Canadian Retail Thread

[MolsonExport]

Galen Weston is definitely not a Teddy Bear. A Dweeby Duck, perhaps.

Jim Pattison is a legend in BC. Back in 1997, I opened a big retailing outlet that stood on one of his former car dearlerships (BOWMAC motors, on West Broadway). JP was there for the ribbon -cutting. No doubt he is very philanthropic.

He was notorious though, for his "rank and yank system", firing the lowest-performing sales people at his car dealerships. I understand that he is quite religious. Apparently he also once owned some smut magazines.

Despite being a total dick, I doubt that Galen even has one.

[theman23]

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

I never said they were. But I'm ok with it. The stuff is good quality, the people are nice, and the prices aren't as bad as people think.

Maybe if you only buy fresh fruits and produce, but everything else is a good 30-50% more expensive than the other chains.

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by theman23

Maybe if you only buy fresh fruits and produce, but everything else is a good 30-50% more expensive than the other chains.

Didn't we go through this exercise last year and it was proven false?

We don't buy too much packaged stuff anyway.

[theman23]

I don't recall ever making this specific comparison on the forum, but I doubt it’s false. I spend a decent amount of time grocery shopping - it’s almost a hobby of mine.

EDIT:
Here’s a recent blog post making a comparison between Whole Foods and the other chains. Overall Whole Foods is 36% more expensive than No Frills and 15% more than Save On.
https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/l...ver-bc-6411268

[Wigs]

Originally Posted by esquire

Instead they trot out this CEO dweeb who always appears in ads cosplaying as a simpleton greengrocer:

that's a great line. And yeah, it's clever "would Simpleton Steve (Dimwitted Darrell) try to screw you over? No! Save On Foods now at your local retailer"

[esquire]

^ Thank you, that was a line I could have only written after years of being exposed to MolsonEx's posts

Save On Foods, despite the name, is not cheap. But I will hand it to them, their home delivery service made me a loyal customer during the pandemic and now I'm addicted to the convenience. Damn you Darrell, you got me!!!!

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

I never said they were. But I'm ok with it. The stuff is good quality, the people are nice, and the prices aren't as bad as people think.

Maybe it is different in BC but in Ottawa prices are considerably higher and there is much less local food, particularly in comparison to the Sobey’s subsidiary (Farm Boy) which competes in a lot of the same niches.

I suspect there are supply chain issues that may be specific to Ottawa as there is only one store in Eastern Ontario and 2 in the GTA.. Closest US stores are probably Detroit area. Milk comes from the Waterloo area, for example.

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by esquire

^ Thank you, that was a line I could have only written after years of being exposed to MolsonEx's posts

Save On Foods, despite the name, is not cheap. But I will hand it to them, their home delivery service made me a loyal customer during the pandemic and now I'm addicted to the convenience. Damn you Darrell, you got me!!!!

I like Save-on-Foods for its deli and produce, however I find myself shopping more and more at City Avenue Market in downtown New West. They tend to have the best quality produce, and for some items they’re somewhat cheaper than the chains. I got ground beef there a couple weeks ago for only $4/lb, and it was good quality too.

[harls]

Originally Posted by esquire

^ Thank you, that was a line I could have only written after years of being exposed to MolsonEx's posts

Save On Foods, despite the name, is not cheap. But I will hand it to them, their home delivery service made me a loyal customer during the pandemic and now I'm addicted to the convenience. Damn you Darrell, you got me!!!!

Haha you certainly are channeling some MolsonEx here Mister esquire.

[MolsonExport]

Darrell looks like he loves Donuts.

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by acottawa

Maybe it is different in BC but in Ottawa prices are considerably higher and there is much less local food, particularly in comparison to the Sobey’s subsidiary (Farm Boy) which competes in a lot of the same niches.

I suspect there are supply chain issues that may be specific to Ottawa as there is only one store in Eastern Ontario and 2 in the GTA.. Closest US stores are probably Detroit area. Milk comes from the Waterloo area, for example.

I find with the store I occasionally go to in Burnaby, the prices can be decent for some items but sky-high for others. The hot buffet is a huge ripoff, and they don’t even have a scale nearby to weigh the food. You can find a digital scale hidden at the other end of the store, in the produce area.

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by Loco101

When I think back, the PC products that were for babies and children were branded as "Teddy's Choice" and that's how those bears came into being. The bears were well received so they kind of became mascots for all of the Loblaws owned stores.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvSywckEjvo

I remember eating Teddy’s Choice Alphabet Cookies. The fun was wondering which letters a particular box would include.

[casper]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Darrell looks like he loves Donuts.

Some save-on-foods have a donut machines in the bakery and make donuts from scratch. Those are fantastic. Much better than anything from fast food places named after hockey players.

The Save-On-Foods that don't have the machines have crappy donuts. Perhaps Darrell needs to get on that are elevate the standards of the Save-On-Foods.

[casper]

Originally Posted by esquire

^ Thank you, that was a line I could have only written after years of being exposed to MolsonEx's posts

Save On Foods, despite the name, is not cheap. But I will hand it to them, their home delivery service made me a loyal customer during the pandemic and now I'm addicted to the convenience. Damn you Darrell, you got me!!!!

There is a software company out of Toronto that has this AI system that looks at sale prices, flyer prices, sales volumes and recommends what to put on sale, when and what regular price to use to maximize revenue. Several years ago they started to use that software. Clearly it works.

On the West Coast it is a toss up if Thrifty Foods or Save-On-Foods is the most expensive.

For produce and meat you can sometimes get good deals from the independents. Green houses and growers sell "perfect" produce to the big guys, the product that is out of spec sells at a discount to independents. I for one am ok with my green peppers being smaller that average or my apples being a bit bigger.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by casper

There is a software company out of Toronto that has this AI system that looks at sale prices, flyer prices, sales volumes and recommends what to put on sale, when and what regular price to use to maximize revenue. Several years ago they started to use that software. Clearly it works.

On the West Coast it is a toss up if Thrifty Foods or Save-On-Foods is the most expensive.

Last spring break, we went to BC and did a two week whirlwind trip around Victoria, Vancouver, Whistler and environs. While in Victoria I popped into the James Bay Thrifty Foods to pick up a few items for the hotel... I'm not sure I had ever been to that chain's locations before. Wow is all I can say, it felt like I was shopping in the US at those prices. It's even worse than Save-On Foods.

The names of those chains is pretty ironic... what's next, SUPER MEGA DISCOUNT GROCERY MARKDOWN WAREHOUSE where a loaf of sandwich bread is $8.99?

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by acottawa

Maybe it is different in BC but in Ottawa prices are considerably higher and there is much less local food, particularly in comparison to the Sobey’s subsidiary (Farm Boy) which competes in a lot of the same niches.

I find part of Whole Foods schtick is to be open about where suppliers come from for everything. Some of the same stuff we get at Farmer's markets from medium size (but independent) farms are sold at WF.

[MolsonExport]

He looks overweight, or should I say, overwaitea

[MonctonRad]

I've always considered that the most ironic yet appropriate name possible for a grocery store chain

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

I've always considered that the most ironic yet appropriate name possible for a grocery store chain

Per Wikipedia:

On March 8, 1915, Robert C. Kidd purchased a store at 746 Columbia Street in New Westminster, British Columbia. He developed several innovative merchandising techniques to attract customers, including odd-penny pricing and selling 18 ounces of tea for the price of a pound. The store was soon known as the "over-weight tea" store. When Kidd opened his second store, he called it "Overwaitea"

They closed the last location in 2018, re-opening at Save-On Foods.

Lots of dumb names in that group, including "Price Smart".

[zoomer]

Originally Posted by esquire

Last spring break, we went to BC and did a two week whirlwind trip around Victoria, Vancouver, Whistler and environs. While in Victoria I popped into the James Bay Thrifty Foods to pick up a few items for the hotel... I'm not sure I had ever been to that chain's locations before. Wow is all I can say, it felt like I was shopping in the US at those prices. It's even worse than Save-On Foods.

The names of those chains is pretty ironic... what's next, SUPER MEGA DISCOUNT GROCERY MARKDOWN WAREHOUSE where a loaf of sandwich bread is $8.99?

Depends what you buy at Thrifty Foods - I don’t find the prices too bad, but compared to Superstore or Costco, sure it’s expensive. As I live in downtown Victoria I don’t bother going to the Superstore or Costco here, in fact I’ll gladly pay more not to. I went to each of those locations once last year, and even Superstore was a 40 minute shop because of how big the layout is. My main go to is the Market on Yates where I can literally be in and out in 5 minutes if I’m just picking up a few things for dinner. Plus despite being less than half the size of the Save-On Foods downtown they have a way better selection of the foods I’m interested in. A decent grocery store should excite you about cooking, not leaving you feel like what’s the point of even eating. Save-On Foods is basically like going back into a time to the 1970’s in terms of variety/choice/ethnic foods. I tried to get a jar of harissa there - does not exist. Yet in smaller Market store they have five different types. Quality jam or marmalade - nearly impossible to get in a big chain store. It sucks how expensive it is, but I pay about $10 for a locally made one, because the local stores offer that. Sure I could pay half the price for something terrible, but I’d rather not.

Thrifty Foods was the dominant grocery store by far in Victoria (about 10 stores) until Sobeys took it over and now it’s another chain. Victoria is a market where people support the local independent grocers, probably because they do a good job of making buying food something to look forward to, not endure. Red Barn Market started up in 2002, and they just announced they’re opening yet another location, I think that gives them 8 stores. There’s also Country Grocers, Fairways, Root Cellar, and a bunch of one off independent stores. There is only one Costco, located in the suburb of Langford.