GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- SpartanNash, a leading regional wholesale distributor and grocery, convenience store and fuel retailer formed from the merger of Spartan Stores and Nash Finch in 2013, has entered into an agreement with KSS Retail to extend the KSS price and promotion optimization solution across the retail banners of SpartanNash.
The agreement expands KSS Retail's long-time strategic relationship with Spartan Stores, and affirms the company's commitment to the PriceStrat solution. With headquarters in Grand Rapids, Mich., SpartanNash has total annual sales of approximately $7.5 billion and operates 21 distribution centers servicing more than 1,900 wholesale customers across 37 states and 172 corporate retail stores across nine states. SpartanNash also is the top food distributor to military commissaries and exchanges in the United States. Following the merger, company stakeholders conducted an evaluation of price optimization vendors and chose to standardize on the KSS Retail solution.
Over the past year, KSS Retail Advisory Services has helped Spartan refine its pricing strategy and processes, using the advice of the KSS Retail science experts. Spartan today uses PriceStrat to determine optimal prices across 100 locations, more than 100 product categories and 40,000 SKUs.
"PriceStrat is really a strategic tool that helps our merchandising team optimize results at the category level across the company, providing us with a broad view of pricing decisions on the totality of our business," said Larry Pierce, vice president of center store merchandising at SpartanNash.
The organization also hopes to leverage PriceStrat to offer price optimization as a service to its wholesale clients. "It was important to have a technology platform that has the sophistication and enterprise capabilities to keep pace with our growing business," Pierce said.
"KSS Retail has empowered us with the reporting tools we need to measure and analyze the impact of our price-optimization efforts, so that we can continue to improve our decision making going forward," said Kathy Alles, director of retail pricing and data integrity for Spartan Stores. "In addition, we've gained valuable new insights from working with the KSS Retail consulting and science experts."
"We are delighted to support the long-term vision of SpartanNash as the new organization continues its market growth," said Andy Kalamaras, senior vice president of sales and professional services for KSS Retail. "This new opportunity re-affirms our belief in working collaboratively with clients and empowering them to make smart, data-driven decisions based on proven science – choices that ultimately lead to both shopper loyalty and bottom-line improvements. We look forward to extending this success story across the combined SpartanNash organization."
KSS Retail, KSS Retail, a dunnhumby Company, is a global provider of price optimization and shopper insight solutions for the grocery, convenience, chain drug, general and online retail industries. Retailers use KSS Retail software and professional services to better understand their shopper's needs, and to deliver more effective pricing, promotions and merchandising decisions. Clients include Tesco, 7-Eleven, O'Reilly Auto Parts, BI-LO, Sonae, Raley's, United Supermarkets, ABC Fine Wine & Spirits and others. It is based in Irvine, Calif., in the United States and Manchester, England, globally.
SpartanNash is the largest food distributor serving military commissaries and exchanges in the United States, in terms of revenue. The company's core businesses include distributing food to military commissaries and exchanges and independent and corporate-owned retail stores located in 44 states and the District of Columbia, Europe, Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Azores, Bahrain and Egypt. It operates 172 retail stores, including Bag 'n Save, D&W Fresh Markets, Econofoods, Family Fare Supermarkets, Family Fresh Market, Family Thrift Center, Forest Hills Foods, Glen's Markets, No Frills, Sun Mart, Supermercado Nuestra Familia, Valu Land and VG's Food & Pharmacy. It also operates Family Fare Quick Stop, Glen's Quick Stop, D&W Fresh Market Quick Stop and VG's Quick Stop c-store/fuel centers.
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