Safeway, Kroger Win Magazine, Book Awards

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Safeway, Pleasanton, Calif., was honored here yesterday with the Best Practices Award for excellence in retailing at the Marketing of Magazines and Books: Retail Conference 2007, co-hosted by the Magazine Publishers of America and the International Periodical Distributors Association, both in New York. The award was given based on a newly designed reading center for the supermarket‘s lifestyle format stores, which it began rolling out last year. “Our magazine and book section is in line with the rest of our lifestyle format stores,” Judy Russell, manager, national categories, corporate nonfoods for Safeway, told SN. “It has a warm, comfortable feel to increase dwell time in the section.” Steve Leach, vice president of retail marketing for Comag Marketing Group, New York, who presented the award, said Safeway currently has 115 lifestyle stores with the new reading center and is committed to adding 250 more reading centers as it redesigns its stores to fit the lifestyle format. Kroger Co., Cincinnati, won book Retailer of the Year honors for having a selection well suited to its customers, along with clear and colorful signage, said George Fisher, vice president, sales director, mass merchandise, Random House. Kroger was not available to accept the award. -- Wendy Toth