Next Edition of PLMALive Reports on the E-Commerce Strategies of Major Retailers and Grocery Store Trends

From e-commerce to grocery store spending trends, the next edition of PLMALive features topical reports from regular contributors, David Merrefield, Brad Edmondson, Christopher Durham, and Roy White. David Merrefield discusses the e-commerce industry and how some major retailers are investing in the opportunities it presents. Retailers like Walmart and Target are partnering with start-up companies like Yumprint and Curbside to further enhance its e-commerce capabilities while another top retailer, Kroger, is seeking to develop these tools in-house with savvy executive hires. Brad Edmondson breaks down the performance of certain aisles in the local supermarket. While some grocery store categories have seen growth in recent years, others have been on the downside. Poultry for example, which was in decline from 2001 to 2011, has seen an 8% spike over the last two years and non-alcoholic beverages like soda, coffee, tea, and juice also continued a steady pace upwards over the last 13 years. But on the flipside, canned frozen vegetables are on the decline over the last two years as people are able to once again afford the fresh alternative. The worst performing section of the supermarket is the butcher's section, as beef has seen a 6% decline from 2011 to 2013. Christopher Durham profiles the store brand spirits industry. Since the success of Trader Joe's introduction of Charles Shaw wines over 10 years ago, the spirits industry has seen a development and growth with store brands. Durham describes how it has branched out from wine to craft beers and both segments are doing exceptionally well. The estimated retail value for wine shipments in 2013 was over $36 billion - a 5% increase - and craft beer sales went from a $18 billion dollar projection by 2017, to double that amount by 2019. More and more retailers are getting in on the action as Costco and Whole Foods have introduced lines of craft beers. Roy White dives into luxury retailing, examining the recent performance of brands consumers might forget are in fact store brands. High-end fashion brands such as Coach, Prada, and Louis Vuitton are examples of these store brands and while they are in the fashion industry, the right development can achieve great things for store brands. This report can be accessed on www.plmalive.com.