urbandreamer
recession proof
IIRC, Sobey's opened about 2 weeks ago. It looks very chic and modern, in contrast to the suburban beige of Metro (formerly Dominion's.) I have photos somewhere, maybe I'll snap another one soon.
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State of the big chain grocery stores
- Thread starter Jonny5
- Start date
adma
Superstar
For that matter, wouldn't that Dominion be better off as a local debut for the Metro brand?
JasonParis
Moderator
Perhaps that's why no permanent signage has been attached?
299 bloor call control.
Senior Member
It'd be a pretty embarrassing store to put that on.... suburban style in one of Toronto's most urban neighbourhoods... though there's no doubt it will be branded metro. For their sake, I hope it's not the "launch" store of the new brand... I'd choose the one on Front or at the Merchandise Building over the Annex one for that.
urbandreamer
recession proof
17 September 2008 photo update
In the Annex tonight, I shoot a Sobeys but don't go inside. (Next time.)
In the Annex tonight, I shoot a Sobeys but don't go inside. (Next time.)
PukeGreen
Active Member
Pretty good rundown in the Globe today about how Sobeys is taking over the downtown area with urban styled grocery stores.
Globe: New kid on the downtown shopping block
Urban Fresh: The Great Grocery-Store Shift
DEIRDRE KELLY
September 20, 2008
At the new Sobeys store at Yonge and Balliol, the lunch crowd pays for its gourmet-to-go meals beneath a crystal chandelier sparkling above the cash register.
In their carts are organic peanut butter and Baratti & Milano chocolate, antibiotic-free meat and brandied marmalade by Compliments Sensations, the high-end in-house brand. It's Pusateri's-style products priced for the masses.
With the opening of the Balliol location in June, Sobeys now has 15 stores in Toronto, up from three in 1998. Five downtown locations have opened in the past 12 months alone, often in offbeat locations, such as the former Blockbuster Video store in the Annex. As the green-bannered label pops up all over town, some residents see themselves as the winners in the battle of the grocery stores.
"With Sobeys coming into the neighbourhood, there's now better prices," a woman named Sandra said as she shopped at the new Sobeys at Front and Princess, a converted Canada Post warehouse. "The Rabba and the Dominion next door have had to give the consumer better prices because of the competition."
Sobeys also is distinguishing itself by customizing its stores to suit Toronto's particular neighbourhoods. In North York, for instance, at the Clark and Hilda streets store, Sobeys holds the distinction of being North America's biggest kosher supermarket, with a rabbi on staff. At the much larger flagship Queensway Sobeys location, close to neighbourhoods stocked with Eastern European-style delis, the draw is imported cheese. There are more than 200 varieties.
"They seem to have stepped into a vacuum that the other traditional grocery stores haven't considered," says Toronto real-estate analyst Barry Lyon, of N. Barry Lyon Consulting Ltd.
The Balliol location is an example of the new wave.
At 8,000 square feet, it's boutique-sized, with only 10 parking spots. Designed for a neighbourhood filled with apartment buildings, its aisles are narrow and the tiered shelving is deep as a jeweller's.
One-litre milk cartons trump four-litre bags. Even the grocery carts - think Smart cars instead of SUVs - are smaller. The in-house food magazine, Inspired, appeals to sophisticated foodies, as do visits by local chefs such as Massimo Capra and David Agee. Mr. Lyon thinks Sobeys could own the downtown, because it understands the downtown shopper, who is often single and looking for prepared foods and takeout. "At Sobeys, the stores are smaller, and people shop three, four, five times a week, sometimes daily, to walk their groceries home," he says. Whereas in the older suburban model, such as "the Loblaws at Queens Quay and Jarvis, is where everyone drives and fills their car up once a week."
Rodney Lock is a case in point. "I'm a cook," Mr. Lock says, perusing the prepared-foods section inside the Sobeys at Front and Princess. "But sometimes late at night the last thing I want to do is prepare dinner.
"Sobeys has prepared pizza, and if I buy a few extras, like sausage and feta cheese, I get a feeling of a fresh product that I could have made myself," he says. "It's a lot better than Pizza Pizza."
Sobeys has been innovative in its presentation, rebranding the new stores with the hipper moniker "Urban Fresh," locating in underused properties and freshening up those older spaces with "designer" interiors (Italian lighting, custom wood-and-glass cabinets, granite-topped takeout counters, lime-green and black decor) - and structuring displays to make maximum use of smaller space.
"There's more produce on offer at Balliol than at the bigger Leaside store," says Mary Dalimonte, general manager of the Urban Fresh service format team.
"And that's because we've built up. We can offer lychee nuts, kumquats, dragon fruit, guavas, gooseberries, product that some of the other locations don't have, because we have been mindful of how we use our store space." Sobeys is "classing it up," says a shopper calling herself Anne.
The Sobeys invasion into Toronto continues into next year, with firm plans for locations at Bremner and Spadina and at One Cole, the new condo being built as part of the Regent Park redevelopment.
Other locations are being scouted.
"We know that to take the market share we have to first take Toronto," says Craig Gilpin, president of operation for Sobeys Ontario. "Forty per cent of Canada lives in Ontario; 40 per cent of Ontario lives in Toronto. It stands to reason.
"We are very competitive people," Mr. Gilpin continues. "We are serious about food. ... You won't find a golf ball in these aisles," he adds with a knowing smile.
As condos bloom and Toronto infill becomes the modern reality, Mr. Lyons says, "the suburban model [of a grocery store] - and, by that, I mean Loblaws - doesn't work downtown any more."
***
Metro rebranding
Goodbye, Dominion and A&P. These supermarkets will henceforth be known as Metro. The Montreal-based Metro Inc. is rebranding its grocery stores under a single banner, to be unveiled Thursday, at the Dominion at Bayview and Eglinton (A&P doesn't flip over to the Metro moniker until next year).
Deirdre Kelly
***
The Sobeys Invasion
Bloor & Bathurst Sobeys
Location: 503 Bloor St. W.
Opened: Aug. 27, 2008
Yonge and Balliol Sobeys
Location: 22 Balliol St.
Opened: June 20, 2008
Laird and Wicksteed Sobeys
Location: 147 Laird Dr.
Opened: Jan. 25, 2008
Rosebury Square Sobeys
Location: 145 Marlee Ave.
Opened: Dec. 14, 2007
Front Street Sobeys
Location: 197 Front St.
Opened: Nov. 22, 2007
Source: Sobeys
Globe: New kid on the downtown shopping block
Urban Fresh: The Great Grocery-Store Shift
DEIRDRE KELLY
September 20, 2008
At the new Sobeys store at Yonge and Balliol, the lunch crowd pays for its gourmet-to-go meals beneath a crystal chandelier sparkling above the cash register.
In their carts are organic peanut butter and Baratti & Milano chocolate, antibiotic-free meat and brandied marmalade by Compliments Sensations, the high-end in-house brand. It's Pusateri's-style products priced for the masses.
With the opening of the Balliol location in June, Sobeys now has 15 stores in Toronto, up from three in 1998. Five downtown locations have opened in the past 12 months alone, often in offbeat locations, such as the former Blockbuster Video store in the Annex. As the green-bannered label pops up all over town, some residents see themselves as the winners in the battle of the grocery stores.
"With Sobeys coming into the neighbourhood, there's now better prices," a woman named Sandra said as she shopped at the new Sobeys at Front and Princess, a converted Canada Post warehouse. "The Rabba and the Dominion next door have had to give the consumer better prices because of the competition."
Sobeys also is distinguishing itself by customizing its stores to suit Toronto's particular neighbourhoods. In North York, for instance, at the Clark and Hilda streets store, Sobeys holds the distinction of being North America's biggest kosher supermarket, with a rabbi on staff. At the much larger flagship Queensway Sobeys location, close to neighbourhoods stocked with Eastern European-style delis, the draw is imported cheese. There are more than 200 varieties.
"They seem to have stepped into a vacuum that the other traditional grocery stores haven't considered," says Toronto real-estate analyst Barry Lyon, of N. Barry Lyon Consulting Ltd.
The Balliol location is an example of the new wave.
At 8,000 square feet, it's boutique-sized, with only 10 parking spots. Designed for a neighbourhood filled with apartment buildings, its aisles are narrow and the tiered shelving is deep as a jeweller's.
One-litre milk cartons trump four-litre bags. Even the grocery carts - think Smart cars instead of SUVs - are smaller. The in-house food magazine, Inspired, appeals to sophisticated foodies, as do visits by local chefs such as Massimo Capra and David Agee. Mr. Lyon thinks Sobeys could own the downtown, because it understands the downtown shopper, who is often single and looking for prepared foods and takeout. "At Sobeys, the stores are smaller, and people shop three, four, five times a week, sometimes daily, to walk their groceries home," he says. Whereas in the older suburban model, such as "the Loblaws at Queens Quay and Jarvis, is where everyone drives and fills their car up once a week."
Rodney Lock is a case in point. "I'm a cook," Mr. Lock says, perusing the prepared-foods section inside the Sobeys at Front and Princess. "But sometimes late at night the last thing I want to do is prepare dinner.
"Sobeys has prepared pizza, and if I buy a few extras, like sausage and feta cheese, I get a feeling of a fresh product that I could have made myself," he says. "It's a lot better than Pizza Pizza."
Sobeys has been innovative in its presentation, rebranding the new stores with the hipper moniker "Urban Fresh," locating in underused properties and freshening up those older spaces with "designer" interiors (Italian lighting, custom wood-and-glass cabinets, granite-topped takeout counters, lime-green and black decor) - and structuring displays to make maximum use of smaller space.
"There's more produce on offer at Balliol than at the bigger Leaside store," says Mary Dalimonte, general manager of the Urban Fresh service format team.
"And that's because we've built up. We can offer lychee nuts, kumquats, dragon fruit, guavas, gooseberries, product that some of the other locations don't have, because we have been mindful of how we use our store space." Sobeys is "classing it up," says a shopper calling herself Anne.
The Sobeys invasion into Toronto continues into next year, with firm plans for locations at Bremner and Spadina and at One Cole, the new condo being built as part of the Regent Park redevelopment.
Other locations are being scouted.
"We know that to take the market share we have to first take Toronto," says Craig Gilpin, president of operation for Sobeys Ontario. "Forty per cent of Canada lives in Ontario; 40 per cent of Ontario lives in Toronto. It stands to reason.
"We are very competitive people," Mr. Gilpin continues. "We are serious about food. ... You won't find a golf ball in these aisles," he adds with a knowing smile.
As condos bloom and Toronto infill becomes the modern reality, Mr. Lyons says, "the suburban model [of a grocery store] - and, by that, I mean Loblaws - doesn't work downtown any more."
***
Metro rebranding
Goodbye, Dominion and A&P. These supermarkets will henceforth be known as Metro. The Montreal-based Metro Inc. is rebranding its grocery stores under a single banner, to be unveiled Thursday, at the Dominion at Bayview and Eglinton (A&P doesn't flip over to the Metro moniker until next year).
Deirdre Kelly
***
The Sobeys Invasion
Bloor & Bathurst Sobeys
Location: 503 Bloor St. W.
Opened: Aug. 27, 2008
Yonge and Balliol Sobeys
Location: 22 Balliol St.
Opened: June 20, 2008
Laird and Wicksteed Sobeys
Location: 147 Laird Dr.
Opened: Jan. 25, 2008
Rosebury Square Sobeys
Location: 145 Marlee Ave.
Opened: Dec. 14, 2007
Front Street Sobeys
Location: 197 Front St.
Opened: Nov. 22, 2007
Source: Sobeys
urbandreamer
recession proof
The Annex Sobeys is surely giving the Bloor Super Save (or whatever it's called nowadays) folks the shakes....
Is Hilda and Clark in North York? Nyet. Get the facts straight, Ms Kelly!
And it seems every article I read nowadays in the Globe, Star or Post has Barry Lyon chattering away. Lazy reporters, eh?
Is Hilda and Clark in North York? Nyet. Get the facts straight, Ms Kelly!
And it seems every article I read nowadays in the Globe, Star or Post has Barry Lyon chattering away. Lazy reporters, eh?
samsonyuen
Active Member
I noticed the Clark and Hilda error too!
It's interesting they're (Metro supermarkets) all going through remodelling, but keeping the same Dominion store prototype (beige and red striped brick?) with a big tall entrance. Anyone know if they're keeping the Air Miles program? IGA/Sobeys has Quebec and the Atlantic, and Safeway in the West, I guess Metro Ontario is only in Ontario, so they'll probably keep it.
I have a friend from NS who thinks of Sobey's as crappy produce. It seems they're doing a good job here in Toronto?
It's interesting they're (Metro supermarkets) all going through remodelling, but keeping the same Dominion store prototype (beige and red striped brick?) with a big tall entrance. Anyone know if they're keeping the Air Miles program? IGA/Sobeys has Quebec and the Atlantic, and Safeway in the West, I guess Metro Ontario is only in Ontario, so they'll probably keep it.
I have a friend from NS who thinks of Sobey's as crappy produce. It seems they're doing a good job here in Toronto?
junctionist
Senior Member
Right now, the new Dominion/Metro looks like an eyesore, but perhaps some landscaping and signage will detract from the featureless beige facade.
How could they spend money on such a bland and unsophisticated renovation?
How could they spend money on such a bland and unsophisticated renovation?
Northern Light
Superstar
Metro
I understand (could be wrong) that the Metro Launch will be the Bayview and Eglinton Store.
I popped in there yesterday to see what they'd done.
For the most part, it looks like a Dominion with some slightly nicer finishes, they've added some suspended wooden trellis from the rafters at a few points, touched-up the shelving, signage etc.
The entrance way is consistent with the current Dominion standard, though a bit more elegant (all glass, and tall)
Most of the product is similar.
BUT
They did add one thing that impressed me! In their meals-to-go section they added a stand that fresh makes sandwiches with smoked and pullled meats (to order).
They actually put a smoker in the store and smoke the pork and chicken themselves! I highly recommend the new maple pulled-pork sandwich.
Now, if only they would take organics more seriously.
*****
Relatedly by the way, I just noticed that Sobeys Queen's Quay is now doing in-store cooked potato chips, under the Chippery Brand.
I understand (could be wrong) that the Metro Launch will be the Bayview and Eglinton Store.
I popped in there yesterday to see what they'd done.
For the most part, it looks like a Dominion with some slightly nicer finishes, they've added some suspended wooden trellis from the rafters at a few points, touched-up the shelving, signage etc.
The entrance way is consistent with the current Dominion standard, though a bit more elegant (all glass, and tall)
Most of the product is similar.
BUT
They did add one thing that impressed me! In their meals-to-go section they added a stand that fresh makes sandwiches with smoked and pullled meats (to order).
They actually put a smoker in the store and smoke the pork and chicken themselves! I highly recommend the new maple pulled-pork sandwich.
Now, if only they would take organics more seriously.
*****
Relatedly by the way, I just noticed that Sobeys Queen's Quay is now doing in-store cooked potato chips, under the Chippery Brand.
299 bloor call control.
Senior Member
The 'Celebrations' segment on BT is now sponsored by "Metro - the new name in fresh food".... and I believe seeing metro signage inside at the Dominion in the Annex walking by yesterday.
adma
Superstar
Wow! Welcome to Metro Toronto!
ShonTron
Moderator
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The Dominion signage was stripped last night from my local. Almost makes it look like the store shut down, despite the recent interior and exterior facelifts.
samsonyuen
Active Member
Metro's Web site also has a countdown going for Metro Ontario (3 days to go!).
http://www.metro.ca/index.fr.html
http://www.metro.ca/index.fr.html
DSC
Superstar
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The City website confirms that Sobeys want to open another store in the St Lawrence Area. (George Street between Adelaide and Richmond - just opposite Vu.
Location: 109 GEORGE ST
TORONTO M5A 2N4
Ward 28: Toronto Centre-Rosedale
Application#: 08 202365 ZPR 00 ZR Accepted Date: Sep 11, 2008
Project: Non-Residential Building Conversion
Description: PUBLIC - PRELIMINARY PROJECT REVIEW, Due Date is 09-OCT-08, >>PPR to convert existing office space to grocery store - sobeys
Location: 109 GEORGE ST
TORONTO M5A 2N4
Ward 28: Toronto Centre-Rosedale
Application#: 08 202365 ZPR 00 ZR Accepted Date: Sep 11, 2008
Project: Non-Residential Building Conversion
Description: PUBLIC - PRELIMINARY PROJECT REVIEW, Due Date is 09-OCT-08, >>PPR to convert existing office space to grocery store - sobeys