News

Grocers Grapple With Theft Issues as Year Begins

If theft and loss were among the big retail stories of 2023, this year is already shaping up to have asset protection top of mind among grocers.

On Jan. 4, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced felony charges in the case of stolen mPerks rewards from Meijer customers. A 22-year-old from Grand Haven, Mich., Nicholas Mui, was arrested for the theft and sale of shoppers’ account access information.

Nessel and her team contend that Mui got login credentials from a separate data breach and subsequently sold logins on the internet. Users used that account information to steal mPerks points for their own purchases. According to the AG’s office, Meijer’s infrastructure was not directly breached.

Meijer tipped off authorities to the potential crime following a series of customer complaints in spring 2023. The retailer’s corporate investigators worked with the Michigan State Policy Fraud group and the AG’s team to discover the culprit; in September, officers acting on an authorized search warrant seized more than $400,000 in cash and cryptocurrency.

A Meijer spokesperson told Progressive Grocer that that the identification and arrest of the suspect was a collaborative effort. In a written statement, the spokesperson declared, “We appreciate the efforts of the Michigan State Police and the Attorney General’s FORCE Team, in partnership with our Asset Protection team, to bring this individual to justice. This situation highlights the importance of changing passwords often and not using the same password for multiple platforms. We encourage any customer who believes they were a victim of this individual’s actions to contact Meijer customer care at 1-877-363-4537.”

Meijer took early action to deal with the effects of the alleged crime, reinstating the full balance of accrued points to affected customers. The incident was not without cost, as Nessel pointed out.

“This theft operation affected hundreds of Meijer customers and mPerks account holders, and cost the grocery chain over one million dollars,” added Nessel. “It is our belief we apprehended the main operative and driver of this sophisticated, wide-spread criminal enterprise, and I’m grateful for the partnership between my FORCE Team, the Michigan State Police, and Meijer,” she said.

In related news, credit card skimmers are also causing headaches for retailers around the country as 2024 unfolds. Recently, skimmers were found at self-checkout areas at Roche Bros. Supermarkets locations in the Boston area, including a Sudbury Farms in Needham, a Brothers Marketplace in Weston and two Roche Bros. stores in Wellesley and Natick.

This week, police in Germantown, Wis., announced that a skimming device was found at a Sendik’s store in that town near Milwaukee. Additionally, Giant Eagle confirmed that skimmers were discovered at a store in Powell, Ohio. After a thorough review, additional devices were found at four other Giant Eagle locations in Ohio.

In a news release, Giant Eagle clarified some of the security issues. “Because most customers either insert or tap their chipped cards, the vast majority of customers visiting these stores are not affected. Importantly, the only information at risk includes the payment card number and service codes,” a spokesperson wrote. Still, the grocer advised customers who patronized the stores to monitor their accounts.

Privately owned Meijer is based in Grand Rapids, Mich., and is No. 23 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2023 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America. PG also named the company one of its Top 10 Most Sustainable Grocers and Best Regional Grocery Chains in America. Mansfield, Mass.-based Roche Bros. operates 20 locations in the state. Established by the Balistreri family in 1926, Sendik’s operates 19 stores in the Milwaukee metro area, including Sendik’s Food Markets and convenience-oriented Fresh2 Go banners. Giant Eagle operates approximately 480 stores throughout western Pennsylvania, north central Ohio, northern West Virginia, Maryland and Indiana. The company is No. 40 on The PG 100.

Original article found at Progressive Grocer.

January 17, 2024 in Community News

Connecticut’s Minimum Wage to Increase by 69 Cents in January

Connecticut’s minimum wage will rise to $15.69 in January under the first annual adjustment required by a 2019 law tying the wage to the employment cost index.

The automatic 4.6% increase is dictated by a U.S. Bureau of Labor metric used to measure hourly labor costs.

“This is a big deal, it will make a difference,” Gov. Ned Lamont said during a press conference at Windham Town Hall.

Lawmakers voted to gradually increase the minimum wage from $10.10 in 2019 to $15 as of June, but they also approved increasing the rate every year based on the ECI.

Ed Hawthorne, president of Connecticut AFL-CIO, praised lawmakers and Lamont for changing the law so minimum wage increases no longer need regular votes by the legislature.

“It always looks good when you’re hitting doors and you’ve got it on the card ‘I voted to pass the minimum,’ but the real vision that everyone here showed to do the right thing rather than the political thing cannot be left unsaid,” he said.

The announcement comes less than a week after the U.S. Labor Bureau reported that the Consumer Price Index was at 3.7% on an annual basis in August.

Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiwiecz estimated that 10% of Connecticut’s workforce will benefit from the increase. She also cited a Center for American Progress report estimating 114,000 children statewide live in households with a parent making at or below minimum wage.

“A lot of people think that the minimum wage is something that teenagers make, but no, there are so many adults out there in our state that are trying to support their families,” she said.

Officials in Windham celebrated the announcement. Town Manager Thomas DeVivo said the rural community ranks 168th, out of 169 towns, in terms of having the lowest wage earners.

“This will help people pay their rent, this will help people keep on top of it so they don’t end up in homelessness or other issues,” he said.

Connecticut Business and Industry Association Vice President of Public Policy Eric Gjede said the increase will hurt businesses, though, especially since the it will come six months after the minimum wage rose from $14 to $15.

Still, he said most employers are already paying above $15.69.

“We are struggling in just finding employees, so our businesses are forced to pay even higher wages and provide even more benefits,” he said.

Some speakers, including Lamont and Hawthorne, touted that the indexed increases give businesses predictability. Gjede disagreed.

“I don’t know that it is going to provide predictability other than knowing that it’s going up, but of course we don’t know by how much until they make this announcement every year,” he said.

Lamont said the increase, coupled with other measures by the state, will help working families. That, in turn, is good for the economy, he said.

Lamont pointed to the current budget, which cut in the income tax and raised the Earned Income Tax Credit, as measures that help lower income families.

He also said the state has other programs to help, including workforce development programs and expanded support for childcare. When asked about restoring the Child Tax Credit Monday, Lamont focused on those other programs and benefits.

“I think there are a lot of ways we’re making life a little more affordable for people, and I think that’s the way we should go,” he said.

Original article found at CT News Junkie.

September 23, 2023 in Legislative News

After decades of failure, Hartford leaders seek grocery store in one of CT’s worst food deserts

After several failed attempts, a new push to explore a city-owned grocery store aims to someday bring fresh produce to a food desert in Hartford.

“Getting a full-service grocery store in the North End has been a challenge for literally our whole lives,” councilman Josh Michtom said. “I think it’s a very common sense idea to at least study its feasibility and get some parameters around it.”

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September 16, 2023 in Community News

Big Y Expands Its C-store Format

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Big Y Foods Inc. is growing its convenience store footprint in Connecticut. The supermarket chain opened its 15th and 16th Big Y Express fuel and c-stores, located at 50 Main Street in Somers, Conn., and 241 Hazard Ave. in Enfield, Conn.

The new sites bring the total number of Big Y Express locations in the Nutmeg State to six, reported Convenience Store News sister publication Progressive Grocer.

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September 1, 2023 in Member News