Taking Stock

Stew Leonard’s Set To Make Long Island Debut 

Earlier this month, one of the nation’s best perishable merchants, Stew Leonard’s, announced that it will be building its first store on Long Island. The company said the new store – its fifth overall – is scheduled to open early next year in the Airport Plaza shopping center in Farmingdale, NY, just inside the Suffolk County line. The 60,000 square foot unit will be located in the same center that houses a Stew Leonard’s Wines store.

“We are thrilled to be finally building a Stew Leonard’s in Farmingdale,” Stew Leonard Jr., president and CEO, said after the deal was announced. “This has been a dream of our family’s since 2002, when we first started exploring options for a new store on Long Island. We know we’ll be welcomed with open arms by all of our friends in Farmingdale and throughout Suffolk County.”

Construction will begin this year, and the store is expected to open in January or February 2016. The new supermarket will provide up to 400 jobs. The location was vacated by Dave & Buster’s earlier this month.

This is the high volume merchant’s second attempt to enter the densely-populated, demographic-friendly central Long Island market. More than 12 years ago, Stew Leonard’s sought to build a 150,000 square foot grocery store at the intersection of Route 110 and Conklin Street, across the street from Republic Airport in Farmingdale. But the plans eventually fell through after objections by local aviation officials, pilots and the state Department of Transportation, which said the proposed location would put shoppers too close to the airport’s main flight path.

The family-owned and operated business was founded by Stew Leonard Sr. as a dairy store in 1969 in Norwalk, CT (the original unit was 17,000 square feet and carried only eight items – it has been enlarged/remodeled more than 30 times since) and has grown to become one of the highest sales per square foot food retailers in the country, with annual volume estimated to be more than $350 million. Stew Leonard’s employs approximately 2,200 associates.

The retailer has also enjoyed strong same store sales despite a challenging economy and its leadership team headed by Stew Leonard Jr. and chief operating officer Chris Williams (who joined the company 10 years ago after successful stints at Pathmark and Stop & Shop’s New York Metro division) is on very solid footing.

Additionally, Beth Leonard Hollis and Jill Leonard Tavello, Stew Leonard Jr.’s sisters, both serve as executive VPs at the company. Brother Tom Leonard, who worked for the company for many years before opening a successful farmer’s market-type store in Richmond, VA, remains on the retailer’s board. In recent years, a third generation has also entered the business, and founder Stew Leonard Sr. and his wife Marianne are still around for support and guidance.

Stew Leonard’s is a true American success story whose final chapter seems to be far in the future.

Wal-Mart Raises Its Minimum Wage To $9 An Hour; Posts Solid Earnings, Improved Comp Store Sales 

Now that CEO Doug McMillon has reshuffled his leadership deck, Wal-Mart clearly is ready to make some strategic moves designed to improve its execution, consumer perception and a lengthy period of generally flat U.S. sales.

On February 19, McMillon said Wal-Mart has been developing and testing new ideas to reward associates for serving customers. As part of those initiatives, the home grown chief executive who was named to the top post at the world’s largest retailer a years ago, said that approximately 500,000 full-time and part-time associates at Wal-Mart U.S. stores and Sam’s Clubs will receive pay raises in the first half of the current fiscal year. Current and future associates will benefit from this initiative, which ensures that Wal-Mart hourly associates earn at least $1.75 above today’s federal minimum wage, or $9.00 per hour, in April. The following year, by February 1, current associates will earn at least $10.00 per hour.

“Today (February 19) we announced comprehensive changes to our hiring, training, compensation and scheduling programs, as well as to our store management structure. These changes will give our U.S. associates the opportunity to earn higher pay and advance in their careers. We’re pursuing a comprehensive approach that is sustainable over the long term,” explained McMillon. “By realigning our store operational structure, associates can enjoy a closer relationship with their supervisors. In addition, associates will have more control over their schedules. The investment in these initiatives is more than $1 billion for this fiscal year.”

According to McMillon, the leadership teams are very focused on improving customer experiences through various investments and program initiatives, and for several months, developed and tested new ideas to reward associates for serving customers.

“We have work to do to grow the business. We know what customers want from a shopping experience, and we’re investing strategically to exceed their expectations and better position Wal-Mart for the future,” said McMillon. “Our first priority is to run great stores and clubs. We will continue to integrate our physical locations with a great e-commerce and mobile commerce business. We’re strengthening investments in our people to engage and inspire them to deliver superior customer experiences. We will earn the trust of all Wal-Mart stakeholders by operating great retail businesses, ensuring world-class compliance, and doing good in the world through social and environmental programs in our communities.”

Additionally, McMillon revealed that Wal-Mart and the Wal-Mart Foundation also committed $100 million over five years to help increase the economic mobility for entry level workers by advancing their careers. This initiative will benefit the retail and service industries. The Wal-Mart Foundation will work with other foundations, employers, community colleges and non-profit organizations to address a fundamental challenge in America — how to better train and advance workers in the retail and adjacent sectors.

“Beyond this commitment, Wal-Mart is also piloting a new, comprehensive on-boarding and training program to create clear career pathways for associates, so they can earn more and seek promotions,” McMillon explained. “We’re encouraging our associates to continue their education by providing no-cost access for them to complete their high school diploma or GED, as well as free and low-cost college credit to reduce the time and cost of earning a college degree. The skills and training that an associate receives through this program will be transferable outside of Wal-Mart.”

Wal-Mart also announced its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended January 30. For the 13-week period comp store sales at its U.S. units increased (excluding fuel) 1.5 percent (compared to negative 0.4 percent last year), reflecting the chain’s 1.4 percent improvement in store traffic -Wal-Mart’s  first quarter of positive traffic since the third quarter of fiscal 2013.

In the U.S., profits declined slightly from $6.22 billion in fiscal 2014 to $6.18 billion this year. Overall, Wal-Mart posted net income for the fourth quarter was $16.4 billion, a 12.1 percent increase. Diluted earnings per share from continuing operations attributable to Wal-Mart were $1.53, compared to last year’s $1.34.

“Our fourth quarter was the first positive traffic comp we’ve had since the third quarter of fiscal year 2013,” said Greg Foran, Wal-Mart U.S. president and CEO, whom McMillon promoted last summer. “Wal-MartU.S. had increased traffic during the six-week holiday season, with strong sales in seasonal, toys, home and apparel. We completed almost 1 billion total transactions during the holiday season, including our largest online day ever on Cyber Monday. We are also pleased to deliver positive comp sales for the full year.”

Foran also noted the strong comp sales of Neighborhood Market stores. “Neighborhood Markets delivered approximately a 7.7 percent comp during the quarter,” he said. “We opened 233 Neighborhood Markets during the year, and customers like their easy and convenient access to fresh foods, pharmacy and services.”

He affirmed Wal-Mart would build 180 to 200 new Neighborhood Market stores this fiscal year, including 10 to 15 of the smaller (Express) unit which are still in the test phase.

Foran also stated that he’s developed an urgent items agenda which included produce rotation to improve fresh presentation which had a positive effect in the quarter, adding “we still have a long way to go to improve our fresh business and we remain focused on that goal.”

As for Sam’s Club, president and CEO Rosalind Brewer noted: “Throughout the year, we’ve seen meaningful acceleration culminating in comp sales, without fuel, of 2.0 percent for the 13-week period, Strong holiday execution, combined with our strategic investments in member value, merchandise relevance and the integration of digital and physical improved our performance.”

Wal-Mart said it expects U.S. comps in the current first quarter to increase between 1 percent and 2 percent.

And if you’re still questioning Wal-Mart’s clout after a few unimpressive years, all you need to know is the Bentonville Behemoth rang up U.S. sales of $288 billion (up 3.1 percent). Globally, revenue increased 2 percent to a whopping $485.7 billion.

With Deal Now Final, Heavy Lifting Begins For Albertsons’ Transformation Of Safeway 

One advantage of the FTC’s lengthy review process of Albertsons’ (A/B Acquisition-Cerberus) $9.2 billion acquisition of Safeway was that that the privately-owned retailer could use the time to assemble its leadership team (both locally and nationally) and plan its future integration strategy

With the deal finally approved on January 30, the most relevant question now becomes: how much will Albertsons transform Safeway?

“I think the changes will be significant and noticeable, both to the trade and to Safeway’s consumers,” said a former industry executive who at one time worked for both companies during his long industry career.

I have to agree, especially as it relates to Safeway’s eastern division based in Lanham, MD. The new local management team at Safeway eastern has been in place for several months and now that Albertsons officially has officially taken possession of its new prize, expect to see some discernible changes within the next few months.

Albertsons has already said it would create a more decentralized model for the Safeway stores it acquired, much like what the company did when it acquired nearly 900 stores from Supervalu in 2013. That’s good news for the eastern division, which for years operated like Safeway’s red-headed stepchild based 3,000 miles from its home base. And it wasn’t just the eastern division that suffered from lack of autonomy, Safeway was the most process-oriented grocery retailer in the country, which led many trade observers to believe its stores were way too vanilla and its local staff was often frustrated by their inability to make decisions that could impact Safeway’s perception (and market share) in its local markets.

But to think that the new organization will not utilize some of the benefits of process would also be a mistake. Remember, Safeway CEO Robert Edwards, who was the catalyst to put Safeway on the sales block, will remain CEO of the new company. No, there won’t be several hundred vice presidents as with the old Safeway, but the Pleasanton, CA retailer’s IT and marketing acumen will almost certainly be utilized by a retailer that will have more than 2,000 stores covering 34 states and Washington, DC.

Albertsons will also benefit from having a large (too large?) headquarters building that can better handle such “corporate” issues as digital marketing/e-commerce and private label versus their smallish (too small?) headquarters facility in Boise, ID (which will remain as a co-headquarters facility along with another administrative base in Phoenix).

But the guts of the new Safeway model will be local and that means local buying and local advertising with greater flexibility when it comes to making decisions in the stores. Expect more aggressive retail pricing and, with a new category management team about to be unveiled, more regional items to be offered. And with the focus on “local,” I predict morale to improve in the stores.

In other words, in several months vendors and consumers will most likely see an operating model that resembles Acme or Shaw’s. In fact, when Acme president Jim Perkins was asked what he predicted would be the biggest adjustment that Safeway’s local division presidents would have to make, he bluntly stated it would be their ability to make quick, well-informed decisions about their markets, adding, “There’s not much process here (at Albertsons).”

The Acme model has clearly worked in the nearly two years it’s been controlled by Albertsons and its subsidiary New Albertsons, Inc. (which will have oversight of Safeway eastern, too). Vendors are happy that they can go-face-to-face with a “live” body, one who knows the nuances of the DelawareValley market and can make relatively speedy and informed decisions. Consumers have responded, too, noticing the friendlier store staffs, improved pricing and cleaner supermarkets. All of this has led to double digit sales improvements over the moribund days when Supervalu tried to manage Acme without a clue.

Safeway’s corporate management certainly wasn’t clueless; however they were rigid and unimaginative, a leadership team that seemed more concerned about next quarter’s financial guidance rather than offering their consumers a difference-making proposition.

I’m betting on the “new” Safeway to slowly but solidly build market share and gain greater customer loyalty. At least for the next few years.

Beyond that it could all change, as one of my industry friends noted: “With private equity stirring the pot, the end game is always about getting out. And also exiting with a healthy profit. Once Cerberus makes the necessary changes that will improve sales and enhance its financial perception, couldn’t you envision a scenario where it would seek a public offering? A profitable organization spinning lots of cash with more than 2,000 stores and a healthy bottom line would certainly be an attractive proposition to Wall Street.”

Logical for sure, but in the meantime I’m looking forward to observing and analyzing how Albertsons is going to transform Safeway into a more vibrant and relevant supermarket chain.

‘Round The Trade 

Target, coming off a terrible two year stretch culminated by the closing of its 133 store Canadian operation, is looking to restart its engine. Recently unveiled was a new marketing/advertising campaign designed to put zip into Target’s lagging image. And on the expansion front, the Minneapolis-based mass merchant will focus on growing its alternative offerings. This year, the beleaguered retailer will open 15 new stores which will utilize three different formats – conventional (general merchandise), TargetExpress and CityTarget. The company is scouting out a TargetExpress location in the Philadelphia area and the mass merchant also acknowledged future plans to build two “Express” units in the Washington, DC area. TargetExpress units average about 20,000 square feet in size and include many of the departments found in a conventional Target, but on a much smaller scale. Currently, the only TargetExpress can be found in Minneapolis. It opened in July 2014. Worth noting, too, are two CityTargets that will open soon. Later this year, a new CityTarget will open near FenwayPark in Boston and in 2016; another will cut the ribbon at the new City Point development in downtown Brooklyn, NY. CityTargets range in size from 80,000-160,000 square feet, slightly smaller than conventional Target units, and are located in urban, high traffic areas. There are eight current “City” locations – three in Los Angeles, two in San Francisco, as well as single units in Seattle; Portland, OR and Chicago…food and drug retailers were disappointed to learn that the U.S. Supreme Court last month denied a petition by several industry trade groups (FMI, NGA, NACS) which sought to lower debit card swipe fees from 21 cents back to the original Federal Reserve proposal of 7-12 per cents per transaction. “We are disheartened that the court rejected our case, reflecting utter failure to recognize the significance the ‘swipe fee’ issue holds for consumers and American businesses,” said FMI president and CEO Leslie Sarasin. “The food retail industry, on average, operates at a 1-to-2 percent profit margin, so every penny matters. When transaction fees are arbitrarily set by the big banks and the card companies they service, this becomes a matter of justice that threatens the economic survival of community grocery stores, businesses, charities, schools and every institution utilizing a debit and credit cards payment system. We now look to the Fed to improve this rule and carry out both the clear language of the statute and the intent of Congress.” While many industry analysts believe that The Fed misinterpreted the intent of Congress when they passed the “Durbin” amendment in 2010, I’m not so sure it was an error in judgment, but rather the sway and clout of the banking and credit card lobby, which almost always seems to get its way…more details about the recent departure of former The Fresh Market CEO Craig Carlock, who was terminated without cause last month. Carlock, who also served as president and a board member of the upscale Greensboro, NC merchant, had been chief executive since 2009. Current COO Sean Crane will fill Carlock’s shoes on an interim basis while The Fresh Market searches for a permanent CEO. Don’t feel too bad for Carlock, though. As part of his severance package he’ll receive his $561,000 a year salary for the next two years as well as being eligible for a pro-rated portion of his cash bonus for last year. Carlock also gets medical benefits and vesting of his stock options for the next 24 months…Bi-Lo Holdings, whose former CEO Randall Onstead departed in December after a failed attempt to launch an IPO earlier in 2014, has named Ian McLeod as its new chief executive. McLeod is best known for turning around Australian retailer Coles during his six year tenure. His 20 year food industry career also includes a stint at Asda. The Scottish native also had a successful soccer-affiliated career having served as CEO of club Celtic and as a director of professional clubs in England and Australia. This will be McLeod’s first tour of duty in the U.S. and he’ll have his work cut out for him…some takeaways from two of the industry’s most meaningful conventions – the FMI Midwinter Conference and the NGA show, both held during the past month. As many in the industry are discovering by the growth of the annual meeting, “Midwinter” remains the best top-to-top networking confab in the business. However, I continue to be dismayed by the number of slick speakers whose primary message to the retailers in attendance is that the “sky is falling and falling fast,” without giving supermarket merchants any credit for their prolonged successes. Yes, we all get it – e-commerce/digital marketing/social media are growing rapidly, but even the boldest industry predictions note that online purchases for grocery products are unlikely to exceed 10 percent of all food sales over the next decade. Defending against the likes of Amazon/Amazon Fresh will be a challenge, but at least some of these presenters could acknowledge that many retailers are already well entrenched in Internet commerce and marketing. And if these futurists, pollsters and new age mind readers (“…mugs, pugs, thugs, nitwits, halfwits, dimwits, vipers, snipers, con men, Indian agents, Mexican bandits, muggers, buggers, bushwackers, hornswogglers, horse thieves…” – oh pardon me, I got carried away comparing some of these speakers to characters from Mel Brooks’ “Blazing Saddles”) could also offer some constructive suggestions on how traditional retailers can blend the best of “bricks and clicks,” then their glib presentations might be perceived as more meaningful. And one more comment about something that was somewhat beyond the control of FMI. Holding the show at The Fontainebleau in Miami Beach was a poor choice. I know the industry’s largest trade group faces pressure from East Coast retailers to hold the show on the Eastern Seaboard and, since it will always be held in a warm weather climate, that leaves Florida as virtually the only option. On paper, The Fontainebleau was a solid choice – a venue large and modern enough to accommodate all needs in a tropical setting. Maybe I’ve lost all touch with modern reality, but the hotel was loud and impersonal and all it needed was an appearance by Pitbull to make the hotel experience even worse. Holding the conference in the Phoenix area (the Phoenician or Arizona Biltmore were ideal settings) would certainly add more charm and warmth while also reinforcing the fact that the Midwinter Conference should be the center of the hotel’s attention. Unfortunately, FMI signed a two year deal with The Fontainebleau and “Midwinter” will return there next January. For whatever it’s worth, I live on the East Coast and attend every year and would have no objections to having the show permanently situated in Arizona. As for the NGA soiree, held annually in Las Vegas, the show continues to improve and expand. This year a record 3,000 guests attended and, as usual, the focus was on offering independent retailers multiple portals to become more knowledgeable and efficient – small interactive workshops, general business sessions, vendor collaboration meetings, trade expo, etc. While NGA is not as comfy and intimate as was just a few years ago, the show still manages to provide its guests with considerable bang for their buck and a “thumbs up” from the overwhelming majority of those who attend…more executive blowups (and ensuing changes) in “Wally World.” Recently departing was John Aden, who was executive VP-sales innovation. Given more responsibility were Jane Ewing, senior VP-business development for Wal-MartU.S., who will head the Behemoth’s “Next Generation Stock Up” initiative, and Jeff McAllister, currently senior VP-Wal-Mart Innovations, who will lead the company’s “Next Generation Supply Chain” effort. Moreover, Latriece Watkins, senior VP-snacks and beverages, will oversee the Bentonville, AR retailer’s “Ways of Working” group. Wal-Mart also announced that i
t is changing some of the rules of its “Savings Catcher” price comparison program, effective this month. Essentially, the world’s largest retailer is removing departments (produce, bakery) from the program, claiming that it is difficult to match “like” items that are often unbranded. It is also eliminating comparisons with drug stores while still allowing comparisons with supermarkets, dollar stores and other mass merchants. “Thanks again for using Savings Catcher and shopping with us. We are dedicated to providing customers like you with Everyday Low Prices. It is a mission we’re proud of and we’ll continue to work hard to deliver to you,” an email from Wal-Mart stated. I’ve utilized Savings Catcher several times, and while Wal-Mart’s effort to consistently pound its low price image in many different way is notable, the truth is, utilizing Savings Catcher involves a fair amount of time and is somewhat confusing to use…Costco, which continues to impress everyone with its tremendous earnings and growth, will make its shareholders very happy in the next few weeks. The nation’s largest club store merchant plans on issuing a one-time special dividend to its holders because of its success. The Issaquah, WA retailer will distribute about $2.2 billion ($5 per share) funded from existing cash and some borrowing…another Seattle area company, Amazon.com, beat analysts’ earnings projections, but still performed below its potential in its recently completed fourth quarter. Revenue increased 15 percent to $29.3 billion in the quarter while operating income rose 16 percent to $591 million. During the follow-up analysts earnings call, Amazon said its first quarter earnings could take a hit primarily because of the unfavorable impact of foreign exchange rates. While shareholders continue to believe in Amazon’s long-term philosophy of building sales over quarterly profits, the company’s supporters can’t be happy about Amazon’s decision to (at least temporarily) withdraw its new diaper line – Amazon Elements – which was introduced about two months ago and was only available to its Prime members. In an email to its top level customers, the online mega-merchant said that “based on early customer feedback, we are making some design improvements to the diaper.” In a recent survey I conducted with 10 babies (yes, I understand baby talk), several infants said “ga-ga-goo-gee” (the diaper’s fabric was too scratchy), while several others stated “goo-goo-ga-ga” (the adhesive tabs weren’t sticky enough)… and this just in – the Oscar Mayer “Wienermobile” has crashed. We all know how the weather in the Northeast has frankly sucked since the first of the year, and one of its victims was Kraft’s giant “hot dog on wheels” (one of several the company owns). Pennsylvania state highway officials said that the 27-foot vehicle was traveling on South Enola Road in Enola, PA (near Harrisburg) on February 15 when it slid of the road and crashed into a pole. No injuries occurred, but the vehicle’s weiner was reportedly damaged. Sounds painful.

Local Notes 

Acme Markets has also realigned some of its senior personnel in the past six weeks. Mac McCoy, grocery sales manager, who joined the Malvern, PA based retailer when Albertsons/Cerberus took over, is now on special assignment as a part of the national grocery integration team. Kim Gray, most recently a district manager, becomes Acme’s new director of center store sales. Michael Styer has been promoted to a district manager post. He joined Acme in 1990. Kristan Lewis, has joined the grocery merchandising team. In her 25 year career she has held a number of roles at Acme; most recently she was center store operations specialist in district two. Mark Windish will be transferring from district three to district two as the new center store operations specialist. He began his Acme career in 1978. Jonathan Cruz has been promoted to the new center store operation specialist for district three. Most recently, he led the effort with the company’s remodeling project in Chestertown, MD. Craig Huska has been named the new store director of the aforementioned Chestertown, MD unit. A 16 year Acme veteran, Huska was most recently store director at Acme’s large Concordville, PA unit. Tony Dostellio becomes the new store director in Concordville. Previously he was store director at the chain’s Gloucester Township, NJ store and has more than 30 years of industry experience…Fairway Market, which under the guidance of new CEO Jack Murphy is attempting to regain its “swagger,” showed a slight improvement in its 13-week third quarter earnings (ended December 28). The Manhattan-based funky upscale merchant posted an $11.1 million loss (compared to a $33.3 million loss a year earlier). Same stores sales continued to be negative – 2.2 percent – in an operating period where most other publicly-traded retailers have posted positive comp revenues in the 2-3 percent range. In his conference call with financial analysts, Murphy reiterated his claim that he believes that Fairway can open 15-20 stores in the metro NY area over the next 3-5 years. He added that opening stores in its home market will take priority over extended geographic expansion, but noted that “Greater Boston could offer some growth opportunities. Murphy, a Boston area native having cut his teeth in the supermarket biz working for industry icon Leo Kahn at Purity Supreme, acknowledged that part of the dip in same store sales was attributable to the new Whole Foods that opened near Fairway’s highest volume store in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn. He added that he expects to see a similar impact with WFM’s new 39,000 square foot store on Manhattan’s Upper East Side which opened on February 18. That store is located on East 87th Street, (near 3rd Avenue), not too far from Fairway’s 96th Street (near 2nd Avenue) unit which opened in 2011. On the positive side, Murphy affirmed that gross margins improved 90 basis points in Fairway’s third quarter, “shrink” shrunk by about 10 basis points and the average transaction size increased 1 percent to $41.80…in other Manhattan-related news, Food Emporium, which is sort of like the anti-Whole Foods and Fairway, closed its East 32nd Street store, not too far from a Fairway Market. In December, the struggling division of a struggling parent (A&P) closed its East 87th Street unit, clearly wanting no part of the anticipated Whole Food Market carpet-bombing that was about to occur…and speaking about WFM, another quarter has passed, but the stellar earnings and growth-pattern remain strongly intact. For its 16-week first period (ended January 18), the Austin, TX-based “good for you grocery merchant” saw its profits rise 5.7 percent to $167 million while same-store sales increased 4.5 percent. Overall sales climbed an impressive 10.2 percent to a record $4.7 billion. In his conference call with the analysts, co-CEO Walter Robb attributed WFM’s momentum to “customers’ positive response to many strategic initiatives along with improving consumer confidence.” Specifically, the 24-year Whole Foods vet, who shares the chief executive title with founder John Mackey, noted that the launch of its first national ad campaign – “Values Matter” – has aided the company’s overall perception when measured against its competitors. Robb also praised his company’s partnership with Instacart (online delivery sales currently in 15 cities), its aggressive use of digital technologies (including Apple Pay whose users account for about 2 percent of Whole Foods’ sales) and its willingness to test new ideas including its new shoppers “Affinity” rewards program, which debuted at a dozen stores in the Delaware Valley last fall and will be expanded to the Washington, DC market this spring. Other initiatives that Robb claims have aided Whole Foods include a new mobile application that has recorded 600,000 downloads and a test of lower produce prices in several markets. During Q1, WFM opened nine new stores and completed 40 remodels. In the first month of Q2, three new stores have already opened with eight other units scheduled to debut. My, my, my, it’s been a tremendous run for Whole Foods…following the acquisition of Grocery Outlet (GO) late last year by private equity firm Hellman & Friedman, the grocery discounter, whose 214 stores are primarily located on the West Coast, announced it will change the name of its 16 Amelia’s stores in the Philadelphia and Central PA market to Grocery Outlets, effective this month. Amelia’s was acquired by GO in 2011. “We’ve taken the last two years to learn Amelia’s unique business model,” an email sent by the company to its shoppers stated.” The good news is that all the things you love about Amelia’s Grocery Outlet – low prices, great customer service, and family-friendly business – is staying the same. We’re giving the stores a new look and feel, to represent their inclusion in the Grocery Outlet family.”…at Weis Markets, Rick Bhandari has joined the Sunbury, PA regional chain as director of pharmacy operations. He will oversee the day-to-day management and operation of the company’s 134 in-store pharmacies. Bhandari reports to Rick Seipp, VP of pharmacy. Bhandari has more than 20 years of pharmacy management experience. Prior to joining Weis Markets, he worked as a regional pharmacy manager for Bi-Lo Holdings and earlier in his career, Bhandari worked in management positions at CVS and Rite Aid. Also joining the Weis team is Adam Edwards, who will serve as the company’s director of information security with oversight of the development, implementation and compliance of information security practices for the retailer. He will report to Shirl Stroeing, VP and chief information officer…the quest to acquire troubled dollar store merchant Family Dollar is over, with Dollar Tree prevailing over larger rival Dollar General, despite a substantially lower offer ($8.5 billion vs. $9.1 billion). Family Dollar’s management and board urged shareholders to accept the lower offer, fearing that the FTC would force the divestiture of approximately 1,500 stores. However, after predicting that fewer than 300 stores would have to be closed for geographic overlap, it now appears that the FTC could demand that about 500 units be sold or closed…Wegmans ranked first in the 16th annual Harris Poll Reputation Quotient study which ranks U.S. companies perceived by their reputations. The Rochester, NY-based uber retailer accrued an overall score of 84.36, barely beating Amazon.com. Other grocery-related retailers to make the Top 100 were: Costco, ranked 4th with a score of 81.98; Publix ranked eighth with a score of 80.73; Whole Foods, 21st place with a 78.47 overall score; and Kroger, whose 76.29 score placed them 32nd among U.S. companies. Ratings above 75 percent are considered very well to excellent…sadly, a lot of people have died since the beginning of the New Year. Passing on was confectionery industry giant Melvin Gordon. The longtime chairman and CEO of Tootsie Roll Industries, Melvin and his wife Ellen led the Chicago-based confectioner for more than 50 ye
ars. At age 95, he was believed to be the oldest chief executive in U.S. business In a classic P.T. Barnum-esque quote when Tootsie Roll celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1996, Gordon said, “Nothing can happen to a Tootsie Roll. We have some that were made in 1938 that we still eat. If you can’t bite it when it’s that old, you certainly can lick it.”…another famous Chicagoan has also left us. Ernie Banks, the Hall of Fame shortstop and first baseman who played his entire 19 year baseball career with the Cubs will not only be remembered for his Hall of Fame career (512 home runs and two-time National League MVP), but also for his optimism (“It’s a great day for baseball. Let’s play two!”). On a personal note, I’ll always remember Ernie signing baseballs for my two children at the 1993 All-Star Game at Camden Yards. Each ball had a different personalized message. What a wonderful, classy gentleman Ernie Banks was…also from the world of sports, ascending to basketball heaven were the legendary coaches Dean Smith and Jerry Tarkanian. Smith, 83, was one of the greatest coaches in any sport in any era. The iconic University of North Carolina head basketball coach from 1961-1997 had a career winning percentage of .776 that included 879 victories. More than that, Dean Smith was a man of humanity and humility. At the urging of his pastor, he actively recruited black athletes in an era when Southern schools were slow to move toward racial equality. More than 95 percent of Smith’s players graduated and he developed more than 50 NBA players, including the greatest of all time, Michael Jordan. Jerry Tarkanian’s public image was the polar opposite of Smith’s. That wasn’t due to the relationship with his players (who loved and respected him), where he performed similar good deeds. Tarkanian’s problem was with the NCAA which tried to run him out of college basketball for his allegedly questionable recruiting tactics. In the end, the head coach at the University of Nevada Las Vegas won that battle, collecting a $2.5 million settlement from the dictatorship that oversees college sports. Tarkanian, 84, often recruited players from the inner city that other coaches usually wouldn’t touch. He combined an explosive fast-break offense with his self-developed tenacious “amoeba” defense. His 1990 Runnin’ Rebels team, which arguably was the most dominant team of its era, won it all that year. Overall, the towel-chewing Tarkanian amassed 706 victories and a winning percentage of .781…the music industry also suffered some big losses. Lesley Gore, pop singing sensation of my youth, died earlier this month at the age of 68. The native New Yorker burst on the scene in 1963 at the age of 16 with her plaintive “It’s My Party.” Other Gore hits (all released in 1963) included “Judy’s Turn To Cry,” and “You Don’t Own Me.” She was discovered by Quincy Jones, and in the early and mid-1960s, played in live shows that featured such future Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Famers as James Brown and The Rolling Stones. Taking advantage of her huge short-term popularity, the producers of the campy TV series “Batman” cast her as Catwoman’s sidekick. Also, passing on was Don Covay, the much underrated R&B singer who hit the charts with such songs as “Mercy, Mercy” (covered by the Rolling Stones on their “Out of Our Heads” album in 1965) and “See Saw” (covered by Aretha Franklin on her “Aretha Now” album in 1968). A native of WashingtonDC, Covay passed away late last month at the age of 76. As his career progressed, Covay became primarily a songwriter. He penned songs such as “You Can Run (But You Can’t Hide)” covered by Jerry Butler, “Letter Full of Tears” covered by Gladys Knight & the Pips and “Sookie Sookie,” which Steppenwolf later recorded. However his most memorable song was written in 15 minutes when Aretha Franklin needed one more song to complete a recording session at the famous Muscle Shoals sound studios in Alabama. That song, you ask? “Chain of Fools”…I was saddened to hear of the death of Bob Simon, long-time “60 Minutes” correspondent and one of the best reporters of his era. Simon was killed in an auto accident in Manhattan on February 11 at the age of 73. During a career at CBS News that spanned 47 years, Simon collected 27 Emmys and four prestigious Peabody Awards. Early in his career, Simon was one of the best war correspondents covering Vietnam in the early 1970s. He was usually given high level but dangerous assignments, including reporting on violence in Northern Ireland and from war zones in the Falkland Islands and Somalia. He was also imprisoned and tortured for 40 days by the Iraqi army during the first Gulf War. Simon was a gritty, intelligent and talented journalist, kind of like the anti-Brian Williams, a handsome, vapid talking head whose fiction skills had been overlooked until recently…and finally, what do SkyMall and Radio Shack have in common? They’re both publicly-traded retailers who have filed for bankruptcy protection. Beyond that, both retailers seemed to have no clue about customer relevancy. At Radio Shack, despite efforts from current CEO Joe Magnacca to revitalize the company, the Fort Worth, TX-based electronics retailer seemed forever stuck in the 1970s (even its name cries out “obsolete”). With its expected Chapter 11 filing this month (it has already been delisted from the New York Stock Exchange), Radio Shack will most likely cease to exist after 94 years in business and more than 4,000 stores. About half of those stores may become Sprint wireless units as yet another once-iconic name bites the dust. At SkyMall, parent firm Xhibit, said it would sell off the assets of its catalog business. As overpriced and weird as SkyMall’s offerings were, the company certainly was capable of grabbing your attention when looking for a reading option during a long, boring cross-country flight. Who could forgot one-of-a-kind items like the “Bed Bug Thwarting Sleeping Cocoon;” “A Portrait Of Your Pet As 17th Century Nobility;” “The Star Of David Ornament” (for your Christmas tree); and my favorite, “The Watch That Tells You When You’re Going To Die.”