5 things: Are we heading towards good news in grocery?

The good news is there’s not more bad news: Consumers are still a bit negative on the economy, but there is some positive news on their view of the future and that’s good news for retailers and brands, said Sherry Frey, vice president of Product Insights, NielsenIQ, in the “Fresh Research: New Consumer Behaviors and Habits to Watch” session at Groceryshop 2024 in Las Vegas this week. The leading concerns for U.S. consumers, as could probably be guessed, are rising food prices, increased housing costs and the potential for an economic downturn. When it comes to finances, there’s more bad news as fewer consumers are self-identifying as thriving and more say they’re struggling and cautious. But, Frey said, this streak of bad news is ending, and consumer prospects are much more positive over the longer term. In fact, the latest 13 weeks begin to paint a more positive picture for the store, especially the perimeter, with the greatest growth in produce, deli and dairy. Another rosy item in terms of consumer behavior for grocery retailers is there has been stronger growth in “ingredient” categories over “convenient” categories, said Frey. —Ron Margulis

Colorado by the numbers: Another week has passed and still no word (as of press time) on the three antitrust lawsuits aiming to block the Kroger, Albertsons merger. The Federal Trade Commission and the two grocery giants made their closing arguments nearly a month ago in the federal case overheard by U.S. District Court Judge Adrienne Nelson in Portland, Ore., and the two separate cases brought by attorneys general in Washington and Colorado have also yet to conclude. Lawyers on both sides are still arguing the case in Colorado, and an interesting detail was noted in a story in the Denver Post by Albertsons CEO Vivek Sankaran. For every dollar spent on groceries in the state, Walmart captures 20 cents, Kroger 16 cents, Albertsons 14 cents, and Amazon 5 cents. That’s over half of the grocery spend in Colorado irrespective of store format. The remaining 45 cents is split up between smaller grocery chains like Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s, Sankaran said. —Timothy Inklebarger

Who needs restaurants? New York City is full of independent grocery stores who are doing foodservice and prepared foods right. This roundup from the New York Times highlights a couple of lesser-known ones. The 117-year-old Katagiri Japanese Grocery (in Midtown and Lenox Hill) has ready-made miso cod plates and pork dumplings. 3 Aunties Thai Market in Woodside has a killer grilled pork with sticky rice. Rosario’s in Astoria has a much-coveted $10 eggplant Parmigiano sandwich. The point being that people / New Yorkers can have just as much loyalty as they would to restaurants when it comes to grocery fare done right. Is anyone else getting hungry? —Chloe Riley

How is Ingles doing? Hurricane Helene has impacted the Asheville, N.C.-based Ingles Markets. In a statement posted to Facebook Oct. 2, Ingles said, “Ingles has stores in our region with significant damage and some stores still without power and water…We are working diligently to bring operations back online.” As of Oct. 3, of 198 Ingles stores, 186 were open for business. An Ingles employee also told Georgia’s Morgan County Citizen that “our headquarters is under water,” and footage from September 30 shows mud coating its parking lots. So far, the company hasn’t disclosed extensive details about the damage it sustained, leading to speculation just how much of an effect the hurricane has had on the retailer. —CR 

Use the force: Who doesn’t want to feel like Luke Skywalker gliding around town in a landspeeder? Well, it could be closer than you think, and it may all happen in a grocery store. Developed by researchers at the Seoul National University of Science & Technology, the Palletrone is a multi-rotor drone enclosed in a protective cage (shopping cart) creating a hovering platform that users can push around at chest height. Get me one of these! The aerial cart features a flat surface for easy loading, a rear-mounted handle similar to traditional shopping carts, and advanced flight control systems that keep the platform stable. But there are drawbacks. The cart can only hold up to 6.5 pounds and the drone motors make it a little loud. Battery life is also suspect. So it looks like there are some kinks to work out. I’ll be slinging around my light saber while I wait for the official launch. —Bill Wilson