Tuscani01
Senior Member
Loblaws has revealed a refresh of the Superstore:
Looks like they are trying to be Walmart.
Looks like they are trying to be Walmart.
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Northern Light
Superstar
Superstore in Western Canada (which is really what Loblaws is out there, for the most part) has been a large general merchandise mover for a long time.
They brought the concept to Toronto........what? 25 years or more ago now..............
It frankly under performed and the program stalled.
It wasn't their first attempt either, there was a previous move to bring the concept maybe 40 years ago, which can be seen in the soon-to-be-redeveloped Golden Mile location that currently houses No Frills.
The actual 'Super Centre' was much larger, when it first opened, with additional offerings being Consumer Distributing, Bulk Barn a Food Court, and a few other odds n' sodz.
That went so well that the store was cut by at least 1/2 and the GM section became Zellers, later a Dollar store and a gym among other things.
I imagine the concept will continue to work out west and in portions of Atlantic Canada where its well established.
I'm less convinced of their ability to make a go of it in the GTA.
Its an extremely large footprint.
That's expensive and high risk.
Additionally, if you think of Wal-Mart as the competitor, look how few Walmart-Super Centres (with grocery) have been done in Toronto proper.
The land economics are just tough for that.
Maybe they''ll make a handful of them work as quasi-tourist attractions..........but I'm not holding my breath.
Towered
Superstar
I'm genuinely stunned, because:
1) There's a much bigger, better, nicer, and flashier Loblaws literally a 5 minute drive from this one (at Dundas and Scarlett);
2) I assumed they weren't going to bother investing much into the Humbertown store because of the redevelopment proposal.
torontowest91
Active Member
im here for it - a nicer walmart - love it! Miss the target days.
Northern Light
Superstar
In general, the program is to be rolled out to all Loblaws and City Market locations nation-wide, with some regional tweaks.
There are exceptions for stores expected to redeveloped in the near term, as well as those that may be rebannered (liked to No Frills)
Future phases of the redevelopment have been deferred indefinitely, last I heard. So the current residential builds will finish up, the remaining plaza stays, but with a comprehensive refresh.
Towered
Superstar
Does that include Zehrs stores?
Northern Light
Superstar
I'd have to inquire about those plans........I'm sure Zehr's stores will be getting re-fresh'es......
But I don't think they're getting the halloween colour scheme.
But LBL comingles so much stuff...
They're really into testing out Fortino's concepts in Loblaws branded stores at the moment.
Towered
Superstar
"comingle"...I had to look that up!
officedweller
Senior Member
Looks too much like a Shoppers Drug Mart, but the story really just shows the lifestyle areas.
The Vancouver Real Canadian Superstores seem to have scaled back the general merchandise selections in recent years.
A lot less hardware and home items. Still a lot of kitchen/baking stuff, Joe Fresh clothing and seasonal items (Christmas and summer BBQ).
There was a major change in the store look and feel when the Real Canadian Superstores changed from a green and yellow logo / colour scheme to a red, white and blue logo / colour scheme maybe 10 years ago (?).
That change may have been to avoid confusion with Sobey's.
In BC, Sobey's is represented by Safeway (red & white), Thrifty's (green) and maybe one or 2 FreshCos.
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ShonTron
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I remember the old SuperStore concept: there was one in Brampton at Queen & 410 that is also half the size and converted to No Frills. I don’t remember the Consumers Distributing part of it, but it definitely had general merchandise and a giant pharmacy area in an era when that was a novelty in a grocery store.
The stores had an angled, corrugated steel facade that can still be a giveaway today.
The Real Canadian Superstore at Hurontario and Steeles in Brampton was recently converted into a “No Frills Plus” store. I don’t know what actually changed, though.
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