Real Canadian Superstore

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Real Canadian Superstore ^[1] (often shortened to RCSS or "Superstore") is a chain of hypermarkets owned by Canadian food retailing giant Loblaw Companies. Originating in Western Canada, the banner has recently begun expansion into Ontario as Loblaw attempts to fend off competition from department stores including U.S.-based Wal-Mart.

1 Overview
2 History
3 Footnotes
4 External links

[edit] Overview

The Real Canadian Superstore in Calgary, Alberta, on Macleod Trail, near Southland Dr.

Edmonton, Alberta, Inside the Clareview Superstore.

The stores carry a variety of goods; like Fred Meyer or Wal-Mart Supercenters, but the vast majority of space is devoted to groceries and about a third of each store is set aside for electronics, housewares, and clothing. Items in the latter two categories are mainly from Loblaw's private labels, such as President's Choice, Life at Home, or Joe Fresh. As with many Loblaw stores, they offer corporate-branded services such as PhotoLab photo finishing and DrugStore pharmacies. Many outlets also boast a GoodLife Fitness club, drive-through pharmacies, gas bars, photo studios, community rooms, as well as walk-in medical clinics managed by Primacy Medical.

Loblaws is working to cut costs and compete effectively with this multi-format store. Each store has a common layout, useful for both cost efficiency and shopper ease. Also, in an effort to cater to individual customer segments, RCSS buys specific products for different regions. Superstore locations now top 150,000 square feet.

In the west, Superstores are operated by Loblaw subsidiary Westfair Foods Ltd. Ontario stores are operated as part of Loblaw's other banners, including Loblaws and Zehrs, although Superstore is considered a separate chain, and prices at one chain may not apply at the other. Loblaw as a whole is in the process of centralizing their head office operations, which includes the relocation of the General Merchandise personnel from Calgary, Alberta to Brampton, Ontario to consolidate Loblaw's operations.

There are currently no RCSS locations as such in Atlantic Canada or Quebec. However, the chain has recently adopted a secondary brand, "One Stop / Un seul arrêt", which has been also used by several larger locations of other Loblaw banners, particularly Atlantic Superstore in the Maritimes, Dominion in Newfoundland and Labrador, Maxi and Co. and Loblaws in Quebec, and, to a lesser extent, Loblaws and Zehrs in Ontario. In all cases these stores stock a similar mix of food and general merchandise. It is presumed that the large Ontario stores will eventually come under the RCSS banner; the future status of the other stores is unknown.

In Alberta, where private liquor retailing is permitted, a chain of 28 Real Canadian Liquorstores operate, mostly near Real Canadian Superstores in that province.

As with Loblaws stores, employees of the Real Canadian Superstore are members of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union.

[edit] History

Logo currently used at most Western Canada locations. The logo was used in Ontario initially but was soon replaced. New locations in the west now also use the logo shown at top.

The first Real Canadian Superstore location opened in March of 1979 in a former Loblaws location in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan under the name SuperValu. Numerous other SuperValu locations opened across Western Canada before most gradually expanded into Superstore sites; the SuperValu name had all but disappeared by the mid-1990s, although the name is still in use on four Atlantic SuperValu locations in the Maritimes. Today there are more than 66 Superstore locations in Western Canada with a total of 72 by the end of 2006.

In the early 2000s, Loblaw announced it would bring the Superstore banner to Ontario as a response to the introduction of large grocery sections in most Canadian Wal-Mart stores and other department stores, as well as a pre-emptive strike against any plans by Wal-Mart to bring its "Supercenter" format to Canada. Originally, Ontario stores were co-branded with the local Loblaw banner (i.e. "Loblaws - The Real Canadian Superstore"), but this was quickly shortened to reduce confusion and allow separate weekly specials for each chain.

Despite heavy criticism from historical groups such as Friends of Maple Leaf Gardens, the former home of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Maple Leaf Gardens, is presently being converted into a Real Canadian Superstore which will open in 2007.

In early July 2005, a store in Coquitlam, BC sold Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to 14 customers before the release date. Raincoast Books, the book’s publisher had a court-ordered injunction set which required anyone in possession of the book to return it to the retailer. In return, they would receive their books at 12:01AM on its release date, and a limited edition autograph bookplate for their honesty.