- Newsday reports that Japanese convenience store operator FamilyMart will open its first US store, called “Famima,” in West Hollywood, California, next month. It is the first of 200 units that the company plans to open in the US over the next four years.
The unit will feature a variety of Japanese convenience store items, such as rice balls and sushi, in addition to traditional American convenience items.
Even at 200 locations, the US will remain a small market for Family Mart, which has more than 11,500 units in nations like Japan, South Korea, Thailand, China and Taiwan.
- Published reports say that Del Monte Foods plans to sell its private label soup business, its Nature's Goodness line of baby foods, and perhaps its College Inn line of broths – perhaps individually, perhaps as a package, depending on the buyer. Bank of America reportedly is handling the bidding process, though Del Monte is not commenting on what it calls “rumors.”
The reason for the sales, according to reports, is that the company is looking to shed operations that don’t mesh well with its core canned and fruit and vegetable businesses.
