Sobeys is one of the major food retailers in Canada. In fact, it is the second leading food retailer in the country, operating more than 1,300 grocery stores and supermarkets under several banners.
History
Sobeys was established in 1907, in Stellarton, in the province of Nova Scotia. The company’s founder, John W. Sobey, created Sobeys originally as a business engaged in meat delivery.
In 1924, John Sobey’s son Frank, convinced him to convert the company into a full grocery store business which served the region of Pictou County. When the Sobeys started their grocery business, Frank Sobey became the business’ driving force. In 1949, the company opened its self-serve supermarket.
After a few years, the company was able to expand to Atlantic Canada. Sobeys became one of the region’s most dominant grocers in the later part of the 20th century. Sobeys was able to expand to the region of southern Ontario by the 1980s. During that time, Sobeys challenged retail giant Loblaws, which ignited a battle for market domination in the country.
By 1998, Sobeys had become the second largest grocery store chain in the whole of Canada, especially when it acquired The Oshawa Group. This company was IGA Canada’s franchise owner. Aside from the Oshawa Group, Sobeys was also able to acquire some regional chains in the area of Ontario, as well as some wholesale companies and food service companies.
In 2001, Sobeys discarded a $90M investment that it engaged in because of unsuccessful project management. A year after, the company embarked on a major change in both the stores’ design and policies on customer service. With the stores’ new slogan “Ready to Serve,” Sobeys acted to emphasize the importance of customer service over low prices.
In September of 2006, the company introduced a re-vamped website, a new slogan and a new campaign in advertising. A year after, the company took over, Thrifty Foods, a chain of grocery stores based in British Columbia.
As of 2011, Sobeys has more than 1,300 stores all overCanada. The company also signed a distribution agreement with giant American retailer Target. This long-term agreement involved Sobeys supplying select grocery and food products to Target’s yet-to-be-opened stores in Canada. Currently, Sobeys is a subsidiary company of the Empire Company.
Headquarters: Stellarton, Nova Scotia
Ownership Type: A subsidiary of Empire Company
Employees: 85,000 (as of 2009)
Geography:Canada
Demography: Retail product consumers
Brands
Compliments, Gourmet Minute, Signal
Important links
Sobeys Corporate Home Page
Promotions and Coupons
Products
Jobs and Careers
Sobeys Contact Information
Hello from Nanaimo, Vancouver island.
A note to say how extremely disappointed I am as well as far too many shoppers that the products we all used to buy are slowly disappearing. New brands, low in quantity and higher in price. Not too mention far too many times I get home only to find the expiration date is well passed!! Today I bought an item and it expired Feb 2019.
Most of all the long time good staff members (persons at the till) have moved on as they were fed up as well. The newer staff are not efficient and quite clueless as to many things in the store which says not trained properly.,
I among many others that I have spoken to in this store at Longwood, Nanaimo, will not be shopping there anymore. Fed up.
We love our Foodland grocery store because they carry what we want to buy. Clean. Courteous. Helpful.
My problem is with Complements’ Thompson Raisins. The second ingredient is ‘Palm Oil’. This is a major reason that we are losing our rainforests!
The world needs the rainforests to help with the Carbon Dioxide problem.
Please use a different oil instead!
We shop at the Foodland in Wiarton,On. and were hoping to pick up some strip loin steaks at $6.99/lb., as advertised in your flyer ( thru’ Reebee). The promo bunk displayed a price of $7.99/lb. for this item, so I enquired at the butchery counter about this discrepancy, and was advised that this was a corporate Sobeys decision, and the local store staff were pretty irate about it, as they had to handle all the customer complaints about it. I gather the Foodland in Owen Sound was selling strip loin at the advertised price.
Sobeys/ Empire must realize that this is a rather sleazy way to treat customers, especially when one pays a hefty premium to shop at your stores, in comparison to others such as No Frills et al. I trust that we will not be price-gouged again and you will respect advertised flyer pricing in future.
I live in Uxbridge,On. I shopped for years at IGA in Port Perry, then at Sobeys, who closed leaving me with Pt.Perry & Mount Albert stores. I arranged to have the local flyer
sent to me each week which was done adn I received it on the Wed/Thur. prior to its start. I am now getting it on the Thurs. of the week it expires. Since I shop every Friday. It’s useless, so please cancel I am getting one now from Independant Grocer & Zehrs on time to be of use, Too bad the $140.wk I spend tpo feed 5 of us is gone . I used to love shopping at IGA, Sobeys (who left me with a point card I can’t us) and Foodland who appear not to want my business, so save the postage. Thank you.
I find your prices at your foodbasic store in lindsay ont are ripping off the public shopper the prices are the same for a lesser amount of product for instant select cheeseand other items i am not going to shop there anymore i am going to spread the word rippoff to consumers on line and facebook your prices use to be good now its a crime to the public shopper to gouge are wallets thanks im going to shop at no thrills thank