Supermarkets are designed pretty much the same all over the world. Shoppers enter and see a bank of cash registers, along with other people paying, pushing carts, and trying to mollify screaming children who didn’t get their Cocoa Krispies (or, depending on where the tots are melting down, their Choco Krispis, Choco Pops, or Coco Pops).

But not long ago, Esselunga, the supermarket chain in Italy, decided to try something different. For its superstore in Brescia, it shifted the typical supermarket layout 90 degrees to the right, positioning the checkout lines along the side of the store.

And now, when entering the store, what you see is not the banality of a gaggle of shoppers having their groceries bagged. What you see is a show.

• In a glass-walled kitchen, bakers pull golden loaves from ovens with long-handled paddles.
• In another glass cube, the kitchen for the in-store restaurant, cooks wearing chef hats make fresh pasta and wield sizzling pans.
• Large video screens on the walls feature white-coated employees at the chain’s production plants, inspecting big wheels of cheese and other foods.

Mark Landini, creative director of Landini Associates, the Sydney-based design studio that has worked with brands including McDonald’s and Aldi and designed the location, said that Esselunga’s kitchens—arguably the heart of a store that engages with customers over its food—had been in the back, unseen by customers.

“They actually made a lot of their own stuff, but they made it behind the walls so you couldn’t see it,” Landini told Retail Brew. But in the store today, by contrast, “‘Here we are making it so you know it’s fresh,’” Landini said. “It’s kind of show-and-tell.”

Long story short: Scott Denton-Cardew, principal and executive creative director of Denton Cardew Design, a creative consultancy that’s done retail-design projects for companies including Levi’s and Nike, said he’s heartened that brands are dedicating space in their stores to connecting with people, not just selling to them. But he stressed that stores should just be sure that any details they share have been vetted before they put them, in the most literal sense, on display.

“I think it’s important if you have a robust story—that you can’t punch holes in—to take a moment,” Denton-Cardew said.

Click here to read the full story. And check out our series on store design here.—AAN

This week, food and beverage exhibitors took to the floor at Natural Products Expo West—the “Super Bowl” for the natural products industry—for the show’s first in-person iteration since 2019. Beyond a slew of branded pins and appearances by celebs from Vanessa Hudgens to Jason Momoa, there were also some noteworthy innovations.

Free show: As Stray Dog Capital’s Johnny Ream told us earlier this year, meat-free brands have to do “something different” to stand out from the ever-growing crowd.

Loma Linda showed off its new canned Chik’n (the first shelf-stable canned alt-chicken, it says), while Ozo debuted a zero-cholesterol plant-based bacon. Plus, fresh off its new joint venture with Kraft Heinz, Chile-based NotCo brought its NotBurger to the states.

• Planet Based Foods showcased vegan taquitos, while Sophie’s Kitchen exhibited a slew of alt-fish burgers.

The dairy-free space had its own creations on display too: After teasing it last month, Betterland unveiled cow-free milk (made with Perfect Day protein), which it claims is the first CPG animal-free dairy milk.

• Elsewhere, new products included Ripple Foods’ pea-based soft serve and Miyoko’s Creamery’s cottage cheese made from both sunflower- and watermelon-seed milks.

Teamwork: Miyoko’s joined in on another trend at Expo West—collabs. It partnered with sustainable baking brand Renewal Mill to upcycle the vegan butter left in its churning equipment after production runs to create a salted peanut butter cookie.

• Heirloom-corn snack brand Pipcorn popped in with spicy cheddar popcorn and cheese balls made with Tabasco sauce, set to hit its e-commerce site next month and Whole Foods in May.
• Plus: Ithaca Hummus previewed its dill pickle-flavored hummus created with Grillo’s, the pickle brand that previously partnered with Rugrats.—EC

Covid might have stymied international travel for the past two years, but young shoppers have found another way to bring the world to them.

US consumers under 40 are leading the way when it comes to shopping for international brands, according to a Retail Brew/Harris Poll survey of 2,023 Americans conducted earlier this month.

• Nearly three-quarters (74%) of Zoomers and 71% of millennials surveyed bought from an international brand—not counting food and bev items, but including global names like Louis Vuitton, Shein, and Zara—in the last year.
• Those figures drop to 17% and 13% for Gen X and Boomers, respectively.

Those younger generations, in fact, are seeking brands beyond US borders with a purpose: 29% of both Gen Z and millennials said they intentionally shopped with an international brand at least once a month.

• The most popular categories across all US consumers were fast-fashion apparel (45%), electronics (41%), and personal care (41%).

Shop around: Where’s all this $$ being spent? Among those who’ve bought from an international brand in the last year: 36% did so at a department store; 36% from an online marketplace; 30% from a brand’s own website; and 25% from a brand’s own store.

• Almost a quarter (23%) of Gen Zers and 34% of millennials actually shopped on a social media platform. (We see you, TikTok.)

Zoom out: The inroads international brands have made with younger consumers should bode well for them in the future. Gen Z’s income is predicted to reach $33 trillion by the end of the decade—and overtake millennials a year later.

But many American shoppers still want to support business at home. Click here to read more.—KM

Today’s top retail reads.

X factor: How J.Jill keeps its loyal—and lucrative—Gen X customer base. (Glossy)

Small time: Honey, the companies shrunk their products. “Bottom lines are being pinched, and there’s three basic options: raise the price directly, take a little bit out of the product, or reformulate the product with cheaper ingredients,” said Edgar Dworsky, a consumer rights lawyer. (Quartz)

Plant the idea: SNAP recipients can use their benefits to buy seeds and food-bearing plants—but might not know that they have the option, among other obstacles. (Crosscut)

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Catch up on the Retail Brew stories you may have missed.

• A futuristic McDonald’s in Australia is on the cutting edge of experiential retail
• Why Momofuku chose to be transparent with consumers about price hikes
• The list of retailers halting operations in Russia grows

Three of the stories below are real...and one is most definitely not. Can you spot the fake?

1. Paris Hilton announced a velour tracksuit line featuring a “That’s Hot” design.
2. Chocolate brand Mid-Day Squares dropped a music video parodying Eminem’s “My Name Is” to detail its legal battle with Hershey’s last year.
3. Crocs is piloting two-hour delivery in New York City.
4. Hidden Valley Ranch made a diamond out of its dressing.

Keep reading for the answer.