Winnipeg’s grocery war is getting triple-threat combatant.
Save-On-Foods is preparing to open three stores on the same day this fall. The Vancouver-based grocer is moving into a former Future Shop location in the Polo Park area, a former Zellers outlet in north Winnipeg and a new building in the budding neighbourhood of Bridgwater.
“You have to have the best grocery store in the marketplace,” said company president Darrell Jones.
“Value is more than just price, it’s having the offering and the mix that customers want. We’d like to bring some things Winnipeggers haven’t seen before,” he said. That includes perogy machines, making your own flat bread and in-store made sausages.
Moving into the 35,000-square-foot Future Shop building will provide a boost to the Polo Park area, which was rocked by the departures of the electronics retailer and an 110,000-square-foot Target store within weeks of each other last spring. (A spokesman for Shindico Realty said there is still no new tenant for the old Target store.)
John Prall, Winnipeg-based vice-president of retail services for Colliers International, who leased out the Future Shop space, said he and neighbouring businesses are looking forward to the arrival of Save-On-Foods. “They’re a great anchor to replace Future Shop. Now we’ll have a whole different customer group and different demographic [shopping there],” he said.
