How grocery categories have fared during the pandemic

Fresh seafood and the frozen department saw some of the biggest dollar sales growth from March to October, while deli and floral struggled, according to data from IRI and 210 Analytics.

By Catherine Douglas Moran • Nov. 18, 2020

Schnucks rebrands downtown St. Louis store

The grocer's Culinaria format, which opened in 2009, will become Schnucks Downtown and feature new self-checkout stations and a refreshed assortment.

By Catherine Douglas Moran • Nov. 16, 2020

Kroger-owned Home Chef beefs up product lines, promo deals

New soup and pizza offerings along with a partnership with NBCUniversal's Peacock streaming service have positioned the meal kit company for growth.

By Rosie Bradbury • Nov. 13, 2020

How a California car service company turned into an e-grocer

Buffalo Market, which made its debut last month, started out in rentals and then became an Instacart-like delivery service before transitioning fully into online grocery.

By Catherine Douglas Moran • Nov. 12, 2020

Aldi promises a Thanksgiving meal for under $30

The discount grocer is also giving all of its employees two $30 gift cards. 

By Catherine Douglas Moran • Nov. 12, 2020

Whole Foods offers 'turkey insurance' to early-bird shoppers

Shoppers who buy their Thanksgiving birds early from the grocer will be eligible to submit a claim for a $35 Whole Foods gift card if they have a cooking fail.

By Catherine Douglas Moran • Nov. 11, 2020

Bottoms up: How grocers can keep alcohol sales pouring in

As the coronavirus pandemic boosts category sales, retailers are setting the table for long-term shopper engagement with larger departments and expanded online availability.

By Catherine Douglas Moran • Nov. 11, 2020

Grocery chains need to stop buying into food waste. Here's why.

Top retailers have signed onto the "10x20x30" initiative to halve food waste by 2030, but all U.S. grocers need to ramp up their efforts, writes Jennifer Molidor of the Center for Biological Diversity.

By Jennifer Molidor • Nov. 9, 2020

Save Mart spotlights guest chefs as local restaurants struggle with pandemic

The grocer recently handed over brunch service at its flagship location to a well-known local establishment and plans to feature similar partnerships at stores in the near future.

By Rosie Bradbury • Nov. 9, 2020

Amazon Fresh's hyperlocal advantage

The retailer is quickly building an online/offline machine for Prime members, many of whom live within a mile of the new stores, writes Matt Newberg of HNGRY.

By Matt Newberg • Nov. 5, 2020

HelloFresh posts record Q3 as it hits 5M active customers for the first time

The German meal kit company also saw its revenue and order volume surge as at-home eating accelerated during the pandemic.

By Sam Silverstein • Nov. 4, 2020

Inside the store: Wegmans' new location in Tysons, Virginia

The 80,000-square-foot supermarket on the campus of banking giant Capital One features a smaller, urban concept with prepared foods as the focal point.

By Catherine Douglas Moran • Nov. 4, 2020

Catering to the plant-based diet trend: What about the package?

Isn’t it only natural to put plant-based food in a plant-based package?

Nov. 2, 2020

Nestlé buys Freshly, valuing meal delivery firm at $950M

The world's largest food manufacturer, which purchased a stake in the upstart in 2017, can bring its deep knowledge of customer trends, R&D capability and portfolio of brands to the meal kit delivery business.

By Christopher Doering • Oct. 30, 2020

Sprouts' ID sales growth slows as it stays the course on long-term strategy

The natural foods chain's digital sales increased 337% during the quarter, and it began taking pickup and delivery orders directly through its website and app.

By Sam Silverstein • Oct. 29, 2020

Q&A: How Freshly is scaling to meet prepared meal delivery demand

The company's new warehouse in Southern California is part of a strategy that includes doubling capacity and tripling product offerings next year, according to Mike Wystrach, co-founder and CEO.

By Catherine Douglas Moran • Oct. 28, 2020

Fresh Midwest aims to pick up where Peapod left off in Chicagoland

The e-grocer's founders are Windy City natives who have teamed up with Peapod veterans to bring fresh produce, restaurant meals and meal kits to shoppers.

By Jessica Dumont • Oct. 28, 2020

4 mealtime innovations that picked up during the pandemic

Retailers like Barons Market, The Giant Company and Hy-Vee are helping customers solve the age-old dilemma of what to make for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

By Jessica Dumont • Oct. 28, 2020

Roche Bros. partners with local supplier platform Forager

With its partnership, the Massachusetts-based grocery chain is “building an alternative supply chain” for locally sourced food. 

By Rosie Bradbury • Oct. 27, 2020

Halloween candy sales are up, but pandemic is changing celebrations

As manufacturers have altered their approach, 90% of young parents say they cannot imagine Halloween without sweet treats, according to the National Confectioners Association.

By Jessi Devenyns • Oct. 27, 2020

Chowbotics adds contactless ordering feature to salad-making robot

The robotics startup has also expanded the range of meal choices its "Sally" machine is able to prepare.

By Sam Silverstein • Oct. 27, 2020

Fast-casual salad franchise opens at The Giant Company

Saladworks already has several locations in other grocery stores, including ShopRite, and has plans for at least 10 more by early next year.

By Jessica Dumont • Oct. 23, 2020

New e-grocer Hive looks to ride an online wave

Helmed by veterans from Jet.com, Casper and Freshpet, the company helps shoppers track the social and environmental impacts of their orders.

By Jeff Wells • Oct. 22, 2020

Amazon Fresh opens second store in California

Like the first store in Woodland Hills, the new supermarket in Irvine offers low prices, along with Amazon's Dash Carts and Alexa features to assist shoppers.

By Catherine Douglas Moran • Oct. 22, 2020

Why Trader Joe's traffic has recovered but Whole Foods' hasn't

Specialty chains were hit hardest by the drop-off in Q2 foot traffic, but some, like Trader Joe's, have been better at adapting to a new "mission-driven" shopper mindset, according to a report from Placer.ai.

By Rosie Bradbury • Oct. 22, 2020