31 Facts About Sobeys

Sobeys Inc is the second largest supermarket chain in Canada, with over 1,500 stores operating across Canada under a variety of banners.

Sobeys was founded in Stellarton, Nova Scotia by John W Sobey in 1907 as a meat delivery business.

Sobeys had significant stakes in New England grocer Hannaford, Quebec grocer Provigo, and US wholesaler Nash Finch Company until the 1990s.

In 1998, Sobeys became the second-largest grocer in the country after purchasing the Oshawa Group, owners of the IGA franchise across Canada, along with several regional chains in Ontario, in addition to various food service and wholesale companies.

In 2002, Sobeys undertook major changes in its store design and customer service policies with the introduction of "Ready to serve".

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The all-cash offer made by Sobeys was reportedly the highest bid for the chain, but the US parent, The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, ultimately accepted Metro's $1.

In 2007, Sobeys announced a $253 million takeover offer for the Thrifty Foods chain in British Columbia.

In March 2012, Sobeys acquired 236 Shell gas station locations in Quebec and Atlantic Canada.

In June 2013, Sobeys announced the purchase of Safeway's Canadian operations for $5.

Sobeys sold 29 of its locations, which included 18 Safeway stores.

In June 2014, Sobeys announced that it would, in the wake of the Safeway purchase, close 50 of its "underperforming" locations.

In 2015, Sobeys acquired certain assets and select liabilities of Co-op Atlantic.

The Financial Post reported that changes made by Sobeys, including the discontinuation of its popular loyalty program, the replacement of Safeway's house brands with Sobeys' brands, reports of poorly stocked inventories at Safeway locations, had impacted the chain's customer loyalty.

In January 2018, Sobeys announced an agreement with Ocado to open an e-commerce grocery fulfilment centre in Toronto during late 2020.

In contrast, Sobeys-owned Thrifty Foods and IGA use their stores as fulfilment centres for online orders.

In late January 2018, Sobeys announced that it would, in the wake of the Safeway purchase, close an additional 10 of its "underperforming" locations.

In July 2019, Sobeys announced it will be switching from plastic to paper grocery bags in all its stores by the end of 2020.

Sobeys has reportedly made unsuccessful attempts to purchase the MarketPlace chain.

In June 2013, Sobeys announced its intent to acquire Safeway's Canadian stores for $5.

Sobeys operates the smaller grocery store Foodland chain, mainly in rural areas of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Ontario.

Sobeys operates Thrifty Foods, a chain of 26 grocery stores with an online grocery service based in Victoria, British Columbia.

In November 2013, Sobeys unveiled its first "Sobeys Extra" store in Burlington, Ontario.

Company owns the Needs, Sobeys Express, and BoniChoix convenience store chains, and the Lawtons drug store chain in Atlantic Canada.

Sobeys delivers products to retail outlets, such as convenience stores and gas stations, throughout Atlantic Canada.

Sobeys Express stores feature produce and take-out meals alongside items commonly found in convenience stores.

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When Sobeys became an Air Miles partner, its partnership was restricted to Quebec and Atlantic Canada—the same territory rights held by Oshawa Group prior to its acquisition by Sobeys in 1998.

Club Sobeys was a loyalty program at the chain's Atlantic Canada locations offered during the 1990s, prior to Sobeys securing the regional rights to Air Miles through the Oshawa Group merger.

In early 2015, Sobeys announced that the Air Miles loyalty program would be extended into Ontario on March 27,2015, replacing the Club Sobeys loyalty program.

Michael Medline, CEO of Empire and Sobeys, said that the online grocery sales business would not be ready for approximately two years, and that he expected it to take another two years for the business to be profitable.

Sobeys is based in Stellarton, Nova Scotia and has 27 distribution centres in Canada.

Sobeys conglomerate is owned by Empire Company Limited, which is controlled by the Sobey family.