Furr's Supermarkets, Albuquerque, N.M., said it will open two prototype stores in New Mexico next fall and a prototype unit in El Paso, Texas. The prototype stores will include expanded perishables and general merchandise; drive-through pharmacies; computerized do-it-yourself checkstands, and in-store nutritionists, as well as offering Internet shopping, delivery and pickup, according to an area news report. The company has reportedly been testing several of the prototype concepts at an Albuquerque-area store since October. Furr's also reportedly plans to expand, remodel and upgrade stores throughout New Mexico to reflect some of the changes that will be offered at the prototypes. Company officials could not be reached for comment.
roundtable discussions among manufacturers, retailers and business consultants. Also, a panel will cover the basics of how slotting allowances work. The next day, panels will address the effects of slotting allowances on entry and growth, the effects of allowances on bargaining relationships, and category management. The workshop will conclude with a panel on antitrust law.
Jitney-Jungle Stores of America, Jackson, Miss., said last week that it had closed two Birmingham, Ala.-area supermarkets, located in Hoover and Vestevia, Ala., respectively. Ron Johnson, Jitney president and chief executive officer, said, "The exit from the Birmingham market through the closure of these two grocery stores is part of our transition into a smaller, more viable company." Jitney filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in October.
King Kullen Grocery Co., Westbury, N.Y., is reportedly planning to expand its Wild by Nature subsidiary. For the past five years, the company has operated only one of the health-food supermarkets, but now it will open a second location and convert part of an existing unit into a health-food store-within-a-store, according to an article in Melville, N.Y.-based Newsday. The new store will carry more prepared foods, bulk foods and whole grains, a company spokesman told the newspaper.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said last week it arrested three men in Tampa, Fla., for allegedly stealing $2.5 million worth of unsaleable food donated by supermarkets to a Tampa food bank. Authorities said two of the men, drivers for the Divine Providence Food Bank, would pick up donations for the food bank at the local warehouses of Publix Super Markets, Lakeland, Fla., and Winn-Dixie Stores, Jacksonville, Fla., and then sell most of them to the owner of a grocery store, The Price Is Right, in Riverview, Fla., which specialized in selling damaged goods at discount prices. A spokesman for the Florida statewide prosecutor's office said the investigation of the case was launched as a result of a Publix employee noticing store-brand merchandise appearing for sale at a flea market.
