaw General Secretary, said: “This survey is further confirmation of the scale of the problem retail staff face on a daily basis. Usdaw’s latest research found that nine in 10 retail workers suffered abuse from customers last year, with far too many experiencing threats and violence. Particularly concerning was the one-third increase in assaults.

“The government has taken a step in the right direction by making the assault a public-facing worker a statutory aggravating factor when sentencing. However,

that relies on the police responding to incidents, the CPS prosecuting the case and a guilty verdict. Regrettably, too many incidents do not get through to sentencing, which is a big part of why nearly twothirds of shopworkers say they are not confident that reporting incidents will make any difference.

“Faced with such appallingly high levels of violence and abuse, and with shopworkers’ almost complete lack of confidence in the ability of the system to give them the protection they need, much more needs to be done.

“The government must provide the coordination needed to ensure that retail employers, police and the courts work together to make stores safe places for our members to work and for customers to shop.”

all incidents to highlight the scale of the problem, and the police response has to improve if retail crime is to be tackled head on.”

However, retail trade union Usdaw called for more action to ensure that abuse, threats and violence against shopworkers

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R E TA I L C R I M E

TRADING STANDARDS

Edinburgh City Council seizes £26k of illegal tobacco The seizure in the Leith walk area of the city was part of a UK-wide operation targeting the illicit trade.

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lmost £26,000 worth of illegal tobacco has been taken off the shelves by Edinburgh City Council’s Trading Standards team and Police Scotland.

The seizure, part of Operation CeCe – a UK-wide operation targeting illicit tobacco, which is either duty evaded, counterfeit or both – resulted in the seizure of almost £26,000 worth of stock.

It included 22,600 cigarettes and 10kg of hand rolling tobacco which in turn represented evaded duty of over £10,600 defrauded from public funds.

Acting upon intelligence received, officers from the City of Edinburgh Council’s Trading Standards team, in partnership with officers from Police Scotland, attended a number of premises in the Leith walk area of the city, along with a tobacco detection dog.

Transport and Environment Convener, Councillor Scott Arthur, said: “I am, of course, concerned that this market exists within Edinburgh. These products have not had the required duty paid on them, but also do not comply with the plain packaging, warning requirements, and where they are counterfeit, breach Trade Marks legislation.

“No tobacco product is safe, but the recovered goods may not comply with the requirements designed to ensure

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that cigarettes are self-extinguishing to prevent domestic fires.

“Illicit and Counterfeit Tobacco evades taxation and often ends up in the hands of young people, and for that reason tackling it is a key part of Edinburgh’s contribution to the Scottish Government aim to achieve a Smoke Free Generation by 2034. We are committed to tackling the supply of illicit

Sniffed out: Tobacco seizure

tobacco and will work with our partners in Police Scotland and HMRC wherever possible to disrupt its supply. Legitimate retail sale of tobacco is also disadvantaged where illicit supply routes exist, and we would encourage any legitimate business owners to come forward with any information.”

REFITS

BESTWAY WHOLESALE

Wholesaler opens second dual-branded store Merseyside outlet underwent a £100,0000 refit to incorporate Bestway’s ‘store within a store’ concept.

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estway Wholesale has opened its second dual-branded Costcutter and Bargain Booze store, in Whiston, Prescot.

The Bargain Booze brand gives the Merseyside-based Costcutter store a compelling off-licence offer to complement its grocery proposition.

The store, which has had a refit investment of £100,000 to incorporate the ‘store within a store’ concept, is expected to attract new customers and add value and encourage different shopping missions throughout the day.

The refit also includes a vastly improved chilled and grocery range, encompassing a wide range of Co-op own label products, together with a new and extensive food-to-go section.

Local Mayor Councillor Marianne Burke-Thompson attended the opening to cut the ribbon, declare the store

Open for business: Merseyside Costcutter and Bargain Booze

officially open, and join in the celebrations. The store gave away goody bags for customers and ran a raffle throughout the week giving customers the opportunity to win some great prizes. The winners of the raffle were announced at the opening.

Store manager, Tracy McConnell, said: “It’s taken a huge amount of hard work to get to where

we are and it was wonderful to celebrate the opening on Saturday with all of our loyal customers who are clearly enormously excited by the new offer, and hopefully we will be attracting some new customers too.”

Jamie Davison, Head of New Business and Store Development at Bestway Retail, added: “This store is our second pioneering concept store for Costcutter and Bargain Booze, which is an exciting milestone for us as a business.

The concept aims to meet the needs of our customers so they are able to buy everything they need across a full day.

“We have further plans for developing more hybrid concept stores which we will announce going forward.”

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REGULA

ALCOHOL ADVERTIS

ALCOHOL DISPLAY RESTRICTIONS:

The licensing consequences for convenience stores Licensing expert Stephen McGowan warns that proposed further restrictions on alcohol advertising and displays will have far-reaching consequences for Scotland’s local retailers.

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AT I O N S

SING AND DISPLAYS

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lcohol Focus Scotland (AFS) behind checkout points in a similar way less amount of alcohol on display in to that with tobacco; and ensuring that the new restricted space. This would launched a new paper on 28 June 2022 called ‘Realising our alcohol display areas are not visible from mean approximately 5000 applications Rights’. AFS argue that the presence of being submitted by a deadline. The cost outside the shop.” alcohol advertising such as posters in bus The proposed changes on restrictions implications to achieve this for those shelters, as well as the actual display of on alcohol advertising and displays will businesses is significant. alcohol on shelves in shops, is triggering impact premises across Scotland with In addition, the restrictions would to persons with harmful consumption off-sale licences in a number of ways. The have an impact on licensing authoripatterns or in recovery, and such persons proposal would mean premises with an ties in terms of resource, as well as all have the right not to see it. They do, in off-sale licence would need to consider the other licensing applications which a change to their physical layout in order have to be dealt with by those teams fact, want alcohol removed from all public spaces. In relation to shops and conto move the alcohol into an area which (whether alcohol or other licences). is restricted, or to reconfigure the layGlasgow and Edinburgh would be venience stores, they have proposed the out of the shop so that the restriction is well-versed “shop within a shop” concept looking at around 500 applications given effect. There are significant practical each; Aberdeen perhaps 200, and South where alcohol is only allowed in a sepaimplications for this, but in licensing terms Lanarkshire around 250. These numrate, restricted area with a set of prembers only capture shops ises. This is something they and supermarkets – I have have argued for since before THE PROPOSED CHANGES ON not factored in premises the Licensing (Scotland) Act such as bars which have 2005 came into force in 2009.

RESTRICTIONS ON ALCOHOL a separate off-sale alcohol This article is an exploration of the licensing challenges of display. A minor variation ADVERTISING AND DISPLAYS WILL for layout change would introducing the “shop within IMPACT PREMISES ACROSS SCOTLAND also typically be assessed a shop” system. by a building standards According to the Scottish WITH OFF-SALE LICENCES IN A Government Liquor Licensofficer to (a) make sure NUMBER OF WAYS. ing Statistics which were the plan is correct and the measurements add up and issued in March 2022, there what it would mean is the licence holder (b) confirm that it is a minor variation are 5053 “pure” off sale licences in Scotand not a major variation. needing to lodge a variation application land, meaning licences which only allow Some of these applications might off-sales. This includes supermarkets, to update the layout of their premises. shops, convenience stores, as well as spehave to proceed as major variations in n some cases, this might require the any event – where there is even a tiny cialist off sales retailers. The actual number of premises which may offer off-sales retailer to downsize. It might also increase in display. Such applications is much higher because many on-sales mean them seeking a larger display can take many months, require a heardue to the specific layouts of their indilicences also have an off-sale facility, and ing and full public consultation, and are vidual premises. Submitting a variation those are not caught within the 5053. far more expensive. The “shop within a application to the licensing board is not AFS recommend as follows: “…limitshop” proposal has significant licensing ing the display and promotion of alcoholic a tick box exercise. The retailer would consequences. No doubt the Scottish drinks in mixed retail environments to a Government will reflect on these. have to instruct an architect to draw a designated area separated from the rest of new licensing layout plan showing the STEPHEN MCGOWAN IS A PARTNER the store by an appropriate physical barproposed new layout. Let us assume AND HEAD OF LICENSING (SCOTLAND) AT LAW FIRM TLT. the layout change keeps the same or rier; concealing alcohol products located

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UNDERAGE SALES

BARGAIN BOOZE

Bargain Booze extends use of age estimation tech The retailer first installed the MyCheckr system in January this year as part of the Home Office sandbox trial, which concluded at the end of May.

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estway Retail is extending the use of age estimation technology in its stores in the UK following a successful trial with Innovative Technology (ITL). ITL’s MyCheckr system was first installed in January this year as part of the Home Office sandbox trial, which concluded at the end of May. The system is simple to use, with a green LED above the screen indicating that no age check is required, or a red light showing when an age check is recommended. The technology has the highest accuracy of any independently tested solution and is the only GDPR-certified age estimation system in the world.

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Clive Binks, Head of Corporate Stores at Bestway Retail, said: “As a direct result of the successful trial we will now be installing Innovative’s MyCheckr device at more of our Bargain Booze stores. The technology is helping to boost staff ‘s confidence when asking customers for ID and of course anything that ensures we protect children is paramount to us as a responsible business.”

Andrew O’Brien, Product Manager from ITL, added: “Since the trial began, we have been busy developing MyCheckr to give an all-in-one, standalone device that retailers can simply plug in to help cashiers with age check decisions.”

The Association of Convenience Stores Crime Report 2022 found that “enforcing an age-restricted sales policy” is one of the top triggers for violence or abuse against staff. ITL also reports that the technology is successfully being used to aid staff and protect them from abuse.

O’Brien added: “With over 75% of those staff questioned wanting to keep using the technology, we are delighted that we can now begin installation of the market-ready MyCheckr device at several Bargain Booze stores. Bestway Retail has embraced this initiative and clearly take their responsibility for protecting children from being mis-sold alcohol seriously.”

BUSINESS A WARDS

SHOP LOCAL, SHOP LITTLE HEROES AWARDS

Forth Valley store wins national ‘Heroes’ award

Winning retailer revealed during a gala dinner at the NFRN’s annual conference in Birmingham.

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convenience store in Stenhousemuir has won a national award for going above and beyond for vulnerable customers during the pandemic. Jawad and Asiyah Javed, owners of the Day Today store in Alloa Road, have been named as the overall winners of the Shop Local, Shop Little Heroes Awards, created by the NFRN. The trade body launched the awards – sponsored by Booker, Boost, and Mondelez – to recognise the work that was done by its members to help and support their local communities during the pandemic.

The couple tracked the needs of their customers and found that hand wash, gel sanitiser, and baby food supplies were running low. They managed to source these products and gave them away for free to those that needed them. They also gave out more than 3,000 Covid-19 hand care packages to elderly and infirm customers and delivered them free of charge to those who couldn’t collect.

As the pandemic progressed, people started to need face masks and food packages; again, the retailers established a supplier for these products and quickly got them to where they were needed

most, at no cost.The couple was presented with the award by the NFRN’s then National President Narinder Randhawa, during the gala dinner at the organisation’s annual conference, held recently in Birmingham (20 June).

The prize included a store makeover from Mondelez, a fully stocked fridge from Boost Drinks, and £1,000 in cash from the Booker Group.

Asiyah Javed said: “We were very surprised when our names were called out. We didn’t expect it because other members had done such great work. I was up all night with excitement.”

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S TO R E O P E N I N G S

NISA

Experienced retailer wades into Watford Retailer Kay Parekh opens a Nisa Express in Watford, Hertfordshire, after years running two M&S Food stores in London.

E

xperienced retailer Kay Parekh has taken his first step into independent convenience with the purchase of a high street unit in Watford.

Parekh successfully ran two Marks and Spencer Food stores in London for a number of years and has now ventured into his own business with the launch of a 600sq ft Nisa Express.

Taking on the empty site in January this year, he has worked with the team to fit it out to the latest Evolution specification.

Parekh said: “Being new to independent retail I have really valued the hands-on

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Independent: Parekh in Watford

support I have received from the Nisa team.

Nisa was recommended to me, and I have been really pleased with the help I have had as well as the range I have access to.”

The compact store, which has a focus on fresh and chilled, has a bank of Arneg energy-efficient chillers stretching along one wall with a wide choice of chilled snacks and drinks and meal solutions along with everyday dairy products. A second run of chill is located on the opposite wall of the store for alcohol.

In addition, a food-to-go area offers a choice of snacks and drinks, including

Skwishee, Fwip ice cream, and Tchibo coffee. Parekh added: “The store is looking very positive and has started better than I expected and so I will look to build on that initial success over the coming months.

“We are talking to our customers and asking them what they want and what they are looking for from us and we will support them.” The retailer already has ambitious plans to launch further stores over the coming year. “I am looking to keep improving the sales here and then I would like to expand and open and add another four or five stores with Nisa,” he said.

TECHNOLOGY

JISP

Scan & Save milestone as 150 UK stores use Jisp Jisp expects to achieve more than 1,000 Scan & Save stores nationally by the end of the year.

J

isp’s Scan & Save solution is now being used by 150 stores across the UK, including those in the Nisa, Londis, Budgens, Premier, and Family Shopper symbol groups.

Scan & Save has achieved 260,000 scans, 142,000 vouchers issued, and 122,000 redemptions since its launch in September 2021. Industry-leading conversion rates between scan to voucher issued is 54% and a voucher issued to redemption is 86%.

The company says the average shopper redemption per visit is 2.2 items

and the average saving per visit is £4.72.

Greg Deacon, Chief Customer Officer at Jisp, said: “We’re delighted by our key milestone and further validation of retailers seeking out Jisp to provide an exclusive way of shopping and obtaining discounts through our Scan & Save solution which features augmented reality.

Making the ‘Metaverse’ consumable adds to the experience for shoppers using their mobile device in-store. The growth is exceptional, shopper adoption is quick and over 76% are repeat customers.”

Retailers build store loyalty every time shoppers use Scan & Save

The company says retailers using the solution will build store loyalty every time shoppers use Scan & Save and redeem products. Jisp will promote leading promotions in-app and online to drive shoppers to their local Scan & Save store. In addition, Jisp will provide exclusive 24-hour deals and reward shoppers for referring friends and family to help them save monies and increase loyalty.

Deacon added: “By end of 2022 we expect to achieve over 1,000 Scan & Save stores nationally through a network of independent stores and fascias.

It’s never been a better time for independent retailers to offer Scan & Save with the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

Jisp Media supports branded partners on their quest to understand shopping behaviour and fuel sales growth and loyalty to their products via our network of stores nationwide.’’

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BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE

RETAIL FOOTFALL

Rail strikes disrupt recovery BRC-Sensormatic IQ data shows that retail footfall recovery slowed last week as rail strikes disrupted journeys across the UK.

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otal UK retail footfall decreased by 3.9% during the RMT Union Rail Strikes week (20-26 June), compared with the average of the previous four weeks, according to BRC-Sensormatic IQ data. The data reveals that Thursday was the worst-performing day, with a 13.7% decline in footfall, followed

by Tuesday at 9.4%, compared with the average of the previous four weeks.

High Streets saw the weakest performance at a 3.3% decline, compared with the average of the previous four weeks.

London saw footfall decrease by 1.4% over the strike week, compared with the average of the previous four weeks.

London footfall on Tuesday decreased by 7.4%, compared to the average of the previous four weeks, impacted by both rail and tube strikes.

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of British Retail Consortium, said: “Retail footfall recovery slowed last week as rail strikes disrupted journeys across

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City centre businesses have been hit by rail strikes

the UK. As expected, commuter traffic was hit with many working from home to avoid unnecessary travel, impacting already-vulnerable city centre businesses reliant on those commuters.

“Whilst we hope footfall will bounce back in the following weeks and months, it comes at a difficult time for businesses as costs are continuing to spiral and

consumers are tightening their belts.

Retailers continue to do all they can to help consumers and keep prices down, expanding their value ranges, offering discounts for some vulnerable groups, and investing in their own supply chains to reduce future costs.”

Andy Sumpter, Retail Consultant EMEA for Sensormatic Solutions, added: “After the buoyant boost to shopper numbers we saw over the Jubilee weekend, last week’s train strikes threaten to derail retail’s footfall recovery. While consumers stayed home and avoided unnecessary trips due to travel disruption, retailers will be hoping that the dip in footfall will be short-lived and that shopper numbers even themselves out, as pent-up demand prompts consumers back on to the High Street once the strike ends.”

BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE

GROCERY SALES

Another uptick for sales

NielsenIQ figures show Jubilee celebrations and warm weather helped boost sales, but the cost-of-living crisis is forcing shoppers to consider cheaper meal alternatives.

G

rocery sales at UK supermarkets have continued to improve, with sales up 1.5% for the four weeks ending 18 June 2022, according to new data from NielsenIQ. However, despite this uplift, volume sales are declining by 5.5%, as shoppers seek to manage their basket spend because of inflation and the rising cost of living.

The uplift in sales was boosted by The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, which took place during the week ending 4 June. Sales during this period were buoyant at +3.7%, with growth across teatime treats and fizz (+48%), champagne (+47%), dough and pastry (+46%), and sparkling wine (+40%).

Sales were also boosted by 0.7% during the week ending 18 June when Brits experienced the first spell of hot sunny weather this year.

The data shows rising prices are leading shoppers to consider cheaper meal alternatives, with sales increasing for frozen poultry (+12%), rice and grains (+11%), canned beans and pasta (+10%), gravy/stock (+9%), and canned meat (+9%). Notably, sales of dry pasta increased by 31%, while sales of beers, wines and spirits fell by 9.7%.

The figures also show that in the four weeks, visits to stores grew 7% – which is over 31m extra visits than this time last year. However, online sales fell 12% compared with last year, with almost

Grocery sales continue to improve at UK supermarkets

half a million fewer online shoppers than in June 2021.

Mike Watkins, NielsenIQ’s UK Head of Retailer and Business Insight, said: “It is no surprise that with budgets squeezed some households are less willing or less able to spend on a large online shop. Moreover, with no restrictions on visiting stores, this is encouraging shoppers to shop around for the best prices as well as shopping

little and more often to help manage the weekly food budget.”

Watkins added: “The outlook for the next four weeks is for further pressure on shopper spend and whilst there are some major sporting events over the next few weeks, such as Wimbledon, the F1 and the Women’s Euros, incremental volume growths to the end of July will probably remain subject to the vagaries of the weather.”

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BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE

RETAIL SALES

Cost-of-living crisis bites Soaring inflation forces consumers to cut back on buying food, prompting a drop in retail sales.

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etail sales overall fell by 0.5% in May, as consumers spent less on food due to the cost-of-living crisis, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The ONS found that supermarket sales fell by 1.5% in May, with a 2.2% fall in specialist shops such as butchers and bakers.

The decrease in the volume of food sales appeared to be linked to inflation which, as measured by the consumer prices index, hit a 40-year-high of 9.1% in May, the ONS said.

However, the figure was 2.6% above pre-Covid-19 levels recorded in February 2020.

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The data shows the proportion of retail sales online declined from 27.1% in April to 26.6% in May, while online spending values also fell by 1.7% during the month.

Meanwhile, fuel sales volumes rose by 1.1% in May – despite record high petrol prices.

The ONS said: “When asked about their shopping habits in the past two weeks, 44% of adults reported that they were buying less food when food shopping.

“This proportion appears to be increasing, having been 41% in the previous period (27 April to 8 May) and 18% at the beginning of [this year].

“Comments from some food retailers highlighted that they are seeing a decline in volumes sold because of increased food prices and cost-of-living impacts.”

Helen Dickinson, the BRC’s Chief Executive, said: “Households reined in spending as the cost-of-living crunch continued to squeeze consumer demand.

Many customers are buying down, particularly with food, choosing value range items where they might previously have bought premium goods.

“High-value items such as furniture and white goods were also impacted as shoppers reconsidered major purchases during this difficult time.”

BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE

GFK CONFIDENCE BAROMETER

Consumer confidence sinks to new record low Research shows that consumers are grappling with a stark new economic reality.

C

onsumer confidence decreased one point to -41 in June, setting a new record low, according to GfK’s long-running Consumer Confidence Index.

The research shows that four measures of consumer confidence were down in comparison to the 20 May announcement, while the major purchase index was flat.Economists polled by Reuters had expected the index to hold at -40.

Joe Staton, Client Strategy Director of GfK, said: “With a headline score of -41

for June, the GfK Consumer Confidence Barometer has set a record low for the second successive month. The four scores on our personal finances and the wider UK economic picture have all dropped and our measure on major purchase intentions is flat. With prices rising faster than wages, and the prospect of strikes and spiralling inflation causing a summer of discontent, many will be surprised that the index has not dropped further.

“The consumer mood is currently darker than in the early stages of the

Covid pandemic, the result of the 2016 Brexit referendum, and even the shock of the 2008 global financial crisis, and now there’s talk of a looming recession.

One thing is for sure, Britain faces a stark new economic reality and history shows that consumers will not hesitate to retrench and tighten their purse strings when the going gets tough.”

The index is based on a survey of a nationally representative sample of 2,002 individuals aged 16 or older carried out between 1 June and 14 June 2022.

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WHOLESALE

HANCOCKS

Marking a milestone in Glasgow 60th anniversary celebrations are attended by more than 200 customers who were able to take advantage of hundreds of offers.

H

ancocks marked its 60th anniversary in Glasgow with its biggest store event so far this year.

The depot, in Blochairn, celebrated an event for customers and suppliers.

The 247 customers who attended were able to take advantage of hundreds of offers, as well as prize draws and giveaways, and could meet the team and suppliers.

The Glasgow event was sponsored

by Haribo, Nestle, Mondelez, and Frisia. Brand representatives from Shmoo, Swizzels, LoveRaw, Jersey Gold, Nestle, McCandlish Farmhouse Confectionery,

Bazooka, and Mars were also in attendance. The Hancocks depot in Glasgow first opened in 1997 in Port Dundas, moving to its current and bigger site in Blochairn in 2001.

It supplies retailers across Glasgow with confectionery from around the world. It also offers a click-and-collect service for customers who prefer to shop online.

Manager Kerr McLaren said: “Sixty years is a huge milestone, so we wanted to celebrate by being able to thank our customers for their continuous support and this was a fantastic way to do it.

Hancock’s staff gather outside the Blochairn depot in Glasgow

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“It was a great day and lovely to do something special for our customers who have supported us for years, particularly over the last couple of years during the pandemic.

“We couldn’t have marked the 60th anniversary in a better way and we’re looking forward to many more years trading in Glasgow.”

Hancocks’ COO, Jonathan Summerley, added: “Being able to hold events at each of our 14 stores is certainly the best way to mark 60 years and has allowed us to appreciate the scale of Hancocks and how much it has grown.”

WHOLESALE

PARFETTS

Bosses show staff the money as sales soar past £600m Employees will receive supplementary cost-of-living bonus and receive their annual sales bonus early as the wholesaler shows staff its appreciation for their hard work over the last financial year

P

arfetts is recognising its staff ’s hard work and dedication with a cost-of-living bonus of up to £500. Employees were informed over the weekend that the annual sales bonus of up to 2% of salary will be paid early this year and is supplemented by a costof-living bonus. All bonuses will be paid tax-free to team members.

Teams in the best-performing depots of Aintree and Middlesbrough received a 4% bonus. The two depots saw sales growth of 21% and 18%, respectively.

Parfetts has seen sales exceed £600m for the first time, an increase of more than 5% on the last financial year.

Guy Swindell, joint managing director of Parfetts, said: “As an employee-owned business our people are at the heart of everything we do. It is the hard work and dedication of everyone at Parfetts that drives our continued success. We wanted to look at how we can support people with the current cost-of-living crisis and took the decision to pay an additional bonus this year.

“Over the past 12 months, we’ve focused on providing a high level of service, product range and price to our customers. With the continued expansion of our delivered operation and the recruitment of new customers to the Go Local fascia estate, we have achieved a record sales figure.

Guy Swindell: staff appreciation

“Parfetts has continued to grow despite significant sales periods overlapping last year’s lockdowns and the aftershocks of the Covid pandemic. Looking forward, there are significant opportunities for growth as we continue to evolve our offer to support our customers.”

In the past year, Parfetts has reinvested back into the business to support

customers. It has advanced plans to improve and expand its depots, rapidly grow the delivered service, and expanded its fascia operations.

Swindell added: “Our retailers continue to tell us they appreciate the personal approach with great availability and value. It’s an approach that supported record growth in turnover and the number of retailers in our Go Local fascia.”

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COMMUNITY

JAMES HALL & CO

Social weekend nets over £3,000 for Marie Curie Charity

The two-day event marked the first time in three years the wholesaler has held its social event for independent retailers.

J

ames Hall & Co, Spar’s north of England wholesaler, has raised more than £3,000 for the symbol group’s principal charity partner Marie Curie by holding a successful social weekend with its independent retailers.

More than 270 people came together for the two-day event that began with a virtual race night in the plush surroundings of Chester Racecourse.

This was followed up by a threecourse gala dinner at the Crowne Plaza hotel, with a live band and dancing.

It was the first time in three years that James Hall & Co has held the event,

and it complements the business-focused company update that was held last autumn.

Peter Dodding, Sales Director at James Hall & Co and Spar Northern Guild Chairman, said: “It was a terrific weekend in Chester and I was delighted to see so many of our retail family from across the north of England were able to join us for a celebration.

“It has been a long three years since our last social event in 2019, and we have overcome so much in that period through resilience, togetherness, and a willingness to succeed.

“As a company, we are now looking forward to kicking on in the second half of the year, and to supporting our Spar retailers to achieve their ambitions in the remainder of 2022.”

Spar has partnered with Marie Curie, which provides care and support to people living with a terminal illness and those close to them, since 2017. In that time it has raised more than £2m – the equivalent of 100,000 hours of care from a Marie Curie nurse.

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COMMUNITY

SCOTMID

Scotmid launches menopause café for staff

The event will provide a safe and inclusive environment for women to share experiences and discuss challenges.

S

cotmid is launching a Menopause Café for staff to drive more open conversations around menopause.

The Menopause Café, an employee-led initiative, will provide a safe and inclusive environment to share experiences and discuss challenges. The first online café was held during Coop Fortnight, an annual celebration of cooperation. The event was organised by Perth-based charity, Menopause Café.

Shirley MacGillivray, Head of Membership and Community at Scotmid,

said: “We recognise the impact menopause can have on the health and wellbeing of our employees, their friends, family, and the communities that we serve. We’re proud to be the first cooperative to offer this safe space to our staff to create a supportive community.

We hope to see our colleagues come together to break the taboo of menopause and support each other along the way.

“Coop Fortnight feels like a fitting time to launch the initiative.”

Scotmid, which has around 4,000 employees located across Scotland, Northern Ireland and the north of England, recently sponsored the world’s only menopause festival – #FlushFest2022.

The global average age of menopause is 51, and according to UN statistics for 2020, 657 million women globally were aged 45-59 with around half of them (47%) in employment. An estimated 1% of women will experience premature menopause before 40 and some may have a clinically induced menopause.

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S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y

SCOTMID CO-OP

Scotmid introduces reusable Costa Coffee travel cups

The move will significantly reduce single-use coffee cups at Costa Express machines located in the retailer’s stores.

S

cotmid has become the first Costa Express partner in the UK to introduce reusable Costa Coffee travel cups across its full portfolio of stores.

The move will significantly reduce single-use coffee cups at Costa Express machines located in its stores.

The stainless-steel reusable Costa Coffee Waffle Travel cup will be available to buy at all Scotmid tills and can hold both a Regular and Large Costa Express drink.

Customers will receive two coupons for two free Hot Filled Breakfast Rolls of their choice with every purchase of

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the reusable cup. The Breakfast Rolls are worth £3.70 and can be redeemed at any point this year.

The move is also designed to encourage Scotmid customers to help reduce the amount of waste being generated from single-use items.

Danny Scobie, Head of Food-To-Go at Scotmid, said: “Providing more sustainable options for customers in store has been a key focus for Scotmid and, given our close working relationship with Costa Coffee, we are excited to be the first retailer in the UK to introduce these reusable coffee cups.”

Laurence Webb, UK&I Sustainability Lead at Costa Coffee, added: “Our customers believe passionately in being able to make choices that help them do their bit to protect the environment and we are excited to partner with Scotmid, selling Costa Coffee reusable cups, designed to fit within our Costa Express machines.

“In addition to the sale of the reusable travel cups, the digital screens on all Costa Express machines look to encourage customers to think more sustainably and opt for a reusable cup when it comes to purchasing their favourite coffee.”

SUPPLIERS

RIVERSIDE GREETINGS

Riverside Greetings partners with Leeds Beckett University The two-year Management Knowledge Transfer Partnership will bring academic knowledge, experience, and insight into the business to accelerate its growth and sustainability.

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iverside Greetings, a supplier to the convenience and forecourt industry, has teamed up with marketing and engineering experts at Leeds Beckett University to bring academic knowledge, experience, and insight into the business to accelerate its growth and sustainability.

A team of academics will work with Riverside Greetings, which designs and supplies cards to convenience retailers including Spar, Nisa and Costcutter, on the two-year Management Knowledge

Transfer Partnership (mKTP) that is part-funded by the government through Innovate UK. Andrew Glen, Managing Director of Riverside Greetings, said: “We are delighted to be working with Leeds Beckett on a mKTP which will transform the greeting card category in the growing convenience sector, whilst creating a step change in the growth of our business and additional jobs. Our mission is to help convenience retailers sell more greetings cards and they will

benefit from performance improvements – and their shoppers will benefit from a proposition which is better tailored to their needs.”

A graduate has been recruited to conduct the project, as a full-time member of staff within the business, and with the full support and input of the academic team at Leeds Beckett. The academics all have experience of working with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) on knowledge exchange projects.

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THIS WEEK OASIS OLD MOUT LUCOZADE SPORT + MORE

NPD AND MEDIA

PICKS OF THE WEEK – OASIS

OASIS LAUNCHES FRUITY NEW CAMPAIGN

The summer activity focuses on young adults in urban centres when they are looking for refreshment while on the go and to accompany their lunch.

‘Oasis won’t change your life, Just your lunch hour.

Be your own Oasis’.

Oasis is currently the number one juice drinks brand in GB. It is worth £87m, and is outperforming the juice drinks segment three-fold. The summer activity aims to build on the brand’s growth, focusing on young adults in urban centres when they are looking for refreshment while on the go and to accompany their lunch.

Martin Attock, Vice President of Commercial Development at CCEP GB, said: “Across the juice drinks category we have seen sales of on-the-go formats return to growth, up 29% over the past 12 months, with Oasis on-the-go formats up over 42%.

“We expect this trajectory to continue, particularly throughout the summer, and this new campaign will help keep Oasis front Coca-Cola Europacific Partners

of mind with consumers

(CCEP) is ramping up its marketing

on their lunch-

activity for Oasis this summer,

time shopping

with a light-hearted campaign to

mission.”

tap into the lunchtime occasion.

The Oasis

The campaign, which launches this

range is fully

week, aims to show that ‘while Oasis

HFSS-compliant,

can’t change our characters… it can refresh them’.

with all natural

The activity is expected to reach 81% of young

flavours and no

adults multiple times and will include targeted video

artificial colours.

content on social media, alongside eye-catching

Variants include

digital out-of-home takeovers across high footfall

Summer Fruits,

areas in city centres. Quirky headlines include

Citrus Punch,

‘Can Oasis help you drive like a pro? No. It’s fruity

and Blackcurrant

and refreshing. That’s it. Be your own Oasis’ and

Apple.

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NPD AND MEDIA

PICKS OF THE WEEK – OLD MOUT

OLD MOUT LAUNCHES BIGGEST-EVER CAMPAIGN The brand’s multi-million-pound campaign runs across TV and social channels until 31 July.

Old Mout has launched its biggest-ever campaign, along with limited-edition designs for its range of 10-packs, as the cider brand enters its fourth year in partnership with WWF. The multi-million-pound campaign runs until 31 July, across TV and social channels. With every limited-edition pack sold, the Heineken brand will donate 50p to WWF to protect the Amazon and support the wildlife charity’s wider conservation work.

Alongside its partnership with WWF, Old Mout is 100% recyclable, vegan friendly, gluten free and made with natural flavours. These credentials particularly appeal to younger shoppers who look to make a positive impact through their lifestyle choices.

Rachel Holms, Heineken UK’s Cider Marketing Director, said: “Since 2019, Old Mout and WWF have been educating the world on the importance of reducing human impact on the environment.

The launch of our limited-edition WWF packs will not only raise awareness of our invaluable partnership but allow consumers to learn more about the work of WWF.” Commenting on the brand’s marketing activities, Holms added: “This summer, Old Mout will be unmissable as we run the biggest campaign the brand has ever seen – consumers will see our advertising across TV, social media and spend some quality time with us at two festivals with our award-winning Kiwi Camp.”

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NPD AND MEDIA

PICKS OF THE WEEK – LUCOZADE SPORT

LUCOZADE SPORT NAMED COMMONWEALTH GAMES OFFICIAL SPORTS DRINK

The Games are expected to attract more than one million spectators to Birmingham and have a global TV audience of 1.5 billion.

Lucozade Sport has become the Official Sports Drink of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth

to the city and have a global TV audience of 1.5 billion.

Every Lucozade Sport bottle

Games and will provide thousands

distributed at the games will

of athletes with isotonic drinks

be made from recycled plastic

throughout the multi-sport

excluding the cap and label,

tournament.

and the brand is working with

The Games are taking

Birmingham 2022 waste

place across the West

providers to promote

Midlands between 28

sustainability ambitions

July and 8 August this

throughout the tour-

year, with Lucozade Sport

nament. Birmingham

expecting to provide more

2022 is aiming to make

than 102,000 litres of the

this the first Common-

nation’s favourite sports

wealth Games with a

drink to elite athletes from

carbon-neutral legacy

across the globe. Para

and set a benchmark for

sports are fully integrated

future games.

into the competition pro-

Matt Riches, Head

gramme and, for the first

of Partnerships at Luco-

time in games history, there

zade Sport, said: “The

will be more medal events

Birmingham 2022 Com-

for women than men.

monwealth Games are

The occasion is set to

set to be action-packed

be the biggest sporting

with some of the great-

event ever to be held in the

est athletes from across

West Midlands with around

the world performing at

4,500 athletes from 72

their peak in Birming-

nations and territories

ham. We’ll be providing

competing in 19 sports

them with the UK’s

across 15 competition

number one sports

venues. The games are

drink and can’t wait to

expected to attract more

be alongside them on

than one million spectators

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the field of play.

NPD AND MEDIA

PICKS OF THE WEEK

GOLD LEAF

BISCUIT TWIST

FIRE & BLOOD

Imperial Tobacco is launching

Oreo is launching two new fla-

Treasury Wine Estates’ wine

a new range of limited-edition

vours for its Twists range, the

brand Wolf Blass has teamed

papers in Gold Leaf pouches.

Oreo Twists Vanilla & Caramel

up with Warner Bros to roll out a

Launching in July, the papers will

and Oreo Twists Vanilla & Rasp-

limited-edition wine to mark the

be available in Gold Leaf 30g and

berry. The new products combine

launch of HBO’s House of the

50g pouches until the end of Sep-

one layer of vanilla crème with

Dragon series sequel. Wolf Blass

tember, and priced at £14.60 and

another flavoured layer. The new

Fire & Blood Cabernet Shiraz

£24, respectively. There will be

products will be available from

will be available in three labels

four different designs.

July.

nationwide from August.

RUM CONVENIENCE

SWEET SOLUTIONS

POPPETS PMPS

Rum brand Dead Man’s Fingers

Bonds of London has launched

Poppets has launched new price-

is expanding into the RTDs cate-

its new Shaker Cups display

marked packs for three of its

gory with three launches, Spiced

stand and a new FSDU for its

best-selling variants – Original

Rum & Cola, Spiced Rum & Gin-

Pun Box range, as part of its

Toffee, Salted Caramel Fudge,

ger Beer and Passion Fruit Rum

merchandising stand solutions.

and Mix Ups. The PMPs, which

& Lemonade. All three new var-

The stand has six shelves which

have an RSP of £1, will be avail-

iants are available to order now

displays three shaker cups deep

able throughout the convenience

in 330ml cans, with an ABV of

and has five facing shaker cups,

channel and in cash and carrys

5%. RSP £1.99 per can.

stocking a total of 90 cups.

from July 2022.

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NOW THAT’S A

OUT TH

TV shopping

Walmart aims to make shopping through TV remotes a reality.

US retail giant Walmart has teamed up with streaming service Roku to try to enable streamers to purchase products in TV ads straight from the comfort of their couches.

WHAT’S THE BIG IDEA? Remember Teletext? For the Millennials and Gen-Zers in the audience, back in the distant ‘90s people were able to access all kinds of information on their TV screens, from news to package holiday deals. With the advent of the world

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wide web, Teletext slowly came to an end, but retailers have always tried to solve this particular conundrum: how to let viewers buy the product they are watching an ad for in real time.

Now Walmart is trying to make that a reality; the partnership with Roku hopes to “change the way customers interact and shop TV and video content”.

HOW WILL IT WORK? The pilot programme will let viewers simply press ‘OK’ with the remote on a shoppable ad and proceed to checkout with their payment details easily pre-populated from the Roku Pay payments platform. From there, tapping ‘OK’ on the Walmart checkout page places the order.

“We’re the first to market retailer to bring customers a new shoppable experience.”

A GOOD IDEA…

HE BOX

A Walmart purchase confirmation is then emailed with shipping, return, and support information. OneView, Roku’s ad-buying platform for TV streaming, will have the exclusive capability to activate and measure these shoppable ads.

Marketers will also be able to use Roku Brand Studio to design custom creative and branded content for TV streaming and shopping.

“No one has cracked the code around video shoppability,” William White, Chief Marketing Officer for Walmart, said. “By working with Roku, we’re the first-to-market retailer to bring customers a new shoppable experience and seamless checkout on the largest screen in their homes – their TV.”

WHAT TOOK SO LONG? Despite TV shopping having been incredibly popular a few decades ago, people slowly moved away from spending too much time watching TV, owing to the popularity of smartphones, tablets and computers.Since then, companies tried a few innovations including QR codes displaying on screen, but none of them took off.

WHY IS THIS DIFFERENT? The key component of this pilot programme is the remote control. Companies already know that viewers get distracted by phones and other devices; the remote control, however, is still pivotal to watching.

With Roku being a paid-for streaming service, a lot of the information retailers would need is already in there, i.e. a payment method or a delivery address. So, in theory purchasing becomes simple and, hopefully for Walmart, effective.

ANY LAST WORDS? “We’re making shopping on TV as easy as it is on social,” said Peter Hamilton, Head of TV Commerce, Roku.

“For years, streamers have purchased new Roku devices and signed up for millions of subscriptions with their Roku remote. Streaming commerce brings that same ease and convenience to marketers and shoppers.”

WEDNESDAY 29TH JUNE 2022/ ISSUE 111 / SLRMAG.CO.UK I 35

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RETAIL RANDOMS

NEVER ProVeg International, “a food awareness organisation working to transform the global food system by replacing conventional animal-based products with plant-based and cultured alternatives,” has described the South African government’s decision to ban “meaty” names for plant-based alternatives like “Veggie Biltong” as “a major step backwards” in the fight against climate change.

That’s one way to look at it. Another way is to view it as a huge step forward in the fight against the obsession that plant-based businesses have with replicating meat. Instead of celebrating the joy of eating vegetables for their own sake, consumers are constantly reminded that “This Isn’t Chicken,” it’s “Beyond Meat,” comes from a “Meatless Farm,” hasn’t been slaughtered by “The Vegetarian Butcher,” or has in fact arrived on their plate “Incogmeato”.

MIND THE

A clever pun does not a tasty dinner make, which perhaps addresses the (meat-free) elephant in the room: people might want to do their bit for the planet but deep down everyone knows nobody can make a steak quite like a cow can.

BUTTOCKS

Biltong, in case you’re wondering, is dried, cured meat cut into strips, and popular in southern Africa. Interestingly, the word comes from the Dutch bil (“buttock”) and tong (“strip” or “tongue”). Plant-based bum cheek anyone?

WHAT’S IN A NAME? For reasons best known to themselves, the good people at MyDatingAdviser.com – a website that offers “trusted dating advice from the experts” – have compiled a list of the UK’s rudest place names.

Shitterton, Butthole Lane and Fannylane are just three of many towns, villages and hamlets curious tourists can visit, presumably as some sort of weird preamble to copping off with one another.

Interestingly, almost all these potty-mouthed places don’t have a c-store. Painstaking Week In Retail research, which involved gawping at Google Maps for 10 minutes, revealed this.

Further analysis then uncovered a possible reason. After all, would you fancy popping into Londis Lickey End, Wideopen One-Stop, Nisa Willey, Premier Bell End, or Simply Fresh Minge Lane?

WEDNESDAY 29TH JUNE 2022/ ISSUE 111 / SLRMAG.CO.UK I 37

01.09.2022

George Bowie • DJ Cassi • Pretty Ugly Simon Cordiner • Rebecca Vasmant BOOK NOW

For tickets and information visit groceryaid.org.uk/events/checkout-scotland

Money raised from this event will go to GroceryAid, the grocery industry charity. A Registered Charity Reg No. 1095897 (England & Wales) & SC039255 (Scotland).

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