The Kalibrate retail round-up: February 2023

Inside Ikea’s small-format store strategy

Swedish flat pack specialist Ikea is expanding it’s Planning Studio small format stores to new locations including Rome, Tokyo, and San Francisco. Design to serve urban areas that out of city big-box format locations struggle to capture, the small stores focus on the retailer’s city living products. The article features insight from Selwyn Crittendon, business development manager at Ikea US.  

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Pay-Per-Chew: More restaurants trying subscription programs

You have Netflix, Amazon Prime, and various sports packages, so why not a subscription at your favorite restaurant? News that Panera and P.F Chang’s are testing the water of subscription models will be watched closely by other operators. From offering drink refills to free delivery to complementary light bites, restaurants are still fine-tuning exactly what diners value most when making the commitment.  

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Retail sales jump 3% in January, smashing expectations despite inflation increase

Positive news ahoy! Retail sales rose 3% in January smashing the Dow Jones estimate of a meager 1.9%. With every category seeing above inflation rise, food and drink was the overall winner with an uplift of 7.2%. Planning that next expansion? Now might be the time. 

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Target plans $100M investment to expand next-day delivery

Convenience remains king – or at least that is the belief of Target as it announces $100m investment to expand its next-day delivery operation. Target estimates it will deliver 50 million packages from its sorting centers in 2023 – double the figure of last year.  

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Papa Johns keeps the pedal on innovation

Kalibrate Client and purveyor of outstanding pizza Papa Johns has given a detailed update on how it’s focusing on outstanding products, execution, and customer experience to drive its strategy in 2023. It’s well worth your time.  

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