THE FRIDAY 5: Grocery Impact Leaves Its Mark on Industry; Ahold Delhaize USA Security Breach

1. Ahold Delhaize Faces Cybersecurity Threat to U.S. Operations

News broke that Ahold Delhaize USA recently detected a cybersecurity issue within its U.S. network, with affected banners including Hannaford Supermarkets and Food Lion. Immediately upon detecting the issue, the company’s security teams began an investigation with the assistance of external cybersecurity experts. Ahold Delhaize also notified law enforcement. 

“Our teams are taking steps to assess and mitigate the issue,” read a statement released by Ahold Delhaize. “This includes taking some systems offline to help protect them. This issue and subsequent mitigating actions have affected certain Ahold Delhaize USA brands and services, including a number of pharmacies and certain e-commerce operations.”

Each Ahold Delhaize USA banner is still open and serving customers as the retail conglomerate takes further actions to protect its systems.

2. Most Influential CEOs Share Advice at Grocery Impact

Last week’s Progressive Grocer Grocery Impact event in Orlando had an agenda stacked with industry executives, including three CEOs who wowed the crowd with their knowledge and advice. Meijer President and CEO Rick Keyes kicked off the conference by delving into the core principles and values that make his company special, including the ability of its leaders to uplift associates and put people first. 

“We really lead people,” Keyes explained. “We manage processes and systems and inside of those processes and systems, and the work that we have to do each and every day to accomplish our goals, are human beings that are the ones that are really going to make the difference.”

According to Keyes, true leaders can inspire their teams to move in a new direction that they maybe never thought possible. 

Tim Lowe, head of retail for Alex Lee and president of Lowes Foods, meanwhile, posed an interesting question to the audience: What if there was no Christmas holiday to bolster sales in the grocery industry?

Lowe implored grocers to find small ways to both stand out from the crowd and create little moments of joy for their shoppers. For Lowes Foods, that includes meeting and solving the unknown, unmet needs of grocery customers, such as hosting Mimosa Sundays, tea parties, birthday parties, cheese and wine pairing events, and much more.

“The reality is that we need to accept that disruption is inevitable,” Lowe explained. “Simply put, we must recognize the fact that digital technologies and new consumer demands will forever alter our business – the way it's been, the way we know it.”

In another keynote, Lidl US CEO Joel Rampoldt emphasized his company’s limited assortment, comprised of highly vetted items that resonate with shoppers. 

“Our proposition is very simple: you get the best quality and you get the lowest price and you don’t have to compromise between those two,” he declared. “I get challenged on this all the time – how can you possibly be both? We think that we can actually deliver on that. Part of that is that we are a highly vertically integrated company and will always be a private brand-forward company. The other part is simplicity.”

3. More Leaders From Kroger, ADUSA, Giant Co., UNFI Join Grocery Impact

The fun at Grocery Impact didn’t stop with the CEOs. Readers this week were interested in additional pearls of wisdom from leaders across the industry, including UNFI Wholesale President Louis Martin, who sat down with PG’s newly promoted editorial director and associate publisher, Gina Acosta, to discuss growth plans and other drivers of UNFI’s business in the new fiscal year and beyond.

Mary Ellen Adcock, SVP of operations at The Kroger Co. and a 2022 Top Women in Grocery Retail Trailblazer Award recipient, also joined Acosta to discuss her leadership style, career trajectory and operational excellence vision for America’s largest supermarket retailer. Other female leaders took the stage in the “Women’s Leadership Workshop” session to share how to unlock career potential.

Other popular sessions included “Generational Strategies in Grocery,” which included a panel of college students and young professionals sharing their thoughts on what brands and retailers can do to earn their share of wallet, whether it’s an actual wallet or digital wallet.

4. More Store Openings Make Waves

Another round of store openings gained reader attention this week, including Harris Teeter’s new location in North Carolina. The store, located in Apex, held a grand opening Nov. 12 with Harris Teeter’s signature Taste of Teeter event, featuring complimentary food samples, live music, bar events and the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile. 

A PG visit to Kroger’s newest Marketplace location in Central Ohio also gained clicks. The 123,000-square-foot store, which is situated in the Jerome Village community in Plain City, stands as one of Kroger’s largest stores in the Midwest. 

ShopRite, meanwhile, opened its newest state-of-the-art supermarket at 333 North Bedford Road in Mount Kisco, N.Y., on Nov. 10. The 74,000-square-foot store features expanded services, chef-prepared meals to go, smart shopping carts, and a wide variety of fresh foods and departments.

5. Walmart Tops Annual Kantar PoweRanking

For the 28th consecutive year, Walmart has been named the top retailer in Kantar’s annual industry benchmarking report. The Kantar PoweRanking identifies retailers and manufacturers/suppliers that set the standard of performance, ranked by their trading partners.

Rounding out the top five food retailers are Target, Kroger, Costco and Amazon. On the manufacturer side, PepsiCo was named the top supplier for the ninth year in a row, with Kantar noting the company’s continued growth and consumer-oriented business practices. Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, Nestlé and Unilever round out the top five manufacturers on this year’s list.