The Friday Checkout is a weekly column providing more insight on the news, rounding up the announcements you may have missed and sharing what’s to come.
Trader Joe’s and Aldi have strong fan bases, but Walmart might be giving them a run for their money with the launch this week of its newest private label grocery brand, bettergoods.
With a focus on attributes that seem to be coming straight out of Trader Joe’s playbook, Walmart said the line is centered around products that meet three key criteria: culinary experiences, plant-based and “made without.” In true fashion for a retailer zeroed in on “everyday low prices,” most of the items carrying the bettergoods name will cost less than $5.
It’s no surprise that grocery private label — which helps retailers stand out with differentiated items and draw a greater share of consumer spending on higher-margin products — is hot right now. But Walmart is already a massive — and growing — player in the grocery channel, with a reputation built around low prices for both national and store brands. Does the company really need a new multi-category grocery brand in its private label portfolio to bolster its value proposition?
Given that Walmart has recently reeled in more higher-income shoppers, likely amid consumer concerns around high inflation, this new grocery brand seems like a clear bid to lock them in. Analysts and other news outlets seem to agree, saying that bettergoods is a way for Walmart to “appeal to younger consumers,” offer up “premium” items to broaden its appeal and promote itself as offering “quality food.”
In fact, with the absence on the packaging of Walmart’s name or any traces of the retailer’s well-known Great Value brand, consumers may not even realize bettergoods is actually a private label and instead see it as similar to the kinds of exclusive and trendy offerings they might see in a Trader Joe’s or a Target store.
In case you missed it
Kroger: The second most magical place on Earth
The grocer is in talks with Disney to offer Kroger Boost members a Disney+ subscription at no additional cost, Bloomberg reported earlier this week. The two companies are still in the early stages of discussing the deal, according to Bloomberg’s anonymous sources.
This potential deal mimics similar partnerships between the grocery and streaming world. Instacart offers its Instacart+ members a Peacock video streaming subscription, Walmart+ touts a Paramount+ partnership and Amazon Prime members have access to Prime Video streaming.
Grocery proves to be a driving force for DoorDash
DoorDash posted better-than-expected first-quarter results on Wednesday and tipped its hat to its grocery arm as the segment continues to see “100% year-on-year” growth. DoorDash CFO Ravi Inukonda said during the call with investors. Inukonda added that DoorDash has seen its grocery sales double for the last three quarters.
BJ’s newest stores in Florida and New York
The club retailer is introducing three new stores to its footprint — two in the Sunshine State and one in The Big Apple, according to a Tuesday press release.
The Florida stores will mark the 40th and 41st BJ’s stores in the state, with one set to open in Brooksville and the second coming to St. Johns. The retailer is also bringing a store to Staten, Island, New York, giving it 49 total locations in the state.
Number of the week: 300
That’s how many stores Sprouts Farmers Market sees the opportunity to open in states it has earmarked as expansion markets, such as California, Texas, Florida and the mid-Atlantic, the specialty retailer said this week.
What’s ahead
A big week of earnings
Grocery Outlet is scheduled to release its first-quarter results on Tuesday, followed by earnings announcements from Ahold Delhaize and Instacart the following day. Natural Grocers will round out the week on Thursday when the specialty retailer plans to publish its earnings for the second quarter of its fiscal year.
Impulse find
Donut worry! Publix has new sweet treats
The Florida grocer is now offering fresh, baked-daily gourmet brioche donuts in three flavors — carrot cake, cookies and cream, and lemon and cream.
The carrot cake brioche donut is “just like the beloved classic cake” and topped with vanilla icing and garnished with a swirl of cream cheese frosting and crumbled carrot cake with walnut pieces.
The cookies and cream donut has vanilla icing with a dollop of cookies and cream mousse and is sprinkled with crumbled chocolate sandwich cookies.
And finally, the lemon and cream brioche donut is “sweet and tangy,” topped with lemon-flavored icing, a scoop of marshmallow icing and garnished with crumbled lemon cookies.
