Newswatch 2010-04-19 (2)

FOOD LION LAUNCHES NEW AD SPOTS

SALISBURY, N.C. — Food Lion last week debuted a new advertising campaign highlighting its recent price-reduction efforts and featuring testimonials from its president, Cathy Green. The “Low Price Heritage” campaign seeks to complement Food Lion's “New, Lower Prices” program, which trimmed thousands of everyday prices earlier this year. “We wanted to send a powerful message to our customers about our lower prices, so we decided to feature Food Lion President Cathy Green in the commercials,” Ken Mills, vice president of marketing for Food Lion, said in a statement. “Cathy speaks on behalf of Food Lion, and she has a natural ability to resonate with customers and associates alike.”

$1B FRESH FOOD BILL INTRODUCED

WASHINGTON — Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Rep. Nydia Velázquez, both Democrats from New York, are introducing bills that would help build as many as 2,100 supermarkets in high-need areas across the country through $1 billion in loans and grants. The Healthy Food Financing Initiative would create around 200,000 new jobs annually, Gillibrand said in a statement, noting that President Obama has already dedicated $345 million in his fiscal 2011 budget for a similar proposal.

ALBERTSONS INSIDE TRADER SENTENCED

NEW YORK — A man who pleaded guilty to insider trading related to the 2006 sale of Albertsons was sentenced to three months in prison, according to reports. Michael Koulouroudis, 60, admitted in November to illegally profiting on tips he received from an investment advisor about the sale of Albertsons before the news became public. In addition to the prison sentence, he was fined $100,000 and ordered to repay the $198,174 in profits he made from the stock trades. Koulouroudis, who runs an import-export business here, was not affiliated with Albertsons or Supervalu, the company that acquired most of Albertsons' assets.

METRO LAUNCHES REWARDS PROGRAM

MONTREAL — Metro Inc. here last week launched the first phase of its “Metro & Moi” reward card program 26 stores in Quebec. The program rewards loyal customers by giving them one “m” point for every dollar spent at Metro stores. Consumers can redeem points for discounts on their grocery bill, with certain weekly promotions allowing customers to earn up to 10 times the points. Metro said the program, which is the first of its kind at the company, would be extended to all Metro stores in Quebec later this year.

PROMOTIONS DRIVE Q1 SALES AT WEIS

SUNBURY, Pa. — Weis Markets here last week said sales and net income for the first quarter were both higher compared with year-ago results. Net income for the 13-week quarter, which ended March 27, rose 5.2%, to $17.4 million, on a 9.6% gain in sales, to $664.3 million. Comparable-store sales were up 3%. David J. Hepfinger, president and chief executive officer, said sales benefited from a $3 million investment in aggressive promotional programs. “This is our sixth consecutive quarter of strong earnings and sales performance,” he said in a prepared statement. “We continued to improve our overall level of execution and increase efficiencies at store and distribution levels, which helped us generate solid sales and earnings increases along with a 6.1% increase in operating income.”