Loblaw piloting ultra-discount No Name grocery stores in Ontario

Loblaw is piloting a new ultra-discount grocery store in Ontario that promises to deliver even lower prices by stripping away even more frills.

Loblaw is piloting a new ultra-discount grocery store in Ontario that promises to deliver even lower prices by stripping away even more frills.

The first three No Name stores will open in September in Windsor, St. Catharines and Brockville, capitalizing on Loblaw’s existing discount brand known for its simplified, bright-yellow packaging and marketing.

“The No Name store is a completely different shopping experience,” Loblaw president and CEO Per Bank said in an interview.

“Running a traditional grocery store can be expensive, but by reducing our building and operating costs, as well as the overall complexity of the store, we do believe that we can deliver meaningful savings.”

It’s the latest discount concept launched by the grocer, after opening smaller-format versions of its No Frills discount banner earlier this year.

Discount grocery stores have been driving sales growth for all of Canada’s major grocers as shoppers hunt for deals to keep a lid on their grocery bills.

Loblaw has been investing in its discount store network by opening new stores and converting others. The company and the industry as a whole have been under pressure from consumers and politicians to stabilize or lower food prices after a bout of inflation left grocery costs more than 20 per cent higher over three years.

The No Name stores will be less complicated to run, the company says — in part because they will have less variety with about 1,300 individual products, compared with up to 7,000 products at the smaller-format No Frills locations.