Kroger is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement with iControl Systems USA to administer the newspaper program in Columbus, Michigan, Delta, Mid-South, Mid-Atlantic and Southwest Divisions. This program has previously been in effect in three other divisions with tremendous success.

David Rustad | Senior Category Manager, GM/Merchandising | Kroger

About iControl

iControl's Core Value Proposition

iControl provides a superior business model for Scan-Based Trading.

We reduce costs, promote accountability and increase profits for our customers by optimizing supply chain processes.

Our goal is to provide our retail customers and their suppliers with the tools and means to take advantage of the efficiencies and opportunities that Scan Based Trading represents.

iControl Systems USA, LLC. was formed in 2005 by Ephi, Sean and T.J. Zlotnitsky. Originally iControl was run as an affiliate of the family-owned Current Companies, aka CNC, a distributor of periodicals based in Washington, DC, with service to 30 states.

CNC was founded by the family patriarch, Michael Zlotnitsky, and his wife Leah, soon after immigrating to the U.S. from Israel in 1986. The company grew from a small distributor of foreign newspapers to one of the leading wholesalers of newspapers and magazines in the U.S. In 2002, the newspaper company operation was spun off into a joint-venture with National News Agency, forming NewsOne, which became the largest privately-owned distributor of newspapers in the U.S.

In February 2009, the Zlotnitsky brothers sold Current Companies to Hudson News and divested of NewsOne, in order to focus full-time on iControl.

Today, iControl is one of the largest provider of data aggregation and accounts payable consolidation services to retailers in the U.S., and is especially active in consolidating payables and data in the newspaper category.

Concept
Growth

iControl was formed to relieve the frustration of retailers and to assist them in managing complex, data-intensive DSD categories, such as newspapers, magazines, fresh flowers, bread, specialty foods, propane, maps, and the likes.

DSD categories are complex for retailers because they typically involve persistent item file and pricebook updates that must be processed manually, along with a large number of very small vendors with a tendency to turn over frequently. Some DSD categories, such as newspapers, are even harder than normal to administer, because thousands of items, UPC, distributors and pricepoints are involved.

iControl was formed to provide a thoughtful solution, respectful of the needs of the different partners within the supply chain. Whereas traditional DSD practices have been disproportionately tilted in favor of the supplier and against the retailer, iControl recognized that SBT can just as easily swing the pendelum too far in the opposite direction.

The goal of iControl is to provide our retail customers and their vendors with the means to take advantage of the efficiencies and opportunities that Scan Based Trading represents.

As a result of its innovation and business model, iControl has attracted the best run, most responsible and forward-thinking retailers in America, including CVS, Kroger, Safeway, and Barnes & Noble.

The iControl team has now grown to 47 U.S. based associates operating out of 8 states, along with a 24-person data entry team in China. The numbers of retail doors serviced by iControl grew from 521 in 2005 to 17,831 as of March 2010. Doors will surpass 20,000 in June 2010.

Company sales rose from under $2 million in 2005, to $124 million in 2009. The company is on pace to exceed $175 million in sales in 2010.

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