Retail News CRM

Tag: Kroger

  • Kroger launches direct-to-customer e-commerce platform Ship

    Kroger launches direct-to-customer e-commerce platform Ship

    The Kroger Co. has announced the introduction of Kroger Ship, its new direct-to-customer e-commerce platform.

    “Kroger Ship is our next step in creating a seamless experience that allows our customers to shop when and how they want,” said Yael Cosset, Kroger’s Chief Digital Officer. “Our new service is just one more way we are redefining the customer experience as part of Restock Kroger, bringing more convenience and options to shoppers across America. Kroger Ship complements and joins our 2,800 grocery stores, 1,250 curbside pickup locations, and delivery service from 1,200 locations.”

    Kroger Ship is launching in four markets: Cincinnati, Houston, Louisville, and Nashville. The retailer anticipates quickly rolling out the ship service to additional markets over the next few months. During the first phase of Kroger Ship, customers can shop from a curated selection of 4,500 our brands products, which are not available anywhere else online, and more than 50,000 center-aisle groceries and household essentials that matter the most, influenced by 84.51° data and insights.

    The service offers competitive ecommerce pricing and fast and free doorstep delivery by a package carrier on orders over US $35, otherwise shipping is US $4.99 per order. Ship customers will experience exclusive money-saving opportunities, including promo codes and pricing deals along with the convenience of a set-and-save subscription model. During the launch phase, customers will receive free shipping—no minimum purchase required—and 15 percent off their order with a one-time-use promo code.

    “Kroger Ship brings together the best of our digital, technology, logistics, 84.51°, merchandising, and Our Brands teams to deliver our customers convenient and curated food inspiration,” added Cosset. “Kroger’s ecommerce platform expands our offering beyond the physical store to include even more products. Along with staples and customer favorites, Kroger Ship will carry bulk and additional sizes, and focus on Our Brands, local and international food and flavors, specialty items, and health and wellness products – making it easier than ever before to be your family’s hero at mealtime, or anytime.”

    “Kroger is building on our expansive logistics and fulfillment infrastructure to support the rapid rollout of Ship,” said Frank Bruni, Vice President of Supply Chain and Procurement. “With the support of Our Brands, and Kroger’s manufacturers and suppliers, our vision is to build a seamless e-commerce system that offers our customers an ever-growing number of products and allows Kroger to ship nationwide, serving America through food inspiration and uplift.”

  • DIP clothing by US’s Kroger launched

    DIP clothing by US’s Kroger launched

    US supermarket giant Kroger is to roll out a new apparel label, called Dip.

    The new brand will be sold through stores-in-stores in about 300 Fred Meyer and Kroger Marketplace stores across the US, a fraction of its 2779-strong network.

    The company released an artist’s impression of how the Dip space will look, (above). It will replace more than a dozen of the company’s private-label clothing brands.

    Kroger has tapped fashion designer Joe Mimran to create what it bills as “a new and exciting apparel brand” and which will launch with men’s, women’s, juniors, kids, and baby collections.

    Mimran previously launched Club Monaco, Joe Fresh and Pink Tartan during a 30-year career in fashion design. His brief was to develop a clothing line for Kroger which “makes effortless style easy and affordable to achieve”.

    “We’ve worked closely with Joe and his team to develop a line of clothing that works for today’s times – easy to buy, easy to wear, and easy to love,” said Robert Clark, Kroger’s senior VP of merchandising. “Effortless style, every day of the week.”

    “Style should be fun,” said Mimran. “We believe good design can be affordable. It should fit into your life, not the other way around.”

    Mimran says the name Dip was chosen after looking at Kroger’s heritage in food. “We thought about the fun, easy energy of the clothes. We thought about what makes every gathering better. And it just kind of clicked – Dip.”

    Lees ook:

  • EG Group to purchase of Kroger’s convenience store biz for US$2.15 billion

    EG Group to purchase of Kroger’s convenience store biz for US$2.15 billion

    US supermarket chain Kroger has sold nearly 800 convenience stores to British petrol retailer EG Group for $2.15 billion.

    The former Kroger stores operate under the brands Loaf ‘N Jug, Kwik Shop, Tom Thumb and Turkey Hill and collectively tuned over $4 billion last year. Proceeds from the sale will be used to reduce debt, with the balance returned to shareholders.

    Kroger, which has 2800 supermarkets across the US, says the divestment is part of its plan to streamline sales and operations, focusing on its core grocery offer.

    EG (which stands for Euro Garages) has about 370 petrol stations in the UK, France and the Benelux countries. The Kroger acquisition marks its first foray into the US.

    Online publication Retail Dive observed that while Kroger was selling its convenience store business, it is still very interested in opportunities outside grocery.

    “The company recently opened its first restaurant, and announced last year it would introduce its first private label clothing line this fall. Reports have linked Kroger with Ace Hardware, as well. It’s hard to say why, exactly, the retailer decided to give up a $4 billion sales generator while pursuing these unproven channels, but Kroger clearly has a plan, and if recent history is any indication, it’s unwise to bet against it.”

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Alibaba and Kroger in talks

    Alibaba and Kroger in talks

    Looking to fight back against Amazon’s move into the grocery business, Cincinnati-based Kroger is reportedly eyeing an alliance with the Seattle juggernaut’s nemesis: China’s Alibaba.

    Industry speculation has Kroger exploring everything from a technology alliance to an outright acquisition by the Hangzhou-based tech company. Such an epic takeover – which could easily top $50 billion – would be four times larger than last year’s acquisition of Whole Foods by Amazon that sent traditional grocers scrambling to boost their digital capabilities.

    Senior Kroger executives met with senior Alibaba officials last month in China, the New York Post and Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources. While details of a potential partnership were not revealed, an arrangement of some type was disclosed by of all sources, China’s Ministry of Commerce.

    “Alibaba has teamed up with Kroger … to speed up the integration of online and off-line sales,” the Chinese agency said in a statement on Jan. 13.

    Kroger shares rose Thursday as investors pondered the merits of a pact or a takeover of Kroger by Alibaba. Kroger stock climbed as high as $30.46 on Thursday, up 3.3 percent. Shares closed at $30.26, up 2.7 percent.

    Alibaba at the least could provide a digital payment platform to create stores that would not need cashiers or checkout stations. That’s something it has done in China and which Amazon introduced earlier this week in Seattle with a new Amazon Go store.

    With 2,800 stores across the U.S., Kroger could provide Alibaba a massive American platform to compete against Amazon. The Cincinnati-based grocer is the U.S.’s largest supermarket chain. Further, Kroger could direct some business to Alibaba’s site for general merchandise, sources told the paper.

    But while Alibaba’s annual sales last year were only $25 billion versus Kroger’s more than $100 billion, it has pockets nearly as deep as Amazon. The company is worth 10 times Kroger. If Alibaba wants to enter Western markets via an acquisition, it could make a credible offer.

    Wall Street analysts were intrigued at the possibility of a takeover, but seemed to think a partnership was more likely to result from the talks.

    “If these articles are in fact true, we applaud Kroger for thinking outside the box – because a Kroger/Alibaba partnership would be a superior solution… and would meaningfully alter the competitive landscape in the US,” wrote Barclays analyst Karen Short in a Thursday note to investors. “Alibaba could certainly provide Kroger with the most – if not all – of the e-commerce solutions.”

    Wells Fargo analyst Edward Kelly also leaned toward a possible alliance.

    “A partnership with a player like Alibaba would seem to make a lot of sense, as it could provide an attractive opportunity to advance Kroger’s technology platform and digital knowledge without significant upfront cost,” Kelly wrote in a Thursday note to investors.

    Andy Stout, managing director of investments at Simply Money in Symmes Township, said a takeover might be hard to pull off as regulators might resist a foreign ownership for a Fortune 500 company. He noted regulators early this year helped kill the acquisition of Moneygram by Alibaba subsidiary Ant Financial.

    “Regulators would look very closely at a Chinese company buying the third-largest retailer in the US,” Stout said. “In this age of populism, I think regulators probably would not allow Alibaba to buy Kroger.”

    Kroger officials declined to comment Thursday, labeling the reports “rumor or speculation.”

    Speculation of possible Kroger acquisitions or partnerships are in overdrive this month with news outlets suggesting the grocer was eyeing potential takeovers of digital wholesaler Boxed as well as online retailer Overstock.com. The common thread to all these reports besides unnamed sources and Kroger silence was avenues for the retailer to beef up its digital abilities.c

     

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook: