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Aldi’s One-Year Anniversary in China: Key Learnings for International Grocers

With discount supermarket Aldi celebrating its one-year anniversary in China, we discuss the retailer’s success in the market and the learnings it could offer to other foreign grocers.
We explore the five key components of Aldi’s strategy in the China market—including the retailer’s adoption of technology in a new retail model, its focus on fresh food, the implementation of cost-saving strategies and the role of online stores in offering imported goods to consumers.

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May 2020 US Retail Sales: Total Year-over-Year Growth Turns Positive; Declines at Discretionary Sectors Ease While Food Stores and Nonstore Retailers See Strong Growth

Most sectors witnessed the easing of sales declines in May, as US consumers resumed spending following the reopening of stores post lockdown. Growth in total US retail sales excluding gasoline and automobiles turned positive on a year-over-year basis, driven by double-digit growth at food stores, home-improvement retailers and nonstore retailers.

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Open for Business with David Hardiman-Evans, Ocado Solutions: The Impact of Covid-19 on Traditional and Online Grocery

As part of our Open for Business webinar series, we hosted David Hardiman-Evans, SVP, North America at Ocado Solutions. We present the transcript from this webinar, in which Hardiman-Evans offered insights into the dynamic changes in the online grocery sector amid the coronavirus crisis—covering key topics such as consumer demand and loyalty, assortment rationalization and fulfillment models.

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Earnings Insights 1Q20, Week 4 and Wrap-Up: Retailers Cite Pent-Up Demand as They Report Higher-than-Anticipated Sales Productivity Rates

Our weekly Earnings Insights reports feature highlights from recent management commentary at major US retailers as they report first-quarter 2020 earnings. We condense what retail companies are reporting, with a focus on the impact of the coronavirus crisis. This week, there are highlights from companies that reported in the week ended June 14, including Five Below, Macy’s and PVH Corp. This is the fourth and final report in the first-quarter Earnings Insights series. As such, we also summarize the performance of retailers reported in the prior weeks.

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Open for Business with Alex Gourlay, Co-COO of Walgreens Boots Alliance: Adapting to Coronavirus-Led Consumer Shifts in the Food, Drug and Mass Sector

As part of our Open for Business webinar series, we hosted Alex Gourlay, Co-COO of Walgreens Boots Alliance. We present the transcript from this webinar, in which Gourlay offered insights into how his company responded quickly to the coronavirus crisis and leveraged digital opportunities to connect with consumers.

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US Store Closures 2020 Outlook: Covid-19 Update—Prolonged Impact Set To Drive Up Closures

This report assesses the outlook for physical retail over the remainder of 2020—updating our previous expectations in light of the escalating impact of the coronavirus crisis. We compare year-to-date store closure data with 2019 and discuss a potential rise in bankruptcies, which may become a reality for many struggling retailers. We also update our prediction for the total number of closures we expect to see in the US in the full-year 2020.

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