iO Partners’ Post

Proud to see Portuguese innovation taking the lead once again! 🇵🇹 On January 10th, Sensei and Sonae MC opened the world’s largest autonomous supermarket in Leiria, Portugal—an achievement that not only makes history but also breaks all the rules in the retail playbook. 🎾🔥 First, let's talk about the pride we should all feel as we witness Portuguese companies showcasing their ability to innovate on a global scale. This is a milestone for Portugal, proving that we’re not just participants but leaders in the future of retail. But it’s not just about size or records—it’s about convenience. For customers, this supermarket revolutionizes the shopping experience. No lines, no waiting, just a smooth, seamless process that aligns perfectly with the pace of modern life. This collaboration between Sensei and MC is a perfect example of how partnerships are driving the future of technology and retail. Through advanced AI and autonomous systems, we’re witnessing how innovation can make the shopping process faster, smarter, and more efficient. And let’s not forget the bigger picture—this is also a step towards sustainability. With smarter inventory management and reduced waste, autonomous retail is poised to make a real impact on our planet. As we stand at the crossroads of the future of retail, I can’t help but think: This is only the beginning. Where will innovation take us next? P.S. The video accompanying this post is as clever as it is informative, with a great sense of humour that shows just how much fun the future of shopping can be! 😄 #Innovation #Retail #Technology #AutonomousShopping #Sensei #SonaeMC #PortugalLeadingTheWay

Garbe Retail & ICG RE buy 22 Coop supermarkets in Italy GRR Garbe Retail has announced its first acquisition in Italy, acting as local operating partner in the sale and leaseback acquisition of a portfolio of 15 supermarkets and seven hypermarkets from Italian operator Coop Alleanza 3.0, in joint venture with ICG Real Estate and a German institutional investor. Access the full story now at #realassetinsight: https://lnkd.in/e9cf_KmT

Garbe Retail & ICG RE buy 22 Coop supermarkets in Italy GRR Garbe Retail has announced its first acquisition in Italy, acting as local operating partner in the sale and leaseback acquisition of a portfolio of 15 supermarkets and seven hypermarkets from Italian operator Coop Alleanza 3.0, in joint venture with ICG Real Estate and a German institutional investor. Access the full story now at #realassetinsight: https://lnkd.in/e9cf_KmT

🟢 REDEVCO ACQUIRES £518M RETAIL PARK PORTFOLIO 🟢 💼 Redevco has completed the acquisition of a retail park portfolio worth £518m, marking its largest UK investment to date. 💼 🏬 The portfolio spans 14 locations, offering nearly 2 million sq ft of retail space, with tenants including major brands like B&Q, Currys, and Boots. 🏬 💥 This move aligns with Redevco's strategy to expand its retail footprint and create sustainable and community-focused shopping destinations. 💥

📣 Norway's "Mr Retail" Pål Wibe invests in Diller 📣 With an impressive background in retail, having served in top management positions at XXL, Europris, Nille, Travel Retail Norway, Ica Ahold, and McKinsey & Co, Pål Wibe possesses extensive insights into what we can expect within the retail sector in the coming years. «The main focus in all the retail chains I speak with is to have their own marketing channel to reach customers. Retailers who don’t own their channel will not survive. With paid channels, you have to start a new dialogue with customers continuously and pay each time. This is not sustainable for retailers in the long run.» Read the article here: https://lnkd.in/eFUepNeT #Diller #Loyalty #Investor

Today we officially welcome the IKEA retail operations in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania to the Inter IKEA Group and I am excited to celebrate this big day in Vilnius! As the IKEA franchisor, it is of utmost importance for us to stay close to our customers to continue offering affordable, accessible and sustainable home furnishing solutions. This includes doing everything possible to become an even better franchisor, for the benefit of all franchisees. The acquisition of IKEA Retail Baltics, from one of our franchisees, allows us to gather and share learnings directly across the value chain to further evolve the IKEA Concept and strengthen our franchise system for even greater value to our customers across the globe. Read more about the acquisition here ▶ https://lnkd.in/e4aV3chv Inga Filipova, Pēteris Grīnbergs, Jolita Juodzeviciene, Dovile Skrockiene, Renata Dantė, Mindaugas Cernius, Evija Girevica Dennis Balslev Maria Johansson Paolo Romano

Can a game-changer change the game, again? 🎾 🛒 Making history is not for the faint of heart. It takes dedication, commitment and an unwavering belief in a future that has yet to unfold. And that’s what we did. Once again, we partnered with Sonae MC to make the impossible, possible. 🚀 January 10th, Sensei and Sonae MC opened Continente Bom Dia Leiria, the world’s largest autonomous supermarket, a record breaking achievement on so many levels. 🛒 🔥 But, did we change the retail game? No, actually, we didn’t. We just broke every rule in the book - and made the game a lot better. 📖🎾 🥷

 Japan's Seven & i Holdings plans to open 500 new convenience stores in the United States and Canada through 2027. Seven & i's founding Ito family made an offer, estimated to be worth $58 billion, last month to take the company private amid a competing takeover offer from Canada's Alimentation Couche-Tard. A company spokesman confirmed an earlier report by Kyodo about the plan for convenience stores in North America, adding that it was part of Seven & i's strategy to grow to 100,000 stores in 30 countries and regions by 2030. #commercialrealestate #retailrealestate #expansion #Seven&i

What does the future hold for department stores, superstores, convenience stores with gasoline filling stations and other store concepts? Take a look at the Japanese owner of 7-Eleven, Seven & i Holdings, the eighth largest retail chain in the world. Seven & i Holdings sold its department store chain, Sogo & Seibu last year and has announced the closure of dozens of Ito-Yokado supermarkets, as well as exiting its apparel business. Just today, Seven & i Holdings announced a plan to possibly spin off its superstore business, which is mainly comprised of large supermarkets, in an IPO as part of its strategy to focus on its convenience-store segment, a very profitable business. It’s so profitable nowadays that Seven & i Holdings will acquire most of U.S. fuel distributor Sunoco LP’s convenience-store and gasoline retail businesses for $950 million in a bid to pursue growth in the North American market centered around Speedway petrol stations and 7-Eleven. This move to expand the C-store with gas stations business is despite the U.S. pushing to transition from internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles to electric vehicles (EVs). For example, President Biden's stated goal is to have as high as 50% of all new vehicle sales in the U.S. be EVs by 2030 (just six years from now). Furthermore, a handful of states will phase ICE vehicles out as soon as 2035. That means that no new ICE vehicles will be permitted to be sold at all in those states. To date, those states include California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington. If we transition to EVs so quickly, what will happen to all that real estate devoted to gasoline pumps given that most EVs are charged at home?

Member news 🗞️ Exciting news from Progress Retail! 🎉 They've signed a multi-year agreement with Fleet Feet, bringing their innovative retail operations platform to the largest franchisor of locally owned and operated specialty running stores in the United States 🚀 https://lnkd.in/gvr9unNh