News Briefs

Harmons and Mollie Stone’s Markets have become the most recent food retailers to offer the Retail Rewards Box from Salt Lake City-based startup Bunny James. Designed to deliver a personal and engaging shopping experience for retailers’ most valuable customers, the box enables retailers to transcend the limitations of traditional in-person demos and expensive mailer coupon programs, as it provides a risk-free way for customers to try new food and beverage products while providing feedback and data to retailers and brands.

“We believe in the power of gifting psychology, and the Retail Rewards Box is the ultimate demonstration of this,” noted Bunny James CEO Lonny James. “Our program creates amazing customer loyalty, increases cart size for top shoppers, and provides retailers and brands with invaluable customer data.”

[Read more: "Mollie Stone's Markets Prioritizes Sustainability"]

“Every quarter, our highest-tier, most loyal customers will automatically receive a box at checkout containing a curated assortment of 10 to 15 sample-size items,” said Rich Gillmore, VP of center store for Encino, Calif.-based Gelson’s Markets, an operator of 27 stores in Southern California that has offered the box since 2021. “The response from our customers has been extremely positive. We are excited to do this for our loyal customers and introduce them to something new while providing our vendors the opportunities to get their products to a very targeted audience of our best customers.”

Bunny James, which provides a turnkey service, customizing its program for each retailer, currently plans to expand east, aiming to add four to six key retailers in the next 12 months.

Mill Valley, Calif.-based Mollie Stone’s Markets operates nine stores in Northern California, while West Valley City, Utah-based Harmons has 20 grocery locations and a flower shop.

Longtime Grubhub executive Adam DeWitt is exiting the company. Serving as CFO, president and, later, CEO, DeWitt shepherded Grubhub through its 2014 IPO, significant growth before and during the pandemic and its 2021 acquisition by Just Eat Takeaway.com. He will stay with the organization through May 1 to ensure a smooth transition.

Howard Migdal, CEO of Just Eat Takeaway.com’s Canadian subsidiary SkipTheDishes, has been named CEO of Grubhub and EVP of North America. With 16 years of experience in the food delivery industry, Migdal co-founded GrubCanada and is credited with propelling growth at the SkipTheDishes food delivery network.  

[Read more: "Grubhub, Rite Aid Link Up for Delivery"]

“On behalf of the entire management board, I want to thank Adam for all his contributions at Grubhub,” said Jitse Groen, Just Eat Takeaway.com’s CEO. “We are grateful for his leadership and dedication to the company, and we wish him all the best in his future endeavors. We are also excited to promote Howard. He has a proven track record as a leader with a deep understanding of our business, and we are confident in his ability to lead and grow the business into the future.”

Filling Migdal’s role as interim CEO of SkipTheDishes is Steve Puchala, SVP, growth and restaurant success. He will report to Migdal.

More than 7,500 Publix Super Markets associates across the retailer’s seven-state footprint are spending Publix Serves Week volunteering for nonprofit organizations dedicated to environmental sustainability. Team members will help at over 200 organizations including Keep America Beautiful affiliates, parks, zoos, gardens and more.

“Since our founding, Publix has been committed to being responsible citizens in our communities, and that extends to protecting and preserving our environment,” said Publix Director of Community Relations Dwaine Stevens. “We’re proud to do good together for the communities we serve by protecting our natural resources.”

[Read more: "Publix Sees Solid Sales Growth for Q4, FY22"]

The grocer is also putting a spotlight on water stewardship, with recent efforts focusing on long-term collaborations to support freshwater restoration in the state of Florida, as well as sustainable fisheries practices. Last year, Publix also made a $2 million donation to Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in the western Everglades and the saline glades region in the eastern section of the Everglades National Park.

Employee-owned and -operated Publix has close to 1,300 supermarkets in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee, North Carolina and Virginia. Lakeland, Fla.-based Publix is No. 12 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2022 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.

Hy-Vee is making room on its shelves for more local products. The employee-owned retailer will host its next Best of Local Brands summit on May 10 as it widens its portfolio of such products across categories including grocery, produce, deli, general merchandise, frozen, dairy and health and beauty care.

During the summit, suppliers will present their products and ideas during 15- to 30-minute virtual presentations. Hy-Vee has encouraged suppliers with diverse backgrounds to apply for the quarterly event.

[Read more: "Hy-Vee Pilot Brings COVID, Flu Test-to-Treat Services In-Store"]

According to Hy-Vee, more than 125 new brands have hit the grocer’s shelves since the first Best of Local Brands event was held in early 2021.

More details about the application process are posted online. The portal opens March 20 and is open through April 3. Applicants who are not chosen for this round may be reviewed in the future, with their supplier profile still accessible on tech partner RangeMe’s platform.

Employee-owned Hy-Vee operates more than 285 retail stores across eight Midwestern states and has a team of more than 93,000 employees. The West Des Moines, Iowa-based company is No. 30 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2022 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.

Ralphs Grocery Co. is looking to hire new associates for roles in retail, supply chain and manufacturing through several hiring events. Those interested in retail positions can learn more at in-store weekly hiring events each Tuesday from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., running through May 13, while candidates for supply chain, manufacturing or delivery positions can take part in virtual sessions slated for April 4 and May 2 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. EST.

“Whether you are looking for a new opportunity, have questions about a career at Ralphs or know you are interested in joining our team, we encourage everyone to participate in a hiring event,” said LeAnne Romesburg, director of human resources at Compton, Calif.-based Ralphs.

[Read more: "Kroger Banner Goes on Offense to Avoid Power Outages"]

Hiring event participants  will meet with a Ralphs associate who can answer any questions they may have about a career in the grocery industry, and participate in open interviews. Candidates should complete the online application before the event. 

Ralphs employs more than 18,000 associates at 184 supermarkets across Southern California. Its parent company, Cincinnati-based Kroger, serves 11 million customers daily through a digital shopping experience and retail food stores under a variety of banner names, and is No. 4 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2022 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.

Grocery TV, the digital advertising network for grocery stores, has launched its upgraded Retail Marketing Platform equipped with new capabilities that improve the user experience and help retailers consolidate their in-store campaigns through a single tool. The platform plays a key role within Grocery TV’s full-store retail media solution.

The platform includes features such as:

• Campaign management across different display formats and in-store locations,
• Hyperlocal to national campaign targeting, and
• Real-time analytics tracking.

[Read more: “Top 10 Retail Innovations for 2023”]

“Our new and improved platform gives retailers the power to fully manage their in-store digital experience, and in turn increase shopper engagement and drive demand with each store visit, using localized, relevant content,” said Mike Pollack, CRO at Austin, Texas-based Grocery TV. “After working with over 200 retailers in the past seven years, we’ve learned from their feedback and created new features to address their challenges and needs.”

Grocery TV’s updated Retail Marketing Platform is part of its broader full-store solution, which aims to help retailers and brands reach shoppers throughout the store and at all stages of the buying journey. In addition to its platform, the company also provides hardware, operations and engineering support, as well as incremental revenue opportunities for their retail partners.

This launch follows Grocery TV’s recent acquisition of Mediaworks, which added digital entrance displays to the network’s inventory and fueled its full-store expansion. Grocery TV plans to roll out digital in-store media products for all major areas of the store, including service departments, center store and pharmacy.