Saladworks to expand presence at Brown's Wakefern supermarkets

Saladworks opened its first-ever location in a supermarket about a year ago, in a Philadelphia ShopRite owned by Jeff Brown. And now, after deeming the pilot a success, it plans to expand its presence at Brown-owned Wakefern Food Corp. locations in Greater Philadelphia.

So far, Saladworks restaurants are planned for Brown's ShopRite and Fresh Grocer stores in Philadelphia and Wyncote, PA, respectively. Another three or four Saladworks locations could follow at Brown's supermarkets within the next year, according to Saladworks CEO Patrick Sugrue.

"We're finding that salad bars are falling out of favor, they're not profitable for grocery stores, they have a lot of waste and they take up a lot of space," explained Sugrue. "In the same space or less than a money-losing salad buffet, we can place a full Saladworks restaurant and deliver our core menu to consumers - made exactly the way they want."

Price Rite debuts new store designs and expanded offerings

Wakefern's Price Rite Marketplace held grand re-openings earlier this month for stores in Bethlehem, Allentown and Secane, PA where it's piloting new store designs, expanded fresh and private-label offerings, and enhanced price savings.

The grocer also said it is now offering a larger selection of Wholesome Pantry products, which include organic and gluten-free options.

The store designs include new decor, a market-style produce department, LED lighting, improved signage and new self-service checkouts.

PriceRite operates 66 supermarkets in nine states. It is part of the Wakefern cooperative that also includes more than 340 ShopRite, The Fresh Grocer and Dearborn Market stores.

Fresh Grocer not leaving UPenn site anytime soon

I reported in April about the kerfuffle in the University City section of Philadelphia between Fresh Grocer and UPenn (Fresh Grocer and UPenn in litigation over Acme deal). Well, the fight rages on.

Last spring the University of Pennsylvania announced that Acme would replace Fresh Grocer, stating that the incumbent grocery store failed to renew its lease on time. UPenn ordered Fresh Grocer to leave the premises by March 31, 2017.

However, Fresh Grocer disputed UPenn's cliam and said they had no intention to leave. And according to a story last month in The Daily Pennsylvanian, Fresh Market Store Manager Dawn Goldstein said recently that "we're here forever."

Although "forever" may not be accurate, they certainly won't be leaving anytime soon. The Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas website recently listed June 4, 2018 as the projected trial date.

Stay tuned.

Fresh Grocer, UPenn in litigation over Acme deal in University City

The Philadelphia Business Journal reported last week that Acme signed a lease with the University of Pennsylvania for a 34,500 square foot store on Walnut Street in University City. However, Fresh Grocer currently operates a store there and doesn't plan to leave, even though Penn notified them that their lease expired on March 31.

Penn's claim that Fresh Grocer missed the deadline to renew its lease is disputed by Wakefern, the cooperative that Fresh Grocer is a member of. Attorneys are now heavily involved...

Acme may replace Fresh Grocer at UPenn

Philly.com reported earlier this week that the Fresh Grocer on the University of Pennsylvania's campus in Philadelphia may be replaced by Acme. Acme confirmed that they have been in talks with UPenn about the location.

According to the Philly.com story, Fresh Grocer, which has been open and operating since 2001, "failed to exercise its renewal right in a timely manner."

Fresh Grocer had recently received approval to sell wine at the store, and has been selling beer for over a year.

Fresh Grocer opens in Grays Ferry

Fresh Grocer opened its newest store this past Friday in the former Pathmark space in the Grays Ferry section of Philadelphia. The 57,000 square foot store is the sixth Fresh Grocer location in the city.

In addition to its full-service supermarket operation, the company said the store will offer 300 varieties of wine and beer.

Fresh Grocer, part of the Wakefern Cooperative, now has nine stores in Pennsylvania and Delaware.

Wegmans and Aldi are cleanest stores in Philly, Bucks

The Philadelphia Inquirer examined two years of health department reports for large grocers in Philadelphia and Bucks Counties and determined that Wegmans and Aldi were the cleanest supermarket chains.

Fresh Grocer, Whole Foods and Shop N Bag ranked at the bottom of the list, while Giant, ShopRite and Acme were in the middle of the pack.

According to Supermarket News, a recent study found that 83% of customers only pick retail outlets that appear clean to them, and 33% of customers said that have left a store that did not seem clean.

The results:

1. Wegmans

2. Aldi

3. Walmart

4. Target

5. Giant

6. Save-A-Lot

7. Thriftway

8. ShopRite

9. Acme

10. Fresh Grocer

11. Whole Foods

12. Shop N Bag

Wakefern's fiscal 2014 sales rise 4%

Wakefern Food Corp. reported last week that retail sales improved by 4% to $14.7 billion in the fiscal year that ended on September 27, 2014. During the fiscal year store openings included six ShopRite, five PriceRite and six Fresh Grocer stores. In addition, the company expanded its ShopRite from Home services to 214 stores.

Fresh Grocer closes NJ store in "food desert"

The Fresh Grocer closed its New Brunswick, NJ store on May 24 after less than two years in operation. The store, located in a downtown "food desert," was not able to generate enough business, according to owner Pat Burns.

The company, which became part of the Wakefern cooperative last year, operates six other locations in Pennsylvania and Delaware.

The New Brunswick Parking Authority owns the property in which The Fresh Grocer operated and is looking for replacement tenants for the 50,000 square foot space.

Wakefern sales increase to $14.1 billion in fiscal 2013

Wakefern reported last week that retail sales reached $14.1 billion for the fiscal year ending September 28, 2013. The figure represents a 3.9% sales increase over the previous year.

During fiscal 2013, the company added 10 new ShopRite stores, four PriceRite stores and one Fresh Grocer store. It also expanded its ShopRite from Home service to 172 stores.

The Wakefern cooperative has approximately 250 ShopRite stores located in NY, NJ, PA, CT, DE and MD, 32 of which are corporately owned. PriceRite, a subsidiary of Wakefern, operates more than 50 stores in CT, MA, NY, PA and RI.

Fresh Grocer to join Wakefern, rebrand Drexel Hill store as ShopRite

The Fresh Grocer, an independent grocery chain with eight stores (six in PA), announced yesterday that it was joining the Wakefern cooperative and that it's Drexel Hill, PA store would switch to the ShopRite banner. The seven other stores plan to retain the Fresh Grocer name.

The Fresh Grocer, currently owned by Pat Burns and supplied by Supervalu, will become Wakefern's 50th member when it transitions to the cooperative in October.

The Fresh Grocer to add 5 stores in underserved communities

The Fresh Grocer, which currently operates seven stores in Philadelphia, Drexel Hill, PA and Wilmington, DE, announced that it has teamed up with the Partnership for a Healthier America and will open five full-service supermarkets in the next five years in underserved communities.

The first of the five stores will open in New Brunswick, NJ next year and is the result of a partnership between The Fresh Grocer, the city of New Brunswick, the New Brunswick Development Corp., the New Brunswick Parking Authority and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital.

A second location is slated to open in 2013 or 2014 in Washington, D.C.

The company is not new to the idea of opening stores in underserved areas. In 2009 The Fresh Grocer opened two stores in Philadelphia, which, according to the company, created more than 400 local jobs and put an end to two of the city's biggest food deserts.

A&P reports big loss while ShopRite, Fresh Grocer win awards

A&P (Super Fresh, Pathmark) reported last week that it posted $528 million in sales and lost $34.4 million during the four-week period that ended on August 13. The loss for the previous four-week period was $15.6 million on sales of $558 million.

The company, which was incorporated over 110 years ago, filed for bankruptcy protection last December.

Meanwhile, New Jersey-based Wakefern Food Corp. (ShopRite) recently won an industry award and Philadelphia-based The Fresh Grocer will receive multiple honors in the coming weeks.

In winning the 2011 Supermarket News (SN) Excellence Award, SN reporter Mark Hamstra lauded Wakefern/ShopRite, "whose powerful business model leverages both the spirit of the independent operator and the collective power of a cooperatively owned wholesaler."

Wakefern is the nation's largest retail-owned cooperative. Its 46 member companies own and operate more than 200 supermarkets under the ShopRite banner in CT, DE, MD, NJ, NY and PA.

The Fresh Grocer, which has seven supermarkets in or near Philadelphia, will receive business leadership awards in the coming weeks from JEVS Human Services, the Marriott Foundation's Bridges, and the Welcome Center for New Pennsylvanians. All three organizations work closely with The Fresh Grocer to provide job placement and employment opportunities in underserved communities.

Hurricanes increase wine sales, not kiosks

Before we get to the hurricane, let's talk about the wine kiosks...

According to a special performance audit by PA Attorney General Jack Wagner, the Liquor Control Board's wine kiosk program has fallen short of established goals. Currently there are 22 kiosks operating in supermarkets owned by Giant Eagle, Giant Food Stores, ShopRite, The Fresh Grocer and Shop 'n Save. Wegmans had several kiosks but recently ended its participation in the program, and Wal-Mart announced last week that they would not install 23 kiosks in its stores, as previously planned.

Wagner's report states the following:

• From 1/29/09 through 3/31/11, the kiosks showed net income of $206,060 with total operating costs of $1,131,375.
• 20 of the 32 kiosks that were operating during the audit period failed to meet the minimum weekly sales threshold.
• All kiosks had to be shut down in the height of last year's holiday season due to mechanical and technological malfunctions.
• 919 malfunctions were reported in a six month period last year, and 118 additional malfunctions were reported in the one-month period after the original malfunctions were repaired.

The report also suggests that the Liquor Control Board (PLCB) "take immediate steps to terminate its contract with Simple Brands LLC of Conshohocken if kiosk operations cannot be modified to meet the originally stated objectives."

Now, about the hurricane... The Philadelphia Inquirer reported yesterday that liquor store sales saw a large spike in the days leading up to Hurricane Irene. According to the PLCB, sales for the week ended Saturday (8/27) were $37 million, which is up $5 million (15%) over the same week a year earlier. Sales for Bacardi's Hurricane mix? Up 311%.

The sales increase for the two days prior to the hurricane were undoubtedly far greater than the overall weekly increase, although the PLCB only shared the weekly numbers. There are no stats currently available that quantify the aspirin intake on the following mornings.