Food Lion has been a top performer for Ahold Delhaize of late, recently recording its 53rd consecutive quarter of comparable-store sales growth.
There are multiple reasons for this impressive run — including a vast store-remodeling drive and a popular e-commerce program that Ahold Delhaize frequently highlights — but the grocer’s MVP loyalty program has been a quiet key to that success.
The program’s personalized savings under its Shop & Earn feature make both in-store and online shopping simple for customers, said Neil Norman, Food Lion’s head of loyalty and CPG marketing partnerships, in an email interview. Customers, for example, receive personalized offers based on their shopping history.
As the grocery industry dials up investments in artificial intelligence and personalization, Norman said Food Lion is being judicious with its approach to technology by following a customer-centric approach.
“Our approach is to focus on how technology can improve convenience and value for customers,” Norman said. “Rather than leading with the technology itself, we prioritize using it in ways that help customers save time, simplify their experience and get more value from every trip.”
This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
GROCERY DIVE: Can you give me a rundown of what Food Lion's loyalty program looks like for shoppers?
NEIL NORMAN: From a customer perspective, the Food Lion MVP Program is designed to make saving simple, consistent and easy to access across every shopping trip.
Customers can save in multiple ways. MVP pricing is applied automatically at checkout upon loyalty card scan, and additional savings are available through weekly digital coupons, Shop & Earn Monthly Rewards and personalized offers based on shopping habits. Shop & Earn offers a savings refresh at the beginning of each month, giving customers new opportunities to earn rewards on the items they already buy.
Through the Food Lion app or foodlion.com, customers can activate offers, track their progress and manage their savings in one place. Communication is designed to be helpful and relevant, with notifications tied to available savings, expiring rewards or new offers, so customers can take advantage of them at the right time.
Tell me about the loyalty program features available in-store and on your app.
The Food Lion app and foodlion.com are designed to support customers throughout their entire shopping experience, both before and during their trip. Customers can load digital coupons, activate Shop & Earn offers, view “MVP pricing” and track their savings through the digital MVP Wallet, which brings together redeemed rewards, coupons and year-to-date savings in one place.
In-store, customers can also use the Savings Center kiosk by entering their phone number to load personalized offers directly to their MVP account, which are then automatically applied at checkout.
In 2026, what initiatives will roll out to the program for consumers? How do you determine what to roll out, whether it be consumer- or worker-facing?
Our focus in 2026 is continuing to simplify and enhance the customer experience, making it even easier for them to save across every shopping trip. That includes improving how customers access personalized offers, track their savings and move seamlessly between in-store and online shopping. Many of the enhancements are centered on making the experience more intuitive and connected, rather than introducing complexity.
When it comes to what we roll out, we’re guided by customer behavior and feedback. We look closely at how customers are using the program, where there may be friction points and where there are opportunities to make saving easier or more relevant. That applies to both customer-facing updates and behind-the-scenes improvements.
What does Food Lion consider the most valuable data insight or metric gathered from the loyalty program? Why?
One of the most valuable insights we gain is understanding how customers shop over time — what they’re buying, how often they shop and how they engage with savings opportunities. That allows us to deliver more relevant offers and create a better overall experience. Rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach, we can personalize savings to reflect individual shopping habits, which makes those offers more meaningful and easier for customers to use.
We also closely track engagement and retention, because those metrics show us whether the program is delivering consistent value and whether customers are continuing to find it useful month-over-month.
What major trends has Food Lion seen recently with its Shop and Earn rewards? What do you anticipate seeing during the rest of 2026?
Over the past year, we’ve seen continued growth in engagement with Shop & Earn, as more customers are actively participating in the program and using digital tools to plan their shopping and maximize savings.
In 2025, the program reached 1 million monthly active and engaged customers, marking an important milestone for a program that requires monthly active participation. We’ve also continued to see strong retention, which reflects how consistently customers are finding value in the program. Our recent Shop & Earn customer satisfaction surveys indicate a high number of engaged customers are neutral to highly satisfied with Shop & Earn, proving strength in long-term value to our engaged customers.
Compared to a year ago, customers are increasingly engaging with digital features like activating offers, tracking progress and managing savings through the app or online. Looking ahead to the rest of 2026, we expect that trend to continue, with a continued focus on personalization, simplicity and making it easier for customers to save in ways that fit into their everyday routines.
