Quote:
Originally Posted by roccerfeller
If there was a downtown grocer in Edmonton, then I would question why not one in Winnipeg. That Save On location there, the geographical proximity makes a significant difference for sure.
If a more downtown-core grocer pops up there then I would say "why not Winnipeg" - but if the closest thing to it already failed then I would question how high the population needs to be to support that business model. Circa 2016, it looks like downtown Edmonton was between 12k-13k, and downtown Winnipeg between 16k-17k in terms of what each city was reporting as "downtown population"...both neighbourhoods were within their defined "downtown" areas
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You'd be right to suggest "why not", if we had today's population 4-5 years ago. Now it's not a question of our population or our downtown, but the national market.
Quote:
Originally Posted by buzzg
I've long said downtown doesn't need a suburban-size grocer, but a small footprint version would be good... my tune is starting to change even on that. Because of the growing availability for grocery delivery, you can get pretty much everything you need delivered at little-to-no cost. I already do that and I live in Norwood.
Where you may lose out is on higher-end or specialty items that either aren't offered at big grocers, or aren't available online due to stock – and you would go to an (independent) specialty store. I have some fears that if a Superstore or Sobeys were to open downtown, it would kill the potential business of some specialty or small shops opening, as well as convenience stores. While there aren't any 7-11s downtown, there's actually quite a few independent convenience stores that do a decent business, they're just often tucked away.
Apparently there's a specialty food store/grocer opening on McDermot soon (former Paperdoll) – if a major grocer opened, it could kill them. Get your big groceries by delivery and allow these small shops (the long-sought mystical deli) to open and thrive.
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If a small store was an option it would be there, and you can be guaranteed that this approach was tried. It wasn't about getting the size right, but getting the time right, and that time isn't right for nearly any grocer in any downtown in Canada these days. Getting the right product means little if the market isn't hospitable.
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