Walmart

Organizing its customer base into a number of individual “clusters” with specific characteristics is at the heart of Food Lion’s strategy that has seen creation of the chain’s new Bloom and Bottom Dollar banners to attract both upscale and price-conscious customers, the company’s chief operating officer, Cathy Green, told a snack industry conference last week.

Even as the economy begins to rebound, budget-friendly private labels continue to draw in consumers, according to a new report from Chicago-based Information Resources, Inc. (IRI). The report, “IRI Times & Trends Report: Game-Changing Economy Taking Private Label to New Heights” found that private label unit share has grown to 22.8 percent (up 1.2 points) in the past 12 months, while dollar share has grown 0.7 points to 17.6 percent.

Long lines and poorly stocked shelves may well await holiday shoppers this season. According to an annual hiring report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a Chicago-based outplacement agency, retailers will be hesitant in adding seasonal employees to their staffs this year.

In response to such research as Walmart Customer Insights data finding that over 50 percent of moms who shop at the mega-retailer were watching more movies at home with family to save money instead of going out, Walmart is rolling out a “Family Night Center” in all stores this month.

Dollar stores, one of the few categories of retail winner during 2009 (besides Wal-Mart), keep piling on the positive numbers. Dollar General Co. reported numbers for its second fiscal quarter on Thursday, turning in 8.6 percent increase in same-store sales compared with 2Q08. Its quarterly net income increased 238 percent.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. has appointed Scott Price EVP, president and CEO, Walmart Asia. Effective Oct. 15, Price will report directly to Doug McMillon, president and CEO, Walmart International, and have responsibility for the company’s current operations in Asia, including China, India and Japan, in addition to business development in the Asia region.

Dorothy Allan, SVP-retail strategy for Dallas-based TracyLocke, has worked on direct, online and retail marketing and is now focusing on helping packaged goods companies get the most ROI for their shopper marketing efforts. So, she’s seen the rise of shopper marketing first-hand, but has also witnessed a big change in the market over the last year or so because of the economy.

The way consumers shop for everyday products continues its transformation toward the Web. In 2008, online retail accounted for approximately 7 percent of total retail sales in the United States, with 1.5 percent of consumer packaged goods (CPG) spending done on the Web.