In June, Sprouts Farmers Market released its 2022 ESG Report, an annual recap of the company’s efforts across the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) spectrum in the previous year. The report prefaced by Sprouts CEO Jack Sinclair. In his letter, Sinclair noted that the company strives do the right thing by customers, employees, vendors, communities, and the environment.
As Sprouts Farmers Market pursues its ambitious growth plan for 2023, the company is ramping up hiring events for a spate of upcoming store openings.
UNFI announced actions it is taking to enhance profitability, speed up decision-making and reduce administrative layers, primarily by consolidating from four operating regions to three. The three new regions will be called East, Central, and West.
On June 20th, 2023, KeHE announced the acquisition of DPI Specialty Foods, a premier distributor across the western United States. The acquisition combines KeHE and DPI’s more than 13 decades of market-leading expertise in fresh, natural and organic, and specialty distribution to benefit their valued supplier partners.
Addressing the ongoing theme of inflation, Jessica Maniscalco, Senior Retail Insights Manager of market intelligence firm SPINS, said, “While the impact is still present in natural and specialty accounts, it’s being felt at a lesser rate than in conventional channels.”
Summer is upon us, and travel season is in full swing. In a recent survey, covering 11 countries and 4,700 respondents, 79% of travelers said they were planning a trip in the June to August 2023 period. While travelers may be excited to take part in summer adventures, it may come at a premium.
Whole Foods Market opened a new store in the nation’s capital. The 47,000 square-foot location opened on Wednesday, June 28th.
Placer.ai has come out with new data analytics reviewing the current state of grocery foot traffic considering inflation, post pandemic, and other economic challenges.
INFRA announced that construction is underway for their new headquarters office in St. Paul. Planning of the new location has been underway since late 2022.
KeHE has announced numerous personnel changes across their Category Management department.
KeHE has partnered with Cornerstone Consulting to bring a tech-forward experience, Smart Shelf Tags to suppliers, retailers, and consumers. Consumers are looking for more information on products and brands, so Smart Shelf Tags will offer instant digital content via QR codes.
Hy-Vee opened their largest supermarket to date in Gretna just southwest of Omaha. The 135,000 square foot store will carry over 120,000 items with more than 6,300 specialty items.
Tom Thumb is commemorating its 75th year by making a significant contribution to the North Texas Food Bank through the donation of 75 pallets of non-perishable products. The grocery chain, based in North Texas, reached its 75th anniversary milestone this summer.
PCC has introduced a new Inclusive Trade Program, for brands sold at PCC. It is a voluntary program to help bring more inclusivity and visibility to vendors from excluded or marginalized communities.
The Raley’s Companies has promoted Chief Operating Officer Steve Mayer to President of Chandler, Arizona-based Bashas’. As President, Mayer will lead the organization in Arizona and New Mexico, including all storefront and distribution hub operations.
Amazon announces the closure of the Amazon Go retail located on Fifth Avenue and Marion Street in Seattle, Washington.
Natural Grocers Beaverton is moving! The Beaverton Natural Grocers, currently located at 12155 SW Broadway Street in Beaverton, Oregon, will be transitioning to a new location in the summer of 2023.
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage is pleased to announce the upcoming opening of its new store in Twin Falls, Idaho, on August 30th, 2023.
Colorado-based Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage closed two stores in the Dallas-Fort Worth area on June 27th due to poor sales. The two stores, Fort Worth-North, located at 5230 North Tarrant Parkway and Coppell, located at 120 S. Denton Tap Road, began store-wide closing sales in mid-May with discounts of 25% off all merchandise.
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage held a grand re-opening event in Amarillo, Texas on June 8th to welcome customers to a newer, bigger and better store.
The Giant Co. announces a new store set to be built in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania – a borough just 10 miles north of Center City Philadelphia. The approximately 50,000 square-foot store is part of the grocer’s strategic growth plans in the greater Philadelphia area and the surrounding communities.
Sprouts has partnered with Instacart to launch a retail media advertising network and platform to connect health-focused consumer packed goods brands directly to Sprouts’ shoppers by way of Instacart’s Carrot Ads.
North Carolina-based supermarket chain, Lowe’s Foods, is opening a new store in Pittsboro, North Carolina – which opened on Thursday, June 29th.
Lipari Foods has just made another acquisition as of May 2023. Lipari has reached an agreement to acquire Comercializadora Del Midwest into their family as they develop their Latino category.
On June 19th, Natures Best began a weeklong grand opening of its new store at 604 N. 8th street in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Nature’s Best had occupied their original smaller store at 837 Riverfront Drive that has been operating since 1994.
Jimbo’s, a local natural food and grocery chain, will soon establish a new presence in the Row at Civita, which serves as the vibrant mixed-use civic and retail center within a meticulously designed 230-acre master-planned community.
Montecito Natural Foods, in Montecito, California for over 60 years is relocating. The store has been owned by Gabe and Slim Gomez for 30 years, and offered health food products as well as vitamins, beauty products.
Lassens Natural Foods and Vitamins announced it will be partnering with Papaya’s Natural Foods in Kauai, Hawaii starting June 12th, 2023 . The partnership marks a significant expansion for Lassens, which now has a presence in Hawaii for the first time.
H-E-B-branded merchandise has sparked mixed responses online due to its LGBTQ+ Pride theme in honor of Pride Month.
Last month, San Antonio-based H-E-B Grocery Co. announced it will bring its low-price grocery format, Joe V’s Smart Shop, to North Texas for the first time.
San Antonio-based H-E-B opened its sixth state-of-the-art fulfillment hub in Plano, Texas in Collin County on June 20th. The new, “futuristic”, e-commerce fulfillment center is dedicated to processing curbside pickups and home delivery orders.
The UNFI Las Vegas show scheduled for September 27th to 28th is sold out. They are currently accepting suppliers for the show wait list.
UNFI’s Natural Holiday Show took place at the Mohegan Sun Resort and Casino of Ucasville, Connecticut on June 7th and 8th and it did not disappoint.
KeHE’s Holiday Show took place at the McCormick Convention Center on June 14th and 15th in Chicago, Illinois.
KeHE is partnering with the Chicago Fire FC of Major League Soccer (MLS) to support the shared Chicagoland community.
UNFI places great value on its supplier relationships and takes significant interest in working with them to build their brands, drive growth and create long-term value. One of the areas where they are taking a specific interest in is their diverse supplier base, particularly farmers who are Black and Indigenous.
The morning of June 7th, eight PRESENCE co-workers from the Pacific Northwest participated in the third annual Washington Park Arboretum volunteer day. The arboretum is 230 acres nestled up on the west shore of Lake Washington, jointly managed by the University of Washington botanical gardens and the City of Seattle.
Bashas’ eighth annual “Donut Flavor Craze” contest was held on National Donut Day in June to find the latest donut additions to their bakery case.
Co-Opportunity Market has been a community owned market committed to healthy living, cooperative values, and a commitment to the community. Their vision is a strengthened community through a commitment to clean ingredients, responsible sourcing, and a strong, local food system.
Beacon Discovery is the anytime-anywhere discovery and engagement platform that matches natural product brands with retailers around ingredients, transparency, sustainability, and speed to shelf.
Join us as we chat with Ibraheem Basir, the founder and CEO of A Dozen Cousins and founder of Project Potluck, a 501c3 that provides a range of mentorship and education programming in support of its mission to help People of Color build successful companies and careers in the CPG industry.
We welcomed another baby to the PRESENCE family!
Congratulations to our National Inventory Specialist, Trent Dietz on the birth of his son. Bridger Lee Dietz was born on Friday, June 16th, 2023. He is 8lbs, and 20 and 1/4th inches.
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