Company type | Public |
---|---|
TSX: MRU | |
Industry | Supermarket |
Founded | 1947Verdun, Quebec, Canada | in
Founder | Rolland Jeanneau |
Headquarters | , Canada |
Number of locations | 953 Grocery Stores 648 Drugstores (2020) |
Areas served | Ontario, Quebec |
Key people | Eric R. La Flèche (President and CEO) [1] François Thibault (Senior Vice President, CFO, Treasurer) [1] |
Brands | Private labels: Selection Irresistibles Super C |
Revenue | |
| |
| |
Total assets |
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Total equity |
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Number of employees | 90,000 (2020) [2] |
Divisions | Food Basics Super C Marché Richelieu Les 5 Saisons Marché Ami The Barn Markets (Operating as "Metro") |
Subsidiaries | Brunet Jean Coutu Group Marché Adonis |
Website | metro.ca corpo.metro.ca |
Metro Inc. is a Canadian food retailer operating in the provinces of Quebec and Ontario. The company is based in Montreal, Quebec, with head office at 11011 Boulevard Maurice-Duplessis. Metro is the third largest grocer in Canada, after Loblaw Companies Limited and Sobeys.
Super C is the discount supermarket division operated in Quebec with 106 stores [3] , averaging 4,000 m2 (43,056 sq ft). In Ontario, Metro has 144 discount [4] supermarkets under the Food Basics banner, which are very similar to the Super C stores. Large Metro stores in Quebec operate under the Metro Plus name. Metro also operates 51 groceries stores [5] under the Marché Richelieu banner.
In November 2007, Metro reported a 9.3% increase in earnings for the fiscal year ending September 29, 2007, making $276.6 million in 2007 compared to $253 million in 2006. [6] In 2011 Metro acquired a majority stake (55.5%) (CAD$153.8 million) in Marché Adonis, one of Quebec's biggest ethnic food retailers specializing in Mediterranean food (Marché Adonis sales CAD$73 million 2011). In a March 2020 press release, Metro announced that it will invest about $420 million within next five years for the construction of a new automated distribution centre for fresh and frozen products, which they hope to open in 2023. [7]
The company was founded in 1947 in Verdun, Quebec, by Rolland Jeanneau. Many independent grocery stores joined the company to form Magasins Lasalle Stores Ltée. In 1952, Magasins Lasalles Stores Ltée change its name to Épiceries Lasalle Groceteria. The company had 43 affiliated grocery stores at the time. In 1955, there were 50 franchised stores and the company had a revenue of $2 million. The company gained fame in 1956 through an advertisement in La Presse for turkeys at 39 cents. That year, mayor Jean Drapeau was already talking about implementing in Montreal a rapid transit system to be called the Montreal Metro. This inspired the company to create a division called Metro. Other grocery stores joined the company bringing its number of stores to 73 in 1957 with revenue of $10 million.
Because of the success of the Metro division, the company renamed itself Metro-Lasalle in 1963. In 1972, Metro-Lasalle changed its name to Metro-Ltée. Metro merged with the Marché Richelieu grocery chain in 1975 to become Groupe Metro-Richelieu Inc in 1976.
In the early 1980s, Metro went through harder times due to fierce competition from Provigo and the recession. Metro merged with Epiciers Unis Inc. and took on the name Metro-Richelieu Inc. (dropping the "Groupe" from its name). During the rest of the 1980s, it fared better and entered the Montreal Stock Exchange in 1986. [8]
Metro suffered from the early 1990s recession. A restructuring plan was established and changes were brought in the management team. Metro acquired 48 of 112 Steinberg supermarkets when that company went bankrupt in 1992. These stores were rebranded as Super C and Metro stores. Metro entered the Toronto Stock Exchange in 1993. It acquired Loeb Stores from Loblaws in 1999. The Metro Plus banner was established in the early 2000s. Some of the stores were converted to Super C, while others continued to operate as Loeb. The Super C stores in Ontario were converted to Food Basics. In 2009, the company converted all Loeb stores to Metro. [9]
On July 19, 2005, after beating out Sobeys in a bidding war, Metro announced that it had reached an agreement with The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, Inc. and its subsidiary, A&P Luxembourg S.à.r.l., to acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of A&P Canada, for an acquisition price of $1.7 billion, consisting of $1.2 billion in cash and $500 million in the form of treasury shares of Metro. [10] While the all-cash offer made by Sobeys was reportedly a higher bid than Metro's, it was suggested that the Sobey family was unwilling to cede any control to the Tengelmann Group, the ultimate parent company of A&P at the time. Though Sobeys remained the second largest grocery chain in Canada overall, it was a distant third-place in most of the provinces outside the Atlantic region, particularly Ontario where it was looking to bolster its weak position. A&P Canada was the second-largest grocery chain in Ontario after Loblaws, so Metro's takeover effectively vaulted it to a strong market position there where it previously had no presence. [11] The acquisition of A&P Canada was completed on August 15, 2005, with Metro having a network in Quebec and Ontario of 573 full-service and discount food supermarkets, and 256 pharmacies. [12]
On August 7, 2008, Metro announced it would invest $200 million consolidating the company's conventional food stores under the Metro banner. [13] Over a period of 15 months, all Dominion, A&P, Loeb, the Barn, and Ultra Food & Drug banners were converted to the Metro name. Food Basics stores were not affected as it competes in the discount food segment.
Metro now holds the second largest market share in the food distribution and retailing business in Quebec and Ontario with nearly $11 billion in sales and more than 65,000 employees. Its stores operate under the banners Metro, Metro Plus, Super C, Food Basics, Marché Ami, Les 5 Saisons and Marché Adonis. [14] Its pharmacies operate under the banners Brunet, The Pharmacy, Clini-Plus, and Drug Basics.
In 2017, Metro acquired Canadian meal kit service, Miss Fresh. [15]
In May 2018, Metro closed a $4.5 billion (CAD) acquisition of the Quebec drug chain Jean Coutu Group, making it one of Canada’s largest retailers and distributors of food and drugs. [16]
On July 29 2023, front-line grocery store workers represented by Unifor rejected a tentative collective agreement and took strike action at 27 Greater Toronto Area stores. The union's priorities include job precarity, job quality, wages and cost of living. The company reported high profits and earnings in its third quarter report. [17] [18] [19] The strike ended a month later, with all workers getting $1.50/hr increase immediately and full-time and senior part-time workers getting an additional $0.50/hr increase in January 2024. [20]
Stores under the Metro and Metro Plus banners offer one of the following loyalty programs:
In spring 2015, Metro agreed to drop its exclusivity on the Air Miles program in Ontario; as a result, Sobeys stores throughout that province now offer Air Miles rewards in parallel with Metro. [24] However, Sobeys (which now also owns Safeway Canada) did not reciprocate, and Metro continues to be unable to offer Air Miles in either Quebec or Thunder Bay.
Members of the board of directors of Metro Inc. are: Réal Raymond (Chair), Marc Guay (Administrateur), Maryse Bertrand, François J. Coutu, Michel Coutu, Stephanie Coyles, Marc DeSerres, Claude Dussault, Russell Goodman, Christian W.E. Haub, Eric R. La Flèche, Christine Magee, Marie-José Nadeau, and Line Rivard. [25]
131 locations: [26]
197 Metro locations: [27]
120 Metro Plus locations: [28]
328 total
Loeb was a Canadian supermarket chain. Founded in Ottawa, Ontario, Loeb expanded across Canada, and into parts of the United States. The company was acquired by the Quebec-based supermarket chain Metro in 1999, and its stores were converted to the Metro brand in 2008.
Sobeys Inc. is a national supermarket chain in Canada with over 1,500 stores operating under a variety of banners. Headquartered in Stellarton, Nova Scotia, it operates stores in all ten provinces and accumulated sales of more than C$25.1 billion in the fiscal 2019 operating year. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Empire Company Limited, a Canadian business conglomerate.
Dominion was a national chain of supermarkets in Canada, which was known as the Dominion of Canada when the chain was founded. The chain was founded in 1919 in Ontario and was later acquired by the Argus Corporation. It was later sold to The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company (A&P), which restricted the chain to the Greater Toronto Area. Stores outside Ontario were converted to the A&P banner or sold to third parties. A&P's Canadian division was later acquired by Metro Inc., which rebranded the remaining Dominion stores to its namesake banner in 2008.
The Jean Coutu Group (PJC) Inc. is a Canadian drugstore chain headquartered in Varennes, Quebec. It has more than 400 franchised locations in New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec under the PJC Jean Coutu, PJC Clinique, and PJC Santé banners. The company was once the third largest distributor and retailer of pharmaceuticals and related products in North America, with nearly 2,200 drug stores. Its American stores have been sold to Rite Aid.
Empire Company Limited is a Canadian conglomerate engaged mostly in food retail and corporate investments. Founded in 1963, the company is headquartered in Stellarton, Nova Scotia and owns the Sobeys supermarket chain. In total, the company owns, affiliates or franchises more than 1,500 stores; in addition to Sobeys, brands include Safeway, IGA, Foodland, Farm Boy, FreshCo, Thrifty Foods and Lawtons Drug.
IGA, Inc., is an Australian/American voluntary chain of grocery stores that operates in more than 41 countries. Unlike the chain store business model, IGA operates as a franchise through stores that are owned separately from the brand. Many of these stores operate in small-town markets and belong to families that manage them. It was founded in the United States as the Independent Grocers Alliance in 1926. The headquarters is in Chicago, Illinois.
A&P Canada Company was a Canadian supermarket company that operated from 1927 until 2009, when its stores were rebranded under the Metro name by Metro Inc.
Food Basics Ltd. is a Canadian supermarket chain owned by Metro Inc. The company operates 142 stores throughout Ontario.
Steinberg's was a large family-owned Canadian grocery store chain that mainly operated in the province of Quebec and later Ontario. In addition to its flagship supermarket chain, the company operated several subsidiaries across the country. The company went bankrupt in 1992, three years after being sold to private interests, after 75 years in business.
A warehouse store or warehouse supermarket is a food and grocery retailer that operates stores geared toward offering deeper discounted prices than a traditional supermarket. These stores offer a no-frills experience and warehouse shelving stocked well with merchandise intended to move at higher volumes. Unlike warehouse clubs, warehouse stores do not require a membership or membership fees. Warehouse stores can also offer a selection of merchandise sold in bulk. Typically, warehouse stores are laid out in a logical format; this leads customers in a certain way around the store to the checkout. For example, as one enters the store they are directed down an aisle of discounted products. From there the layout could then lead to the fresh produce department, followed by the deli and bakery departments at the back of the store. Often, certain customer service niceties, like the bagging of groceries, are not done by store employees; this helps reduce overall cost. Many warehouse stores are operated by traditional grocery chains both as a way to attract lower income, value conscious consumers and to maximize their buying power in order to lower costs at their mainstream stores.
Provigo is a grocery retailer based in Quebec, Canada, consisting of over 300 stores and franchises throughout the province. It operates a retailing chain of stores and distribution warehouses. It is owned by Loblaw Companies Limited.
FreshCo Ltd. is a Canadian chain of discount supermarkets owned by Sobeys. It was launched in March 2010. As of September 2023, there were 100 FreshCo stores.
Super C is a Quebecois discount supermarket chain with 101 stores in Quebec. The stores average 4,103 square metres (44,164 sq ft) in size. Super C offers 8,000 products including some 1,200 products from the Super C private label brand.
Ultra Food & Drug was a supermarket and drug store chain in Ontario, Canada from the 1980s to 2008.
Food Basics was a no-frills discount supermarket chain owned and operated by The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company in the northeastern United States.
Longo Brothers Fruit Markets Inc., commonly known as Longo's, is a Canadian chain of retail supermarkets and grocery delivery service that serves the Southern Ontario area. It is controlled by Sobeys parent Empire Company in partnership with the founding Longo family. Its corporate office is located in Vaughan, Ontario, and it operates locations mainly in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area.
Target Canada Co. was the Canadian subsidiary of the Target Corporation, the eighth-largest retailer in the United States. Formerly headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, the subsidiary formed with the acquisition of Zellers store leases from the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) in January 2011. Target Canada opened its first store in March 2013, and by January 2015 was operating 133 locations throughout Canada. Its main competition included Walmart Canada, Loblaws, Shoppers Drug Mart, and Canadian Tire.
Safeway is a Canadian supermarket chain of 135 full service supermarket stores mostly operating in the western provinces in Canada. It was established in 1929 as a subsidiary of the American Safeway Inc., before being sold in 2013 to Canada's second-largest supermarket chain, Sobeys, a division of the conglomerate Empire Company. Independent since 2013 from the American company it continues to use the same Safeway name and logo as of May 2023.
Marché Adonis is a supermarket chain operating in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario. The company is based in Montreal, Quebec. In 2011, Metro Inc. acquired a majority stake (55.5%) in Marché Adonis.
Metro made a significant move this year by acquiring Miss Fresh, and many expect other grocers to follow suit.