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State of the big chain grocery stores

great points, you have a very good understanding of the market... maybe Loblaws should hire you to work out their business strategy

canrocks said:
It certainly sounds interesting but I won't be shopping there. I biked by it recently and it struck me how suburban and inappropriate it was. How did it get zoning approval? This is not where a city of Toronto's stature puts it's food retail, one of the most vital functions of a city. How did this get approved?
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They didn't need zoning approval, as the building was occupied by Knob Hill Farms prior to sitting empty or acting as a flea market for 7 years til the T&T moved in. I personally think it was very appropriate for a depressed/dead area of the city and reuse of a building that will be torn down in a decade anyway. The 'destination style' grocery shopping that T&T represents (most people who go to T&T are looking specifically for asian-centric groceries) is also helping to bring people into the Portlands and hopefully help spur more development.
 
Ah GT Boutique is expanding? Interesting times. I didn't know they were an eastern Ontario chain. I shopped at one in Hamilton many years ago and assumed it was either local or national.

I had to stop at Loblaws in Forest Hill yesterday. The stocks were good for once and prices were okay (ie. less than double No Frills for the same item!). Service was questionable though.

My cashier almost never actually spoke a word, other than saying the total bill, to anyone. No hello, goodbye or anything. The one time she did talk was to bark at an very frail and elderly looking lady that she was taking to long to find change.

At the customer service/lottery area, a man was waiting for the store manager and complained it had been more than 10 minutes. I could see that not being an exaggeration as he was being called on the intercom the whole time I was in the store.
 
canrocks said:
That's actually a really good point. When contrasting our supermarkets with the industry in UK, pretty much all of the chains have made attempts at a small format downtown store, with great success. Now, granted, they obviously have many more dense settings than we do, but it's nonetheless an untapped opportunity for Loblaws. They don't seem to be building any more Valumarts, and as 299 said, they are seen as a bit dumpy. Meanwhile, Dominion and Sobeys own the pedestrian friendly downtown store market in Toronto. The closest chain grocery to where I live is the Dominion on Gould. Second is the Dominion at College Park. Third is the Sobeys Express on Yonge. Fourth? Dominion at Market Square. I absolutely hate and despise Dominion but I end up going all the time because It's literally 2 minutes away. I see it as a large, gourmet convenience store. Open 24 hours, with markup that never ceases to shock me. I suppose I wouldn't mind the prices if the store offered me something of value. Nope. And don't get me started on Equality and Master Choice - terrible. And it seems that they've made a conscious decision not to compete with Loblaws or Sobeys on organics. Shoppers Drug Mart has a better organics selection than Dominion.
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It's odd you haven't made reference to something like the Manulife Valumart--which seems to be locked in a permanent state of 1988dom, or something; now, *there's* something demanding a Galen'n'Alex makeover. (I'm bringing Alex into this, because it somehow compliments the magic of Galen's sis across the way at Holts.)
 
Hey canrocks, If you are really a grocery industry geek as you say you should give T&T a tryout or a walkaround inside.

It's the only grocery chain out there right now that generates anything like anticipation, delight and excitement when you walk in. Obviously it's not the single source of groceries but I've picked up all my 'Canadian' as well as my Asian groceries there.

How can you beat hot dimsum, roasted crispy skin pork, Vietnamnese subs and more all in one place - along with your OJ, bacon and Christies white bread.:)
 
canrocks said:
It's interesting that you say that because I don't find their competition especially inspiring. Yes, the Big Carrot is somewhat interesting, but the store brands at Dominion are atrociously boring, much worse than President's Choice. But then, I suppose I'm fairly cheap, and I don't really shop for excitement.
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But that was the point I was making. Years ago Loblaws had buzz. It's sad if all one can say now is that Loblaws is no more boring than its competitors.
 
Loblaws: There was a promotion by the young Weston on radio and TV a few months ago of naan bread. They had their own maker, blah, blah, now you can, blah. There were NO other tie-ins. If you went into the stores looking for a display of ingredients for a home cooked Indian dish you were out of luck.
 
I tried the Loblaws naan bread. It's... how you say in English... crap. It's too thick and blown up to be true flatbread. And you can't replicate that fresh out of the tandoori oven taste. Some of the indian style cooking sauces are OK, if you spice them up a bit with some garam masala.
 
It's the naan version of my personal principle to never buy grocery-baked bread.
 
Therion said:
I tried the Loblaws naan bread. It's... how you say in English... crap. It's too thick and blown up to be true flatbread. And you can't replicate that fresh out of the tandoori oven taste. Some of the indian style cooking sauces are OK, if you spice them up a bit with some garam masala.
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And there you have it. Loblaws didn't even go to the trouble of having a panel taste test before introducing to the market. My wife bought some and also pronounced it very unsatisfactory.

I think supermarkets have a look, feel and product selection that can come together at a moment in time and create 'buzz' and customer interest. Loblaws had it when Dave Nichol was around.

I remember when - believe it or not - Knob Hill Farms - had it. Sawdust on the floors, the meat saws on display in the cold room behind glass and cheap canned goods. People left in droves when cheap prices started to feel like a cheap depressing experience. The only Stavros legacy left is that tasteful monument of his in Mt Pleasant cemetery.:)

The boy Weston spokesman to me is not an effective corporate spokesman. "Hi, I'm Galen Weston [and I'll leave it up to you to figure out who I am - the favoured son of the company owner - like my boyish haircut?]". Same with that AlarmForce president with the un-risible sneer. Don't get me going about the pawnbroker on Eglinton Ave west.
 
im moving to young and empress area where the loblaws is. and it seems like that is my only option.... has anyone ever shopped at that particular one?
 
Twenty years ago I used to see people eating entire meals as they walked around the Knob Hill on Landsdowne, ripping open packages of food as they went and dumping what they couldn't consume.
 
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