PLMA President Peggy Davies is optimistic that between now and the end of January there will be significant nationwide progress on vaccinations – including shots available for children.

“Beginning in the new year, more companies will return to the office, corporate travel restrictions increasingly will be lifted, and people will become more comfortable gathering in large groups. And international borders will be reopened, an important factor for the large contingent of national pavilions that attend our Chicago Show,” Davies added.   

Despite the change of date, the show itself will be, as it has been in the past, filled with the latest innovations in food, beverages, nonfood, HBC, home goods and much more. Outstanding private label programs and products will once again be featured in The New Product Expo, Idea Supermarket® and PLMA's "Salute to Excellence."

PLMA pivoted from its in-person trade show last year to present Private Label Week at the start of this year, Feb. 1-5. The weeklong virtual event ushered in a proprietary online platform that supported more than 2,000 live video calls between manufacturers and retailers and garnered some 500,000 page views.

PLMA has been presenting its Private Label Trade Show in Chicago since 1980.

Reports have surfaced that Costco had a one-item limit on the online purchase of its most popular brands of bulk toilet paper, such as Kirkland Signature Bath Tissue, as well as other paper products.

The new product limits are prompted by a different challenge than the ones faced in earlier phases of the pandemic, when stores saw unusually high demand for paper products and antibacterial wipes as customers stockpiled them.

Costco CFO Richard Galanti said Costco has been adding suppliers and stockpiling certain goods when possible. The company also has chartered three container ships next year to transport goods from Asia to the U.S. and Canada.

And the way consumers bought groceries for those meals prepared at home also changed. Online orders saw an uptick in August after several months of consumers making a growing share of their grocery purchases in-store, according to IRI.

Among fresh products ordered online, meat products seemed to lag. Only bacon and ground beef made the IRI list of the top 15 fresh items that consumers bought online.

However, things remain below the dramatic changes in 2020. Even with the increase in August, IRI concluded, the shifts were "nothing like the changes seen in 2020 or earlier this year."

Instacart's announcement is the latest effort by the delivery company to serve people looking to make late-night orders like snacks or urgently needed products like diapers or a recipe ingredient.

The move is likely a counterpunch to other delivery services like Gopuff, Gorillas, Jokr and other delivery companies who are meeting the demand for smaller, time-sensitive orders.

The rules create a process for reducing the use of hydrofluorocarbons in cooling appliances and are the first step toward meeting new mandates to cut their supply by 85% over 15 years. Congress passed with bipartisan support the new mandate in December in a $2 trillion spending and COVID-19 aid package.

The rules would cut the equivalent of 4.5 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions from 2022 through 2050, or almost three years of U.S. power-sector emissions at 2019 levels, the EPA said.

There is wide support for the new rules from industry, from U.S. chemical makers that have developed alternative coolant, and from retailers looking to reduce their contribution to climate change.

However, some companies are concerned about the quality and availability of the new rule-compliant coolant chemicals. Suppliers and customers fear prices could rise if the new rules get ahead of developing technology.

As competition for workers heats up due to the tight labor market, Walmart has tried to lure new associates by having them receive their schedules two weeks in advance and those interested candidates can apply in-store, online or using Walmart’s Me@Walmart app.

This hiring move also comes after the announcement in July that Walmart would cover 100% of tuition and books for eligible full and part-time workers. Target followed with a similar proposal for its employees, and has said it plans to hire 100,000 extra workers to meet seasonal demand,

Walmart’s average U.S. hourly wage now stands at $16.40, and entry-level associates are promoted to roles with greater responsibility and higher pay within seven months on average, according to the company. In making the announcement, Walmart highlighted the fact that around 75% of its U.S. salaried store managers started in an hourly role with the company.

Retailers across all channels have had difficulty finding employees and the labor shortage has shown no signs of easing, which is especially worrying with the high-demand holiday season coming, often the busiest time for retailers all year. 

The move comes as supply-chain problems, inflation and a tight labor market have all push costs higher. All stores with Dollar Tree Plus sections will get more products above the $1 price points, as well as some legacy stores without the special section. In 2019, Dollar Tree first experimented with selling items for $3 and $5 in a shelf section labeled Dollar Tree Plus. Those tests are continuing in a few hundred of its 7,900 Dollar Tree stores.

Increasing prices above the $1 price point, the company explained, will allow Dollar Tree to offer new products such as more frozen meat or seasonal items, and the move could encourage some shoppers to spend more per trip to the store. Pressure from investors has focused on the company increasing its price points to increase profits.

To place an order, customers open the Uber Eats app, tap the convenience or pharmacy icons, select Rite Aid, and begin shopping. Users can choose from a full catalog of healthcare and grocery products from their local Rite Aid store. Uber Eats now becomes Rite Aid’s latest partner for on-demand delivery service for products.

The chain has offered same-day delivery of groceries and OTC health products at all its stores for the past year using Instacart. In May, Rite Aid announced an agreement to have DoorDash handle same-day delivery of many products.

The rollout is Martha Stewart's first licensing agreement of its kind, with a collection of signature recipes to offer consumers frozen meal solutions. The brand will be available in over 10,000 retail outlets. More than 17 major retailers will showcase the new line of products, including Kroger, Walmart, Winn Dixie, Publix, Albertsons/Safeway, Hannaford, Jewel Osco, Meijer, and ShopRite.

The Martha Stewart Kitchen line includes more than 40 offerings, from frozen appetizers and desserts to entrées, side dishes, ready-to-heat grain blends and seasonal vegetables. Later this year and in 2022, the company plans to introduce dozens of new premium products in an expansion of the line. 

Current products include Martha’s Mother’s Mashed Potatoes with Cream Cheese; Pigs in a Blanket; Four Cheese Macaroni and Cheese; Sicilian-Style Beef Stew; Chicken Curry; Carrot Cake, and Double Chocolate Brownies, among others.