- Supervalu is converting 16 Metro supermarkets in the Baltimore area, obtained when the company acquired Richfood Holdings in 1999, to the Shoppers Food Warehouse banner.
- In the UK, Safeway Plc has called for the elimination of the Supermarkets Code of Practice that was established just a year ago to govern retailer relationships with suppliers. The UK’s Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is reviewing the code to ascertain its effectiveness; Safeway management says it objects to the code because it governs only the nation’s top four retailers -- Tesco, Sainsbury, Asda and Safeway -- that have market shares higher than eight percent.
- In Ireland, Tesco is testing its first gas station, calling it a “toe in the water,” according to PlanetRetail.net. In England, Tesco has long been one of the nation’s largest purveyors of fuel.
