THE FRIDAY 5: Shedding Light On Shopper Satisfaction; Embracing Grocery's Future

Welcome to The Friday 5, Progressive Grocer’s new weekly roundup of the top news and trends in the food retail industry. Each Friday, we’ll take a look at the stories that are most important to our readers and also keep tabs on the trends that are poised to impact grocers. 

1. Shopper Satisfaction Strikes a Chord

This week’s top story among PG’s readers shed light on the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) "Retail and Consumer Shipping Study 2023-2024," which found that customer satisfaction in the grocery sector rose 4% compared to last year for a collective score of 79. This year, repeat customer satisfaction winner Trader Joe’s was usurped by Costco, H-E-B and Publix, which shared a three-way tie atop the industry with a store of 85. Costco’s score climbed 4%, H-E-B’s rose 5% and Publix's went up by 4% in the past year. Trader Joe’s came in fourth with a score of 84.

The study also delved into various aspects of satisfaction, with Publix performing best for in-store experience, including staff courtesy and store cleanliness and layout. Costco and H-E-B ranked highest for value, the ACSI's researchers found. Shoppers were satisfied with private label offerings at all three of those grocers.

2. ALDI Still Soars

It’s been nearly three months since ALDI was named PG’s Retailer of the Year, but readers can’t get enough of the news. Last week, ahead of the expected closing of a massive deal for ALDI to acquire 400 Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarkets stores, Southeastern Grocers completed the divestiture of its other banner, Fresco y Más. ALDI also made news more recently for its big play ahead of the Super Bowl, unveiling 25% markdowns on all the fixings for a football feast, including dips, pizza, meatballs and more.

3. Walmart’s Big Moves

There’s been no shortage of Walmart news already this year, with the retailer making several announcements spanning its adaptive retail strategy, increased pay for managers and a 3:1 stock split to encourage more associates to get in on the action. The retailer unveiled two big initiatives this week, including its plans to expand its footprint and improve hundreds of its existing stores over the next five years. Walmart plans to build or convert more than 150 stores by 2029 and also remodel 650 stores across 47 states and Puerto Rico during the next 12 months.

Additionally, starting this year, all of Walmart’s store managers will receive an annual stock grant of up to $20,000. The amount of the annual stock grant is based on store format: $20,000 for a Supercenter, $15,000 for Neighborhood Market or Division 1 store, and $10,000 for a Hometown store.