The Great Wall of Cheese will be no more, as Richmond’s grocery store carousel continues to spin, with Loblaws City Market confirming it will be leaving its location at Shellmont, near Ironwood Plaza.
“We can confirm the Loblaws City Market store located at 12339 Steveston Hwy. in Richmond, BC will be closed Feb. 3,” stated Karen Gumbs, director of public relations for Loblaw Companies Ltd.
“The decision to close the store was not an easy one as we value our customers and employees there. We recognize the important role the store has played. Unfortunately, the store has remained unprofitable and we don’t expect that to turn around. For the employees of the store, we are committed to fairness. We have provided significant notice and severance to help with the transition,” stated Gumbs, via email to the Richmond News.
The store opened in The Gardens development with great fanfare in October, 2014. Customers raved particularly about specialty products, prepared meals in the deli and a 3.5-metre-high refrigerated cooler of more than 300 cheeses.
At the time Derrick Pittman, Loblaws vice-president stated: “We’ve seen a real excitement growing around fresh foods from our Lower Mainland customers and we’re responding to that enthusiasm by bringing specialty offerings, superior premium foods and a team of colleagues with a strong knowledge of food.”
There are unconfirmed rumours a Thrifty’s may take the place of City Market. Thrifty’s parent company Sobeys did not respond to the Richmond News’ inquiries.
Grocers are facing stiff competition these days, vying for customer dollars, according to Canada’s Food Price Report 2018, published Wednesday from Dalhousie University.
“Food prices are being kept artificially low due to the aggressive discounting practices of the major Canadian food retailers,” said Paul Uys, report co-author, citing increased competition from large distributors, including Walmart and Amazon, which purchased Whole Foods.
“But the aggressive discounting strategies being employed by major supermarket retailers cannot continue indefinitely.”
The report noted increased competition from pop-up farmers markets and ready-to-eat food alternatives are also affecting the industry.
Loblaws had to compete with nearby Ironwood Plaza Save-On Foods, which recently began online shopping and delivery. It also had to compete with two local farm markets, and the recent opening of Bulk Barn.
Earlier this year, T & T Supermarket announced it would be opening its third store, in Lansdowne Centre.
