Around the time that Amazon was announcing its intent to buy natural-foods pioneer Whole Foods for $13.4 billion this past summer, the little-known (at least in the U.S.) German budget grocer Lidl was opening outposts in Virginia and the Carolinas, kicking off a planned expansion into the States that will bring its number of stores to 100 by next summer. Jeff Bezos’s bold move and Lidl’s international ambition are signs that the grocery wars are just getting started. Here’s how four of the most enterprising chains are planning to keep shoppers—especially health- and budget-conscious ones—in their aisles in the months ahead.
365 by Whole Foods
The big idea: The kingmaker for artisanal condiments and local farmers is taking a more affordable approach to natural food with its year-and-a half-old chain of 365 stores.
Strategy: Make stores more efficient by reducing their size, limiting selection, and adding auto-replenishing technology and order kiosks to trim labor costs.
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