Canada news

Costco’s fourth quarter results revealed a strong finish to the year with total revenue exceeding $220 bn. We look at the factors underlying this performance and what to expect in the year ahead. Fourth quarter and full year key numbers Q4 total revenue up 15.2% to $70.8 bn, with full year revenue up 16% to $222.7 bn Comparable sales for the quarter (ex-fuel and currency impacts) up 1...

In June, Sobeys’ parent company, Empire Company Limited, became co-owner of Scene+, an established loyalty programme in Canada. With a plan to transform it into one of the country’s leading loyalty programmes, the retailer has embarked on national roll-out. We look at how it’s launching the programme in-store in western Canada. National roll-out to be completed by early 2023 Sobeys commence...

We review Sobeys’ first quarter performance and the outlook for the year ahead as it continues to advance its ecommerce, value and loyalty initiatives. Q1 key numbers Total sales increased 4.1% to $7,938m Same-store sales, ex-fuel, increased 0.4% Excluding fuel, gross margin increased 63 basis points Net earnings flat (-$1.0m) Final year of Project Horizon The retailer s...

Following a successful pilot, Walmart Canada is planning a nationwide roll out of its AI (Artificial Intelligence) solution for on-shelf availability. Technology will reduce out-of-stocks The technology was developed by Focal Systems, a San Francisco based company that specialises in retail automation. It uses a network of shelf-edge cameras to automatically detect availability issues (e.g....

Save-On-Foods is Canada’s fifth-largest grocery retailer, predominantly operating almost 190 supermarkets across four western provinces. This month it opened a flagship store, featuring a contemporary new look and feel and multiple new product features. We visited this store pre-opening to see how the retailer is setting a new benchmark for retailing in Canada. A new look flagship This stor...

Last month, Walmart announced it had lowered its projected sales for Q2 and the rest of 2022 . Net sales were expected to be up by around 7.5% for the quarter, with US comp store sales expected to be up around 6%, but itsQ2 results surpassed its expectations. However, its gross profit continues to face pressure from higher-than-usual levels of mark down activity, which it has employed to cl...

We review Amazon’s second quarter results and the outlook for the year ahead as it continues to take costs out of the business. Q2 key numbers Total net sales increased 7.2% to $121,234m Net product sales decreased 2.5% to $56,675m Net service sales increased 17.4% to $64,659m Operating income fell from $7,702m to $3,317m year-on-year Net income fell to -$2,028m, compared to ...

We review Loblaw’s Q2 performance as more shoppers visited its discount stores, and the outlook for the second half of the year as it expects inflation to moderate. Q2 key numbers Total revenue increased 2.9% to $12,847m Retail segment sales increased 2.8% to $12,623m, with food up 1.2% and drug up 7.0% Food retail same-stores sales increased 0.9%, with drug retail same-store sales...

Against a backdrop of high food inflation, Walmart expects profits to be lower in the second quarter and for the full year. This is mainly due to pricing actions to clear slow-selling general merchandise items as shoppers cut back on discretionary spending.  Food inflation limiting discretionary spend The retailer is seeing double digit food inflation, which is impacting the ability of its ...

Dealing with record high inflation is a priority for suppliers in most geographies. Over the last quarter, many have seen energy and raw material costs soar. We look at the expectations of some of North America’s leading global suppliers to assess where they think inflation is headed next and some of the key things they’re watching for. Key takeaways Cost of goods inflation was higher in...