Trading Partners

Retailers Should Get to Know Their Chronically Ill Consumers: IRI
CHICAGO -- As more supermarkets take on targeted marketing, the last thing they may be thinking about is whether or not their shoppers are obese or diabetic. But a new report from Information Resources, Inc. here suggests that since chronic sufferers are strongly influenced by their health conditions, retailers and manufacturers have an opportunity to develop relationships with them while simultaneously driving product sales across categories.
Manufacturers Making Strides in Better-for-You Products: GMA
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Consumer packaged goods manufacturers are responding in a major way to an increasingly obese and more health-conscious nation, according to new survey data released here by the Grocery Manufacturers Association.

GMA Changes Name, Releases Logistics Benchmark Study

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In aiming to more accurately reflect the scope and function of its mission, the Grocery Manufacturers of America has changed its name to the Grocery Manufacturers Association.
Kmart Names Peter Whitsett S.V.P. and Merchandising Officer

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. -- Kmart, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sears Holdings Corporation, said today it promoted Peter Whitsett, 39, to senior vice president and Kmart merchandising officer, effective immediately.
Metro AG's CPFR Strategy Drives Solid Results

DUSSELDORF, Germany -- Metro Group here yesterday released numbers that demonstrated the success of its collaborative planning forecasting and replenishment (CPFR) strategy.
Costco Q4 Sales Jump 12 Percent; Comps Up 9 Percent

ISSAQUAH, Wash. -- Strong international sales growth and the timing of the Fourth of July holiday, which added another day to the reporting period, boosted Costco Wholesale Corp.'s net sales and total comp sales for the 5-weeks ended July 3.
Giant Eagle Filling Computer Printer Ink Cartridges

PITTSBURGH -- Giant Eagle, Inc. said yesterday that it is partnering with Courtenay, B.C.-based franchise Island Ink-Jet to refill computer printer ink cartridges for shoppers at three of its stores in western Pennsylvania. Technicians at those stores will refill empty ink cartridges for $4.95 to $17.95, a savings of as much as 70 percent vs. buying new cartridges, the partners said.
Category Management in Transition, Says ACNielsen

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. -- Retailers and manufacturers say category management is still "critically important," but that doesn't mean they are applying the discipline as much as they once were, new research from ACNielsen U.S. indicates. Category management is in the throes of a transition, as traditional ways of applying the practice are apparently losing favor with the industry, according to the marketing information firm's 14th Annual Trade Promotion Practices and Emerging Issues Study, released yesterday.
INDEPENDENTS REPORT: Out of Wal-Mart's shadow

Bill's Fresh Markets is a plucky family-owned company that's managed to find success on the Bentonville behemoth's home turf.
StoreNext Puts Two Powerful Apps Within Reach of Indies

PLANO, Texas -- StoreNext Retail Technologies, Inc. has added two powerful applications to its solution-mix, making them available via the Internet to small grocery chains that previously may have found them out of reach.

Retailers Should Get to Know Their Chronically Ill Consumers: IRI

Manufacturers Making Strides in Better-for-You Products: GMA

GMA Changes Name, Releases Logistics Benchmark Study

Kmart Names Peter Whitsett S.V.P. and Merchandising Officer

Metro AG's CPFR Strategy Drives Solid Results

Costco Q4 Sales Jump 12 Percent; Comps Up 9 Percent

Giant Eagle Filling Computer Printer Ink Cartridges

Category Management in Transition, Says ACNielsen

INDEPENDENTS REPORT: Out of Wal-Mart's shadow

StoreNext Puts Two Powerful Apps Within Reach of Indies