Supermarket, Grocery, & C-Store
• Harbor Wholesale Foods has acquired MTC Distributing.
• Kum & Go L.C. reported it will expand into Michigan. The company expects to open stores in Detroit in 2024, with plans for more than 50 total locations in the market over the next several years.
• Kwik Trip Inc. announced its CEO and President Donald Zietlow will retire from the company at the end of the year. The company also announced Tom Reinhart has been appointed COO.
• Royal Farms reported it will open its first convenience store in North Carolina early next year.
• Sheetz Inc. reported it will expand into Michigan, with the first location projected to open in 2025 in the Detroit market.
• Stewart’s Shops Corp. has launched an online store.
• US Foods Inc. announced Dave Flitman will be the company’s new CEO effective January 5, 2023. He replaces Interim CEO Andrew Iacobucci.
Retail
• Abercrombie & Fitch Co. announced that Nigel Travis will assume the role of Chairperson effective January 28.
• Academy Sports & Outdoors has opened its first store in the state of West Virginia. The retailer opened a 60,000 sq. ft. location in Barboursville.
• Allbirds recently opened a new 3,700 sq. ft. store in Boston, MA.
• Batteries Plus Bulbs has hired Aaron Bundschuh as its new Chief Digital Officer.
• Builders FirstSource Inc. announced that President and CEO Dave Flitman has stepped down. The company appointed Dave Rush, currently Exec VP, to serve as Interim CEO.
• Daiso USA reported it plans to open about 30 new stores in the United States in the next fiscal year.
• Dollar Tree Stores Inc. announced it has recently hired Jennifer Bohaty as Chief Compliance Officer, Terence Goods as Chief Diversity Officer, Jennifer Silberman as Chief Sustainability Officer, and Kristin Tetreault as Chief Communications Officer.
• Floor & Decor Outlets of America announced that it has promoted Bryan Langley to Exec VP and CFO.
• Foot Locker Inc. has hired Elliott Rodgers as Exec VP and COO. Frank Braken has been promoted to Exec VP and Chief Commercial Officer. Elizabeth Norberg has stepped down as Chief Human Resources Officer.
• Macy’s Inc. is partnering with Claire’s Holdings LLC for in-store shops at 21 of its locations.
• Primark USA announced it plans to triple its store count in the U.S., for a total of 60 stores, by 2026.
• Rite Aid Corporation has partnered with Grubhub to offer delivery service from its locations nationwide.
• Sephora USA announced Guillaume Motte has been appointed President and CEO.
• Uniqlo recently opened a new 12,000 sq. ft. location in downtown Seattle, WA.
Restaurant
• Black Bear Diner has opened two new locations in San Antonio and Amarillo, TX.
• Captain D’s will be opening 10 new locations in Houston, TX with the first opening in the next 6 months.
• Chick-fil-A has launched their first ever merchandise line that will be available for a limited time. Items include t-shirts, socks, a stuffed cow, and a nugget shaped pillow.
• Dutch Bros. Coffee has named Christine Barone as President.
• Fat Brands, Inc. has opened a new location in Los Angeles, CA that features Fatburger, Buffalo’s Express, and Hot Dog on a Stick. It is the company’s first tri-branded location.
• McDonald’s is testing a small format store in Fort Worth, TX. The store features a dedicated order-ahead lane that lets consumers skip the traditional drive-thru. The inside of the restaurant will also feature self-ordering kiosks and pickup shelves for mobile orders.
• Mountain Mike’s has opened a new location in Mountain House, CA.
• Smoothie King has named Marianne Radley as Chief Marketing Officer, Juan Salas as Chief Information Officer, and Laura Scavone as Chief People Officer.
• US Foods has appointed Dave Flitman as CEO.