Center Store

MINNEAPOLIS — Target Corp. has lowered its earnings expectations for first quarter 2013, the mass merchandise retailer said Tuesday.

The Minneapolis-based chain said it expected same-store sales growth in the quarter to be about flat over first quarter 2012 due to sales trends that have been weaker than expected, particularly in seasonal and weather-sensitive merchandise categories. As a result, earnings-per-share guidance is expected to be less than $1.10; the company's original guidance had stated earnings would be $1.10-$1.20 per share.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Red Diamond on Monday announced it will be offering coffee and tea in single-serve format for home or on the go leveraging LBP Manufacturing's UpShot Solution.

PLANO, Texas — Frito-Lay, a division of PepsiCo, announced this week the company is introducing completely "re-imagined" packaging across its Lay's Wavy brand line of chips and is adding a new garlic-flavored chip to the lineup.

The company is launching new Lay’s Wavy Roasted Garlic & Sea Salt flavored chips. The potato chips will be available in stores nationwide this month in a 9 1/2-oz. bag for a suggested retail price of $4.29. Single-serve sizes will be available for a limited time at participating retailers beginning summer 2013.

LAS VEGAS — No longer will the SymphonyIRI Group crunch data for the betterment of consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies everywhere, the company's president and CEO Andrew Appel told a packed conference room at the data aggregator's 2013 Summit here.

NORTHFIELD, Ill. — Kool-Aid, a Kraft Foods brand, announced today the launch of a new multimedia campaign to reintroduce the company's iconic Kool-Aid Man "spokespitcher" that will coincide with the release of a new liquid drink mix available on store shelves now.

NEW YORK — A majority of surveyed adults in the United States regards organic as an excuse to charge more for food, according to a new study.

The March Harris Poll of 2,276 adults found that those expressing concern for the environment grew from 31% last year to 38% this year, but 59% of respondents saw labeling foods and other products as organic was an excuse to charge more.

MARIETTA, Ga. — Competitive Promotion Report on Monday introduced a new advanced big data analytics tool, Integrated Data Management, that provides insights which syndicated sales data alone cannot.

“IDM will give our clients a competitive advantage with a view of how marketing tactics are impacting sales and profits so they can adjust accordingly," stated Glen Davis, CPR president and CEO. "This knowledge can give manufacturers an edge and solves the widespread challenge of making sense of some of the big data they are amassing.”

WASHINGTON — Nestlé USA today unveiled its new "Balance Your Plate with Nestlé" education campaign to help consumers build nutritious, convenient meals and offer a toolkit to healthcare professionals in guiding their customers to make healthier meals. The announcement was made during a luncheon presentation at the Consumer Federation of America's 36th Annual National Food Policy Conference.