November/December 2016

Rudy Dory, president of Newport Avenue Market, speaks with his representative, Greg Walden (R-Ore.), at the FMI's annual Day in Washington on Capitol Hill.

Carbonview surveyed 134 senior executives from national, regional and large independent grocers, with more than half the respondents representing chains with more than 51 stores.

Retailers and consumer goods companies anxiously watching the drama unfold in 2017 can take comfort in the fact that their interests—and those of the American consumer—are effectively represented by six powerful trade associations led by influential and vigilant executives:

The results, however, have been anything but common, especially for retailers today struggling to stay ahead in such a fast-changing demographic and technological market environment.

The holiday season usually sets food retailers' hearts fluttering like a child's on Christmas Eve. These months often mean the difference between a good year and a great one. This year, however, the industry is facing a Grinch that promises to steal more than just stockings: deflation.

It's not hard to remember a time where grocers competed with other grocers, consumers made weekly trips to the store, and they could only find out what was on sale by checking out the circular. Those days are forever gone, as now grocers compete with everyone from drug to dollar to e-tailers.