Grand Central Apple Market

LAS VEGAS -- From Wal-Mart's continued onslaught to the national repercussions of the Albertsons' deal, independents in markets across the country will face critical shifts in marketplace power this year and beyond. It's time many of them start seriously considering hitching their wagons to wholesalers' banner programs, to strengthen their own positions as part of "virtual chains," said Steve Dillard, v.p. corporate sales and business development, Associated Wholesale Grocers of Kansas City (AWG), during a workshop at the National Grocers Association convention here this week.

CHICAGO -- India heads the list as the best international investment opportunity for mass merchants and food retailers, according to management consulting firm A.T. Kearney's 2005 Global Retail Development Index (GRDI), a yearly study of retail investment attractiveness among 30 emerging markets.