Kroger Online Wine Store Makes Debut

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NEWS > ONLINE RETAIL Kroger online wine store makes debut

Delivery service slated to expand to more markets

Russell Redman 1 | Oct 17, 2018

+ The Kroger Co. has begun a soft launch of an online wine shopping and delivery service.

Dubbed Kroger Wine, the service offers a curated assortment of domestic and imported wine that can be delivered to a home or an office. It’s available to customers in 13 states and the District of Columbia across a range of Kroger Co. store banners, including Kroger, Ralphs, Fred Meyer, King Soopers, QFC, Smith’s Food and Drug, Fry’s and City Market.

Related: Thrive Market debuts line of ‘clean’ wines

The wine is sold in six- and 12-bottle cases. Customers can choose either red or white (including rosé) wine or a mix of red, white and/or rosé, as well as from 15 collections. Selections include wines from California, France, Italy, Spain, Australia and New Zealand. All wines come with a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Prices range from $69.99 to $99.99 f

or six bottles and $129.99 to $189.99 for 12 bottles. Per- bottle prices are listed at $10.67 to $16.67. Shoppers get free shipping for orders of $35 dollars or more.

Related: H-E-B serves up one-hour beer and wine delivery

“We’ve launched the service in “We’ve launched the service in a limited number of markets and are communicating directly with customers to inform them of this exciting new offering,” Kroger spokeswoman Kristal Howard said in a statement. “In the coming weeks and months, we’ll share more about our plans to roll this out to more of our customers in more locations.”

The site also provides wine customers with sommelier-assisted shopping. Kroger said it consults with a team of winemakers and a sommelier to taste each wine and share their suggestions. Their advice is found in “Flavor Notes” and “Sommelier Notes” near the descriptions of each bottle.

Kroger Wine also gives shoppers the option to join a wine club. In a special introductory offer, customers can get a 12-bottle case of “Kroger’s Best Wines,” a $216 value that includes award- winning wines from various regions around the world, for $8.33 per bottle and with free shipping. Participants select reds, whites or a mix of wine and, about every 13 weeks, will get another 12-bottle package delivered.

For the online store, Kroger has partnered with Drinks Holding Inc. The Los Angeles-based technology provider operates integrated, omnichannel wine programs for merchants, including sourcing, curation, compliance and fulfillment.

Drinks’ solution includes a proprietary e-commerce platform with online storefronts and personalization; dynamic, virtual store shelves that optimize the wine assortment for each shopper; and metrics that provide insight on how customers buy wine online. The company said it has warehouses around the country and works with wineries from every leading wine region around the globe.

“Our new partnership with Drinks to deliver wine through wine.kroger.com and wine.banner.com demonstrates how we continue to test and learn with new partners who share our commitment to redefining the grocery customer experience,” Howard said.

States that Kroger Wine delivers to include California, Florida, Idaho, Louisiana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming.

Online sales of alcohol are expected to surge along with the growth of online grocery shopping and delivery, and some grocery retailers have made beer and wine more readily available via e- commerce channels. commerce channels.

For example, Texas grocer H-E-B in July launched same-day delivery of beer and wine orders via its Favor e-commerce subsidiary, with plans to roll out the service to more than 30 cities. Last month, Midwestern supercenter chain Meijer expanded home delivery of beer and wine to Ohio, following up its launch of home delivery for beer, wine and spirits in Michigan in July 2017.

And last week, membership-based online grocer Thrive Market introduced a “clean” wine program. All the wines are priced at less than $18 per bottle and made from organic, biodynamic or sustainably farmed grapes sourced from small and midsize European and U.S. producers.

TAGS: BEVERAGE

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Analyst: Walmart poised to overtake Amazon in online grocery OCT 13, 2018 NEWS > RETAIL & FINANCIAL Supervalu to close remaining Shop ‘n Save stores

Wholesaler unable to secure buyers as United Natural Foods merger nears

Russell Redman 1 | Oct 19, 2018

Next month, Supervalu Inc. plans to shut the 16 Shop ‘n Save supermarkets that it hasn’t sold off.

All of the stores, 10 in Missouri and six in Illinois, are in the St. Louis and Springfield, Ill., markets. Published reports said yesterday that Supervalu is closing those locations and one fuel center on Nov. 19 because it wasn’t able to find buyers.

Related: Supervalu posts higher sales, bigger loss for Q2

In mid-September, Supervalu announced a deal to sell 19 Shop ‘n Save supermarkets and one stand-alone pharmacy to Schnuck Markets. At the time, Supervalu noted that it would close the rest of the Shop ‘n Saves if no buyers were found. The Minneapolis-based company also said that later this year it will close a distribution center on Hazelwood Avenue in St. Louis that mainly serves Shop ‘n Save locations.

St. Louis-based Schnucks, meanwhile, is slated to finish converting its acquired Shop ‘n Saves to its banner this weekend.

Related: United Natural Foods to buy Supervalu for $2.9 billion

Founded in 1979, Kirkwood, Mo.-based Shop ‘n Save has about 2,800 employees and has served the St. Louis market area for nearly 40 years.

For Supervalu, the store divestitures further its strategy to exit grocery retail and focus on growing its wholesale business as part of United Natural Foods Inc., which in late July announced a deal to acquire the company for $2.9 billion. The companies said in announcing the agreement that United Natural Foods aimed to divest Supervalu’s retail assets “in a thoughtful and economic manner.”

Yesterday, Supervalu reported that its shareholders approved the United Natural Foods agreement in a special meeting and, pending customary closing conditions, the companies expect to finalize the deal on Oct. 22. The transaction got the green light from the Federal Trade Commission late last week when the Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period expired.

The sale of Shop ‘n Save leaves Supervalu with 111 supermarkets under the Cub Foods, Hornbacher’s and Shoppers banners. Supervalu had announced plans to divest Shop ‘n Save in May, after unveiling deals to sell 21 Farm Fresh stores to Harris Teeter, The Kroger Co. and Food Lion the previous month.

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