Supermarket, Grocery, & C-Store

• Aldi Inc. is acquiring Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. and Harveys Supermarkets from Southeastern Grocers.  The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2024 and includes approximately 400 Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket locations throughout AL, FL, GA, LA and MS.

• Buc-ee’s Ltd. reported it plans to open its first location in Ohio. The new store will be 75,000 sq. ft. and will be the retailer’s largest store.

• Casey’s General Stores Inc. will acquire 63 convenience stores from EG America LLC. The stores are in Kentucky and Tennessee, and currently operate under Minit Mart and Certified Oil.

• Dash In Food Stores Inc. appointed Julian B. Wills III as President and CEO of the company.

• Hy-Vee Inc. announced its new partnership with Uber Eats, that will offer on-demand and scheduled grocery delivery to customers across the Midwest.

• National Grocers Association has hired Julia Landcastle as its Coordinator of Political and Government Relations. The organization has also promoted Max Wengroff to the role of Manager of Government Relations and Membership.

• Rouses Enterprises LLC announced it recently opened a new Rouses Market location in Houma, LA. It will operate a drive-thru, the company’s first.

• T & T Supermarket Inc. will open a new store in Brossard, QC, in fall 2024.

Retail

• Blain’s Farm & Fleet Inc. has promoted Mark Hasting to President and Chief Commerce & Operating Officer.

• Davis Lumber & Hardware announced that Cory Venable has been promoted to President of the company.

• Do it Best Corp. has promoted Celeste Stevens to Director of Human Resources and Jake Willison to IT Project Manager.

• Hat Club has recently opened a new 900 sq. ft. store in Los Angeles, CA.

• Kodiak Building Partners has appointed Stephen West as the new President of Zarsky Lumber Co Inc.  The company announced Phillip Steffy and Steve Weaver are retiring.

• Macy’s Inc. announced that Massimo Magni has been named as its Chief Customer and Digital Officer.

• Rally House & Kansas Sampler opened seven new Rally House stores this month including its first location in Arizona.

• Recreational Equipment Inc. will open a new 39,512 sq. ft. store in Beaverton, OR, in spring 2024.

• Wolverine Worldwide, Inc. appointed Christopher E. Hufnagel as President and CEO. He succeeds Brendan L. Hoffman, who is no longer with the company.

Restaurant

• Au Bon Pain, Panda Express, and 7-Eleven have been fined $5M for violating NYC’s labor laws and scheduling restrictions.

• Black Rock Coffee Bar has appointed Mark Davis as CEO.

• Boston Market has been ordered by the New Jersey Department of Labor to shut down 27 locations in New Jersey for multiple labor violations. The company has also been fined $2.6 million.

• Chili’s is bringing their virtual brand It’s Just Wings to their restaurants, and they will be offering the wings on their appetizer menu.

• Chuy’s co-founder Mike Young has passed away at age 74.

• Fogo de Chao has been acquired by Bain Capital after initially preparing for an IPO.

• Shake Shack is searching for a ‘Chief Avocado Officer’ as part of their new promotion. The company is allowing customers to apply for the position on their website and will offer almost $4,000 in prizes to the winner.

• Subway has announced the President of North America Trevor Haynes will be departing at the end of the year and will be replaced by Douglas Fry. Additionally, the company has named Carrie Walsh as President of Europe, Middle East & Africa; Mike Kehoe as Global Chief Development Officer; and Christina Wells as Senior VP of U.S. Marketing.

• Taziki’s Mediterranean Café has named Robert Brown as VP of Operations and Lynn Edwards as VP of Human Resources.

• Wendy’s has opened two of their newly designed digital-first Global Next Gen restaurants in Kansas and Oklahoma and the company plans to open 200 more by the end of 2024.