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In tune with the smaller-is-beautiful zeitgeist, Meijer -- "the store that sells everything from spaghetti to swimming pools" -- plans to test a smaller format store in Niles, Ill. Sandra M. Jones reports. "If this works the way we want it to, we definitely will consider it for other markets," says Frank Guglielmi, a spokesman for the chain of 189 sprawling one-stop-shopping emporiums.

The retail industry is going on a diet as wallets shrink and gas prices rise, Jones points out, but that's not Meijer's only motivation for the experiment. Analysts point out that shrinking the box allows them to move into more congested areas, such as the Chicago market.

"The mantra now in retail is one size does not fit all," says Lee Peterson, evp of creative services at WD Partners, a retail design and development firm. "It's about flexibility. Three or four years ago you had one prototype and opened 100 or 200 stores a year. Now you need a portfolio of sizes."

Woolworths, meanwhile, has taken the concept to the max. It is rebirthing as an online retailer after going bust in Great Britain 20 weeks ago, Andrew McCormick reports in Brand Republic. 

 

Read the whole story at Chicago Tribune, Brand Republic.

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