Supermarket/Grocery

The merger will create an organization of approximately 690 grocery stores and 63,000 employees in eight states throughout the southeastern United States.

2011 has been an exciting and transformational year in the consumer goods industry. Here, we revisit a handful of the biggest news stories from Walmart's decision to finally share POS data to Kraft Foods big split which will undoubtedly have a continuing impact on the state of the industry.

Big headlines rocked the food industry in 2010 and 2011. Two leading companies are going through amicable breakups while others remain focused on executing improvement initiatives for future growth.

CGT honors 15 consumer goods companies for excellence in their innovation, supply chain, customer management and growth strategies.

Store closings slowed in 2010 compared in 2009 with most retailers executing growth strategies to match a new kind of consumer. Walmart, for example, is now banking on a new store format to boost sales.

The acquisition of DemandTec is expected to extend IBM's Smarter Commerce initiative by adding cloud-based price, promotion and other merchandising and marketing analytics. At the same time, the deal is in line with a trend across many industries wherein the lines between merchandising, marketing, commerce and supply chain are blurring.