MMR: Mass Market Retailers, July 13, 2020

VOLUME 37 NO 8 WWW MASSMARKETRETAILERS COM JULY 13 2020 INDUSTRY NEWS Krogers Q1 sales rise 191 page 13 Natural trend gains traction in baby care page 23 Suppliers step up with hand sanitizers page 27 MMRs CBD roundtable explores issues and opportunities page 65 SPRINGDALE Ark Walmart has opened its fourth Walmart Health Center adjacent to a remodeled Supercenter here The facility which is the first to debut outside of Georgia is situated less than 20 miles from Walmarts headquarters in Bentonville Ark Walmart Health Centers are dramatically different than the retailers 18 walk in Care Clinics located within Walmart stores in Georgia South Carolina and Texas First they are significantly larger than Care Clinics which measure approximately 1500 square feet Secondly in some cases by partnering with local providers they offer an impressive range of services including primary care dentistry optometry counseling laboratory tests X rays hearing wellness education and behavioral health The first Walmart Health Center opened in Dallas Ga last September followed by a unit in Calhoun Ga Earlier this month the third facility opened its doors in Loganville Ga According to the company each of the facilities opened so far is unique serving as individual prototypes to test and explore the right mix of health and wellness services for different communities For instance the latest unit in Springdale has a smaller format and a different menu of services than the facility in Loganville What each location shares however is the fact that they are operated by qualified medical professionals including physicians nurse practitioners dentists behavioral health providers and optometrists This is our first Walmart Health Prototype outside of Georgia and were excited to continue our history of innovation that has transformed the industry and created significant health care savings for customers says Sean Slovenski senior vice president and president of Walmart U S Health and Wellness Were looking forward to bringing affordability and convenience to the Springdale community and continue our focus on a solution to the current state of health care by offering affordable integrated care that our customers want and deserve In a recent article posted on Walmarts website Slovenski noted the heightened urgency that the COVID 19 outbreak has brought to the effort to find affordable effective solutions to the countrys already dysfunctional health care system Were navigating a global pandemic that has exposed the vulnerabilities of our health care system and makes it hard for many families to get the care they need when they need it Slovenski writes We also face record unemployment leaving many families without access to vital health care resources in the process Slovenski points out that with 90 of Americans living within 10 miles of a Walmart store the retailer is well positioned in terms of geographic coverage to bring quality health care to communities that need it the most If the Walmart Health Centers are successful enough to warrant a nationwide rollout they may well prove to be equally as disruptive as the retailers revolutionary 4 generic prescription drug program launched more than a decade ago While the Health Centers accept most types of insurance their greatest impact for underinsured and uninsured patients will lie in their cash prices and the transparency of those prices For example a patient can obtain a medical examination for 30 or teeth cleaning for 25 During Walmarts annual Investor Community Meeting in February president and chief executive officer Doug McMillon acknowledged that health care is a beckoning opportunity for the worlds largest retailer Given our large pharmacy and optical businesses and our experience with flu shots and other in store health events we have something to build on he said SPOTLIGHT G I A N T F O O D COM Giant Food has launched a new integrated e commerce shopping experience Available on the new Giantfood com website and Giant Food mobile app the integrated platform combines the features of the prior Peapod com and Giantfood com allowing visitors to easily access personalized shopping rewards program benefits weekly circular and coupons as well as pharmacy nutrition and wellness content offerings the company said TARGET PICKUP LIST Target is adding fresh and frozen grocery items to the list of items available through its Order Pickup and Drive Up services Following successful pilots in the Twin Cities and Kansas City markets the retailer will roll out the enhanced services to more than 400 stores by the end of the month Target says the expanded assortment will be available in more than 1500 stores in time for the holidays CVS AND DOORDASH CVS Pharmacy is partnering with DoorDash to offer consumers the opportunity to have products including overthe counter medications and grocery items delivered to their homes as part of sameday delivery services These expanded delivery services are designed so that customers can continue shopping while staying at home during the coronavirus pandemic The partnership expands on other efforts by CVS to serve its customers during the pandemic WAKEFERN AND S4RB Wakefern Food Corp is teaming up with Solutions for Retail Brands S4RB to provide new information sharing software that will allow the retailerowned grocery cooperative to work more closely with its own brand vendors S4RBs Affinity platform for Wakefern will allow the retailer to use a proprietary online portal and database to provide real time data and analytics the companies said enabling Wakefern to collaborate with new and existing vendor partners and continue to grow its own brand portfolio The platform will integrate with existing Wakefern systems through all stages of its private brand process Walmart Health Center Comes to Arkansas Each center is a unique prototype testing an assortment of services To page 2 WBA Moves to Broaden Omnichannel Offering Albertsons IPO Values Company at 93 Billion To page 2 To page 2 DEERFIELD Ill Walgreens Boots Alliance WBA made two recent announcements that strengthen its omnichannel efforts including an expansion of its strategic partnership with Microsoft and Adobe to launch a world class digital experience and customer insights platform to deliver personalized health care and shopping offerings The chain also opened more than 30 small format pharmacies as part of a new pilot program The expanded partnership will provide Walgreens and Boots customers with products and services from WBAs global pharmacy and retail businesses wherever whenever and however they may want them Establishing this platform will advance WBA into the second phase of its digital transformation one of its key strategic priorities At WBA our mission is to deliver extraordinary experiences that enrich our customers lives BOISE Idaho Albertsons Cos has rejoined the ranks of publicly owned retailers following an initial public offering IPO of 50 million shares of common stock at 16 per share or 800 million Excluding a hefty debt load of almost 87 billion the IPO values Albertsons Cos at about 93 billion The offering was smaller and priced lower than expected In a June 18 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission the company stated it planned to offer 658 million shares at an estimated price range of 18 to 20 per share which would have Capabilities to combine previously disparate customer data sets including information from more than 100 million members of our loyalty programs into a more singular unified view of the customer powered by these modern technology platforms will enable us to truly personalize our omnichannel health care and retail offering said Vineet Mehra WBAs global chief marketing officer This digital magic coupled with the valued knowledge and quality of care provided by our pharmacists and team members is what allows us to best serve our customers garnered between 118 billion and 132 billion Investors tepid response contrasted sharply with what had been a hot IPO market in June According to The Wall Street Journal newly listed companies were rising 20 on average during their first day of trading Albertsons by contrast saw its share price fall 34 to 1545 at the close of its first trading day on June 26 An IPO is just the starting line its not the finish line chief executive officer Vivek Sankaran told The Journal This allows us to best serve our customers