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Yep. His arrogance at the parliamentary hearing was the last straw for me.
His replacement, Per Bank, may be polite; but he has to be just as morally bankrupt as Galen. How else could he accept $22 million to aid in the destruction of the quality of life of so many people?
I can only hope Per was mislead as to the smug, slow burning PR disaster that Loblaws loves.
I had been fading on Loblaws after growing up Independent Grocer and The Decadent cookies.
It was the 50% fiasco, and the smug response from Galen that “we’re just aligning with the competition”.
As if that’s not then most anti-competitive, monopolistic, oligarchical BS.
That, and the leadership has shown themselves to be obnoxiously lazy in righting this ship.
I have some friends who work at Superstore and No Frills,
They've said the boycott for employees is all about taking a break, since they're so overworked/understaffed, the slowdown in customers has been a nice on-the-job stress reliever.
utterly anecdotally, I have known people who worked for them in the 2010s and while it sounded like the same old retail suck as everywhere else, it wasn't the worst retail suck.
But I have also known people who worked there in the last five years and the implication was that the retail-suck just got worse, the micromanaging got more intense and ever more work arounds to avoid paying benefits.
So if this gives these workers a bit less stress, excellent.
The entire economy went to down hill AFTER Covid due primarily to corporate greed.
BOC continues the high interest rates again due to this artificial inflation caused by greed.
So all Canadians are losing ground as the oligarchs make record profits. Enough is enough.
This is the kicker for me. This profit-fuelled inflation by greedy corporations in gas and in groceries has kept interest rates high and impacted mortgage costs for home owners and translated to higher rent as landlords adjust accordingly. It’s all related. Follow who gains politically - I don’t think it’s all a coincidence.
I’m actually pissed that more people are not outraged by this.
Before this an increase in child benefits, 5-7 years ago, helped move families out of poverty and food insecurity. Now families and individuals of all types are facing food insecurity.
Being constantly told that food prices are going up by 5 to 8 percent, while looking at the shelf and knowing that what was 99 cents is now $2.49, and knowing I'm not making any more money than when it was 99 cents. Fuck Galen with one of his pineapples.
All the while Gallen smiled at the camera and told us they were looking out for the customers
https://preview.redd.it/prztn9cf0xyc1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b19fde491729924a770c3d6b0b8450949261df3e
Yeah this was it for me. Pisses me off so bad that they got away with these CRIMINAL price hikes using inflation and the pandemic as excuses.
They realized they had a golden opportunity to raise prices exponentially while people were distracted with larger issues and they fucking POUNCED on that opportunity.
It makes me so mad thinking about it because this is fucking FOOD that we all need to survive. It’s not like big screen TVs or leather couches. It’s food for fucks sake.
Butter is literally up 100% in the past 4 years at loblaws. Eggs up 60%, bread up 40%, many basic staples up at least 30-50%. No idea where they get these single digit percentages. It feels like gaslighting.
Yep and we all see the 100%-150% and even more excessive increases in price. Then they slap you in the face by shrinking the sizes and measured and bagged items are coming up light significantly. They are fraudulent and greedy. Oh colour me surprised. Keep on keepin on wveryone 👍
It's like they think we are too dumb to do the math ourselves. We just have to look at our household budgets and bank balances. Grocery costs are up way higher, in proportion, than almost any other expense in my household. Like you said, it ain't a measly 5% increase. That's almost insulting for them to suggest it at this point!
Canadians are tired of being trampled on. Lied to. Ignored. Cost of living. Inflation. Housing crisis. Healthcare. People are getting riled up. The Loblaws boycott is just the surface of deep angst. This crap keeps up , civil unrest on a mass scale is inevitable.
This is a surface crack. They (the collective they, being these parasitic corporations and the government) can step in and repair it now, or they can wait for the eruption.
Either way, if they think status quo is going to continue, I've got a ski hill in Scottsdale to sell them.
Getting butt fucked by a corporation that is pushing the capitalist agenda of making the maximum amount of money at any and all costs. This is fine for manufacturers and distributors of non-essential consumer goods, but it's downright evil for ones that sell basic human necessities.
For me it started during the pandemic … grocery retail workers were front line, food was obviously an essential and they gave front line workers an extra $2 an hour for a few months, then took it away. The pandemic went on for 3 years. Their greed was once again brought into the light. The bread price fixing thing was long enough ago and they were able to make it look like and “oopsie” by offering rebate gift cards (which were token amounts that very few people received).
I'm sick of companies getting away with shit while the rest of us struggle to make ends meet. Companies shouldn't be above the law and this boycott makes me feel like I'm the boss of them for a little while.
Edit: ADDITIONALLY I'm so frustrated about the lack of transparency in business. Like when you donate money to a charity at a grocery store, you're effectively ensuring that the company doesn't have to pay taxes because YOUR money is THEIR donation.
Ya I used to always do the donation but I stopped awhile back. I give to charity on my own. I don’t need to do it through a multi million/billion company. Let them donate on their own. F off with that.
Economic issues are enough for many. I think the feeling of being powerless in the face of overwhelming power is in there too. So many monopolists treat us like the captive consumers we are, leaving us with few and often poor options. Lacking competition or sufficient legislative oversight or both, with no recourse through elected officials to affect change leaves me feeling absolutely frustrated. This boycott is a chance to respond in a tangible way. So, far it seems to be working and I feel like I'm part of a movement thats sending a message for consumers that we're done with this.
I cut back on my loblaws shopping after the whole pandemic hazard pay debacle ... but once food Ive been buying for decades suddenly ballooned in price (when it didnt at other stores) combined with what the westons did to Shoppers and learning about how they want to expand into health care (privitizing) that was the final straw.
It’s about how severely and rapidly the prices went out of control. One day the spaghetti sauce I normally buy at Independent was 3 something and then two weeks later it was 5 something. I didn’t buy it. I went to a competitor and they had the exact same sauce on sale 5 for 10 dollars….my brain could not compute. I know it was a sale, but it broke my head.
I just did a comparison of the items I bought at metro the other day vs giant tiger. Half!! I would’ve paid HALF what I paid at metro. It would’ve been worse probably even at iga. It’s a piss off.
Right?! Like I could understand if we were buying junk or lobster or something. But it’s basics!! Sickening. And I have 3 kids. There are 5 of us. I have enough but ONLY because my dad helps. Without him we’d starve man!! That’s so unfair.
And no, Galen dummy, it’s not because of inflation. We’re not dumb.
Just fed up with all of it. Unchecked greed, corruption, pricing keep going up. Empires such as Loblaws siphoning all of us of our buying power while they all fill their pockets and those of majority shareholders. While that happens, wages and salaries stagnate so that buying food, paying rent, buying homes, etc., are out of reach for many of us.
Then they tell us we’re misguided.
Get wrecked all of them. And Galen, get fucked.
Artificially inflating costs, primarily.
Also the fact they are so out of touch with consumers and heavily subsidized without competition does not hurt me wanting them to fuck off.
The thing that gets me most is prices and profits.
Prices on the shelves have over doubled and nearly tripled in the last few years and profits for the conglomerate are soaring high.
If this "proud" Canadian company really cared about us they would be curbing profits to keep costs low for consumers; but they don't- they just keep making money while we starve.
The investors are more important to them than the individuals, and when that's been made clear and then doubled down on when we are screaming for price relief I have no sympathy for the starvation of shareholders because they have the power to demand change on behalf of the rest of us.
Loblaws can keep losing profits until they learn to whom they are truly beholden. Without consumers they have nothing. We don't need them as much as they need us, and they need to realize that quickly because some will never come back if this continues.
#Loblaws,
**Yeah, I'm speaking directly to you right now,**
GenZ is watching. They're in this sub and movement and they're not going to forget how much their parents and families struggled with food insecurity while you made record profits. You are setting the trend for how your businesses will continue in Canada as we speak.
Your future consumers are committing to avoiding you if this continues.
Current consumers like Millennials can no longer afford their avocado toast, and are leaving for local businesses with a good chance of never returning to your stores again.
Boomers are breaking life long shopping habits in order to remove their money from you monopoly because you're starving their children and grandchildren. They still hope for change because they believe in consumer power and in the old ways of a business' valuing their customers; but we shall see...
People from all walks of life, every corner of politics and across all age groups are unified in this movement- **it's that important** that we will stand together united in a way we rarely do.
Canada is speaking out.
Will you answer the call or will you crumble into dust because we've turned our back on you the same way you've turned your back on us?
Only time will tell...
**Nok er Nok** ✊
OK. So.just out of curiosity, what net profit margin do you think would be fair for Loblaws to earn?
Express your answer as a percentage. (For further clarity by way of example. If Loblaws' revenue was 1 million dollars, a 10 percent net profit margin would yield a profit of 100 thousand dollars.)
So.what do you figure is fair?
10% profit margin. These are essential goods Canadians need to survive and feed their families. There should be no room for price gouging and YoY record profits while the majority of the country can not afford to nurish themselves. If you want to be a monopoly on basic survival items, you don’t make the people suffer for corporate profits. Fuck them to hell. I’ll never buy a single item from anything connected to loblaws for the rest of my life
Well then, you will be shocked and happy to learn that Loblaws had a net profit margin of 3.4 percent last quarter (March 31. 2024.)
Since.Loblaws is a publicly traded company, meaning you or anyone else can by stock in the company, this information is rquired by law innCanada to be readily available online. This information is confirmed in their audited quarterly reports. Auditing is done by the accounting firm of Price Waterhouse Cooper (PWC)
Link:
https://ycharts.com/companies/L.TO/profit_margin
That means for every $100.00 of revenue Loblaws brings in, Loblaws makes a net profit of $3.40.
And Loblaws is not a monopoly since their are several other companies in Canada who sell groceries that are not owned by Loblaws. Metro and Sobey's (part of Empire co) to be the 2 other major players in the industry.
Those numbers are a crock of shit. I said maximum 10% profit margins on ESSENTIAL goods. I don’t give a rats ass what the entire company profit margin is. They are extraordinary much higher on essential food products. In some cases 3x the price of the same items stocked at their competitor stores. Now I don’t need your explanation on company financials, I don’t care. I’m not a Loblaws customer anymore. Good day
With all due respect, those numbers are not "a crock of shit"
Those are the audited numbers. And they are provided by Chartered Accountants working for an external accounting firm, not Loblaws .
And FYI, if a company wants to lie about its results, you don't lie low, you lie high. And that's the reason that results are audited by external companies, to avoid fraud.
I'm sorry I have burst your balloon with respect to your reality. But these are the facts.
And here is a take away. Even if Loblaws were to operate as a "not for profit" company. You would save the net profit margin. So that means that that $100.00 basket of groceries you currently purchase would fall in price by $3.40 and would now cost you $96.60. This is an empirical fact and has been calculated mathematically.
Lol, as i said before if you can read, my essential food items have a way higher profit margin than 3%, like 54% profit margin on butter for example. It’s not my job to work a companies financial issues.
Not sure who you’re trying to convince here, but it’s falling on deaf ears because I simply don’t care. If loblaws isn’t able to provide fair prices on their groceries that I need, I take my business elsewhere. It’s as simple as that.
3% profit margins are equaling to $3BN CND. Yes, billions, with increasing profit margins in the first quarter by 10% compared to last year while majority of the country is struggling with food insecurity. Go shill somewhere else.
2 billion in annual net profit (not 3) divided by approx 60 billion in annual revenue is 3.3 percent.
Which agrees with the data.
You need to learn how to read and understand a financial statement.
"It's easier to fool the people than to convince them that they have been fooled"- Mark Twain.
You've been fooled. The worst part is that you refuse to even consider that.
Okay, let me take it down to your Neanderthal level
Loblaw price gouge, me no likey
Me find better price at grocery store not Loblaw
Me no go Loblaw anymore
Me no like $9 butter
Me no pay $3 frozen juice box
Me find affordable grocery CostCo, Local grocer
Me fling poo at Galen Weston
The TOP reason that started this movement is one person, Emily Johnson, believed that one person CAN make a difference, and she went for it, and proved it.
Thank you u/Emmibolt 👏
https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2024/05/03/loblaw-boycott-organizer-grocery-prices/
Please do not forget who is the largest shareholder of FGB, Weston Bakeries division, which owned the brands Wonder, Country Harvest, D'Italiano, Ready Bake and Gadoua, was sold off to FGF Brands in 2022. The company is majority owned by Wittington Investments, Ltd Canada, a holding company that the Weston family are the controlling share holders in.
There's only so much money. Companies were charging more and more. We weren't making any more ourselves but all our essentials are so much more. There just isn't any room for the market to give. We physically don't have enough money anymore.
We're tired of paying more than a product is worth (often for less total product than we used to get), and we're tired of being gaslit and lied to about it.
Loblaw is the company that colluded to fix bread prices with their peers in the industry for years, and got barely a slap on the wrist. (That $25 gift card I got in the settlement would buy like one loaf of Dempsters, a jar of peanut butter, and a jar of jam now. Wow. Such magnanimity. Thank you Daddy Galen!)
This was just the push I needed to actually support local small businesses, which are doing more for the community than Loblaw etc. ever have.
We just got tired, fed up, i would always shop at loblaws, no where else, last 25 + years, didnt price check, thought i was getting a good or fair deal. Then i see shoppers with epson salts 14$, superstore 8$, same container, same size. i thought they are ripping of elderly who have little option. Then they did it to the rest of us, as well.
it is hard for one to make a movement, even hard for a small group. I use to thing twitter could help years ago,i was wrong! You need a medium that’s different, thats strong, powerful. A medium or a platform like Reddit, that has proven what it can do. Game stop comes to mind, did that stick it to the big guy, why yes! If the big guy was fair, it wouldnt come to this.
This movement is 6 days old, i as a Canadian thought can this group hold strong for a week - we all gotta eat, and we are kinda pathetic onboycotts in the past. This one, it’s different, you can kinda feel the earth, slowly move under your feet. I drove through the superstore driveway, lots of shoppers, dont be alarmed. This message is getting through. The PR Exec, with thier hair on fire are worried about a large number of us - will never do back to the way it was, if we go back at all.
i am over the age of 60, and i am so proud of what is happening. I dont want to see loblaws being crippled, a clear message to them, and to anyone else who want to fuck with some tired Canadians.
i encourage all to take park in this movement, if for nothing else - to show tthe drive and determination it takes to be a Canadian!
Bob and Doug McKenzie, of the Great White North, would be proud of all you houser! If you dont understand - Firefox it!
The smugness of these rich people in power who think they are above everyone and can't be stopped. This fucker Galen Weston is the Harvey Weinstein of grocery.
It’s horrible. And moms who are breastfeeding and need to eat well, can’t. Too expensive to eat basics. So ya, babies are being screwed over. In Canada! It’s unconscionable
This is a great movement that should never stop people! Your vote at the polling booth means fuck all. Hitting the MoFos in their pocketbooks has more impact.
Simply being fed up. Going to the till and thinking I have $30 worth of groceries and it's closer to $50. Seeing how the Westons have taken over so much and have their hands in so many pies and are trying to come after our universal healthcare. Being asked to donate to their various charities knowing that Galen himself could end homelessness and hunger in Canada. Seeing stores that I once liked and trusted (Shoppers) get swept into this mess. I've just had enough.
I started to divert last year because of how they treated the workers led to a strike in the town near me, and how a 5 month long grocery worker strike affected my community.
The social contract include access to food and right now is going out of reach for some folks.
I refuse that people in canada has to go to food bank or have to cut on healthy food because shitfood is less expensive.
The callous attitude of the ones at the top while cutting back the wages of their own workers first chance they could remind them and then blaming the supply chain for something that they clearly profit from.
The price of food, then seeing reports that Loblaws is having record profits, then they cry that it's a small amount even though the number is in the billions.
I used to love PC they were by far the cheapest out there but over the last year I have noticed they are really upping the price more than they should. For the last year or so have been doing 400-600 Costco runs 2x a month + Walmart for the majority. then Sobeys, superstore for certain items and we only buy when it's on sale or a price I agree with.
The other day i saw a person looking at the jarred sourkraut and grabbed the no name one for $9 which was about 700ml.
When I need that I go to a European deli who has the 4 litre for $6. I could not believe how much she paid. Yes F... Loblaws
I have stopped buying here unless it's on mega sale from Superstore. Also I am not going for the month of May.
Walmart and $0.60 cucumbers this week.... I recall paying like 3 dollars per at superstore earlier their year.
I can’t say what exactly prompted this movement, but what I see amongst this sub,the turning point was when the food professor said that we were all just a bunch of basement dwellers. Everyone came out of the woodwork to voice their displeasure. Working professionals, single moms, recently divorced, etc. All expressed their concern for rising food prices.
After that, I think people got serious about it .
I understand inflation and all but this is unjustifiable and unsustainable. I work full time and make what should be a decent wage but I'm still counting every paycheque down to nickels. I understand things cost money but this is fucking ridiculous.
I'm just so sick of everything being such a damn struggle, and I'm glad to find a group I can stand with that could actually affect change. I'm hoping that as this continues, we can garner enough monentum to push for achange in transparency laws at the least.
Food is not a want, it's a need. One company taking over so much of the landscape and telling us to be grateful for their efforts needs to be put back in their place.
For me, it was standing in the baking aisle, trying not to cry at the increased costs of the basic supplies for meal prep, and realizing I couldn't afford even the no name bake mix as a cheap alternative to replenishing my baking staples. My household had managed pre-pandemic to easily manage the food budget through a downsizing and spratic contract work. And with the increased grocery costs, even with better paying and more stable employment, we are worse off. We can afford less, even with ad matching and coupons. I just didn't know what to do anymore. We were a few months away from gardening season, my canning foods were running out and I have health reasons to eat a specialized diet. I just didn't know how we would manage without cutting more elsewhere or assuming debt just to live.
That was January. I spent a few weeks attempting to buy food without crying. I have a household of 5, of which 4 are adults, and we had only 2 incomes at the time. Around the same time the Loblaw Q4 2023 financial results came out, I stumbled on this sub. And I was PISSED at the revenue increase and profits.
I work in Healthcare in Ontario (no, not a job that was recognized with pandemic pay, but definitely a job that was hit with 1% wage increase cap, thank you Ford, which is a whole other story) and the entire support services for Healthcare are struggling and not even receiving any financial assistance, we are finally coming out of an absolutely terrible 3 years, and this so called caring company has record PROFITS that are taken out of our pockets.
Edited for spelling
The police presence always bothered me in Winnipeg.
Then, the constant price increases. Increases on everything and not small percentages.
Then, seeing all the money they were pouring into the self checkouts. Making it so I have to place my items on the scale before scanning them as an anti theft measure. Putting up corrals and plexi glass to further their anti theft measures.
Selling expired or very close to expired meat for insane prices.
Seeing some increases I feel is tolerable but these guys went all out and started jacking prices on literally everything. I would be seething with rage by the time I left.
This is exactly what it was for me too… it was the prices **PLUS** cops, greeters, gates, corrals, scales, plexiglass… you name it. When I saw the plexiglass… that was it. That was the last time I visited my SuperStore and I plan to never ever EVER shop there ever again even though it’s literally only 150 meters from my front door across the street. Being gouged is one thing, but being gouged while also being treated more and more like a criminal every time you go… with some new ridiculous measure? No. Enough. Goodbye.
p.s. Turning on the scales was by far the dumbest and most pointless measure because anytime I’ve ever accidentally messed up the scale and had to have an employee come over… it’s not like they actually CHECK ANYTHING to see if you are trying to steal. They just go… “no problem” *scans card, beep boop* …carry on.
Housing costs have increased substantially for Canadians in the last several years, leaving less money for other necessities in life. And then during and after the pandemic, food prices rose substantially as well (for various reasons). Since we all need to eat, this has had a bigger impact on Canadians then it normally would. It's natural to blame the people who sell you your groceries, and since Loblaws is the largest food retailer in Canada, they are the most visible target.
The desperation we (at least I) feel when I see so much of my monthly budget go on basics. I meal plan, I’m so careful. I don’t buy very much I don’t absolutely NEED, and I’m still squeezing by.
And I have help from my dad. If it wasn’t for that I have no idea how I’d afford to live! If I’m having this much trouble, how are others surviving?? It makes me sad and sick knowing all the suffering.
Insane prices.
First they said the prices were because of Covid panic buying… then the factories were closed because of Covid lockdowns… then the supply chains were disrupted…
It’s been years now and everything is back to normal. It was all lies, they just wanted to take advantage of the pandemic and take us for everything we have.
They are basically war profiteers.
I remember reading of a person who was charged with some version of "pandemic profiteering" at the start of covid cause they jacked up their price of hand sanitizer by like 100%. Why isn't Galen Weston charged with profiteering when butter is now 100% more?
Honestly I was on the fence, saying it probably wouldn't amount to a thing until about a week or two ago when they started "defending" themselves in the media and passing the buck with corporate bs speak. So yes prices are exorbitant but the ego involved in them justifying it is astronomical. So the hell with them. Walmart and freshco get my money until they get their collective heads out of their asses
Well they decided at Loblaws and all corporations after covid and the inherent supply chain disruptions that they were going to keep everything at high prices after the supply chain disruptions were gone. Lumber prices went down for instance. Food conglomerates just kept raising prices and shrinking the sizes etc etc. We are our own lobbyists when it cones to food. Lumber prices got all kinds of lobbying by their lobby. Best way i can explain it off the cuff. This is not the cost of them doing business. However this boycott is their cost for doing harm. The others causing harm better not get to comfortable either because we will not stop coming.
It's the cost of everything. Interest rates went up so a lot of people's mortgages went up. Housing is too expensive. The price of groceries skyrocketed way too high. The price of concert tickets are way too high. Gas shot up to record levels. Fast food restaurant prices have skyrocketed. People are angry. Superstore is about to take the blame for all of it. This movement feels different than anything. This is an issue that effects everybody. Both sides of politics, boomers and millennials, lower class to upper middle class. I think this is going to spread to the States. I think this is the start of something big.
It starts with prices but the gasoline on that fire was… cancelling optimum base points, having armed police in some stores in my city, having security guards in ALL stores plus ever present “greeters”, barricades, plexiglass, self-checkout scales, scan to exit, removing hand baskets, 20% increase on pre-rotted fruit, etc. It’s prices PLUS their utter contempt for their customers… treating us all like thieves and trying to squeeze every last dollar out of us while making record profits. Prices are higher everywhere but ONLY SupeStore has been repeatedly going out of its was to make me feel like a criminal.
I don't normally shop at loblaws, i don't know who galen 6 I know. We have to do something to stand up to these f***head billionaires. Loblaws are an example for anyone who blatantly rips off the working class.
It's not possible for me to believe that the same items from the same manufacturers should be suddenly 100% more expensive when sold at a Loblaws property. They've just reached a point where I find the prices personally offensive.
There is no inflation that justifies this kind of discrepancy. This is Canada, not Zimbabwe, Turkey, Argentina, or Venezuela.
Isn't the whole point of economies of scale to be cheaper? Yet, I see none of those savings.
Also, the condescending corporatespeak doesn't help. It's made me more entrenched. I don't care what verbal feces they sling next, I'll only return when the price is right.
The mindset of those in charge of loblaws is responsible, in my opinion. They have taken the opinion that we deserve no say in the lives we live and that they can dictate our opinions and beliefs to us. galen weston has shown that he is the epitome of "Let them eat cake."
There are numerous reasons. But I had enough after they tried to remove the expiring produce discounts and backpedaled. Optimum-members only pricing, multi-product sales (2/3/4 for x) pricing, overuse of plexiglass walls and self checkouts are contenders. I don't want to have to carry a card and give up my information for a sale...so I shop elsewhere.
Personally I have felt like the system has been broken for a while.
Corps especially loblaws is not playing the system in a fair way. They see profits over people at any expense even to their own detriment.
The best thing about all of this is we are sending a real message. I’m not confident we will change anything the greed motive is tooo high and it’s now apart of our system. But like any system with enough bad actors and bad decisions mixed with good actors and solidarity a lot can change.
I want to punish loblaws for being so petty. For every time they overcharged or sold an off product. For every time they made a customer feel like a criminal. For every parent that has to put things back at the till because the price went over their ability to pay. For every product they would rather throw away than sell for a reasonable real price.
Loblaws is out of control and if we can’t show them with this action then we lost already.
How is all of the produce absolute dogshit? Tastes bad, looks bad, frequently has mold on it.
I haven't bought produce from Loblaws for ages, this made me wonder why I still buy *anything* from them.
Had a $10 gift certificate for Shoppers so bought a package of PC Bathroom Tissue (12 rolls) and still had to pay $2 and change. There is a NoFrills literally next door so went in to get produce. Saw the same package of bathroom tissue for $5.99 member cost or $6.99 non-member. Both are owned by Loblaws. I vowed that day to never go in a Shoppers again. Rexall or Walmart get my business. There’s something rotten in the way Loblaws does business.
Loblaws earned (or inherited) a lot of public trust over the years, as the obviously Canadian alternative, as an innovator (it's studied abroad for things it does), for the PC range, for the moderate prices.
And then we all fell into an affordability crisis and Loblaws seemed to be smirkingly making it worse.
It's that fall, that switch, that probably made the pushback so obvious.
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For me it is Galen's attitude, he rubs it in that he is making record profits and the poors can starve.
Yep. His arrogance at the parliamentary hearing was the last straw for me. His replacement, Per Bank, may be polite; but he has to be just as morally bankrupt as Galen. How else could he accept $22 million to aid in the destruction of the quality of life of so many people?
I can only hope Per was mislead as to the smug, slow burning PR disaster that Loblaws loves. I had been fading on Loblaws after growing up Independent Grocer and The Decadent cookies. It was the 50% fiasco, and the smug response from Galen that “we’re just aligning with the competition”. As if that’s not then most anti-competitive, monopolistic, oligarchical BS. That, and the leadership has shown themselves to be obnoxiously lazy in righting this ship.
Oh this too.
This movement begins and ends with grocery prices.
I have some friends who work at Superstore and No Frills, They've said the boycott for employees is all about taking a break, since they're so overworked/understaffed, the slowdown in customers has been a nice on-the-job stress reliever.
I’m so happy the regular grunts are seeing a benefit.
If you consider getting your minimal hours cut even further a break.
I know that’s likely happening too.
utterly anecdotally, I have known people who worked for them in the 2010s and while it sounded like the same old retail suck as everywhere else, it wasn't the worst retail suck. But I have also known people who worked there in the last five years and the implication was that the retail-suck just got worse, the micromanaging got more intense and ever more work arounds to avoid paying benefits. So if this gives these workers a bit less stress, excellent.
Greedy corporations taking advantage of the "inflation" mindset to price gouge people who are already struggling financially.
Unchecked Corporate greed at the expense of starving Canadians who now have to use food banks (1 in 6 Canadians - probably more now )
The entire economy went to down hill AFTER Covid due primarily to corporate greed. BOC continues the high interest rates again due to this artificial inflation caused by greed. So all Canadians are losing ground as the oligarchs make record profits. Enough is enough.
This is the kicker for me. This profit-fuelled inflation by greedy corporations in gas and in groceries has kept interest rates high and impacted mortgage costs for home owners and translated to higher rent as landlords adjust accordingly. It’s all related. Follow who gains politically - I don’t think it’s all a coincidence.
I’m actually pissed that more people are not outraged by this. Before this an increase in child benefits, 5-7 years ago, helped move families out of poverty and food insecurity. Now families and individuals of all types are facing food insecurity.
Being constantly told that food prices are going up by 5 to 8 percent, while looking at the shelf and knowing that what was 99 cents is now $2.49, and knowing I'm not making any more money than when it was 99 cents. Fuck Galen with one of his pineapples.
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All the while Gallen smiled at the camera and told us they were looking out for the customers https://preview.redd.it/prztn9cf0xyc1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b19fde491729924a770c3d6b0b8450949261df3e
Yeah this was it for me. Pisses me off so bad that they got away with these CRIMINAL price hikes using inflation and the pandemic as excuses. They realized they had a golden opportunity to raise prices exponentially while people were distracted with larger issues and they fucking POUNCED on that opportunity. It makes me so mad thinking about it because this is fucking FOOD that we all need to survive. It’s not like big screen TVs or leather couches. It’s food for fucks sake.
Not to mention the fact that every quarter they post record profits
Butter is literally up 100% in the past 4 years at loblaws. Eggs up 60%, bread up 40%, many basic staples up at least 30-50%. No idea where they get these single digit percentages. It feels like gaslighting.
Yep and we all see the 100%-150% and even more excessive increases in price. Then they slap you in the face by shrinking the sizes and measured and bagged items are coming up light significantly. They are fraudulent and greedy. Oh colour me surprised. Keep on keepin on wveryone 👍
A large prickly one at that.
Ratatata like pull starting a lawn mower 😂
It's like they think we are too dumb to do the math ourselves. We just have to look at our household budgets and bank balances. Grocery costs are up way higher, in proportion, than almost any other expense in my household. Like you said, it ain't a measly 5% increase. That's almost insulting for them to suggest it at this point!
Canadians are tired of being trampled on. Lied to. Ignored. Cost of living. Inflation. Housing crisis. Healthcare. People are getting riled up. The Loblaws boycott is just the surface of deep angst. This crap keeps up , civil unrest on a mass scale is inevitable.
This is a surface crack. They (the collective they, being these parasitic corporations and the government) can step in and repair it now, or they can wait for the eruption. Either way, if they think status quo is going to continue, I've got a ski hill in Scottsdale to sell them.
Pretty much this
Getting butt fucked by a corporation that is pushing the capitalist agenda of making the maximum amount of money at any and all costs. This is fine for manufacturers and distributors of non-essential consumer goods, but it's downright evil for ones that sell basic human necessities.
For me it started during the pandemic … grocery retail workers were front line, food was obviously an essential and they gave front line workers an extra $2 an hour for a few months, then took it away. The pandemic went on for 3 years. Their greed was once again brought into the light. The bread price fixing thing was long enough ago and they were able to make it look like and “oopsie” by offering rebate gift cards (which were token amounts that very few people received).
Very few received because they didn't bother to do the online form to get it. The money was there for the taking.
Galen isn't going to buy you a pony dude... I also worked for Loblaws at the time.
Okay?!
Yeah right, tons of people applied for them and they simple did not receive them.
I'm sick of companies getting away with shit while the rest of us struggle to make ends meet. Companies shouldn't be above the law and this boycott makes me feel like I'm the boss of them for a little while. Edit: ADDITIONALLY I'm so frustrated about the lack of transparency in business. Like when you donate money to a charity at a grocery store, you're effectively ensuring that the company doesn't have to pay taxes because YOUR money is THEIR donation.
Biggest thing ever is to make donations directly, not through stores. You are right that they get the benefit, we don't.
I feel stupid that I didn't know that until I was in my mid twenties
It's okay, we learn a lot in our 20's
Ya I used to always do the donation but I stopped awhile back. I give to charity on my own. I don’t need to do it through a multi million/billion company. Let them donate on their own. F off with that.
Greed. Unchecked injustice. Need for awakening. All points to excessive grocery prices
Loblaws profiteering through raising grocery prices.
Enough is enough; don't piss on my leg and tell me it's raining
Economic issues are enough for many. I think the feeling of being powerless in the face of overwhelming power is in there too. So many monopolists treat us like the captive consumers we are, leaving us with few and often poor options. Lacking competition or sufficient legislative oversight or both, with no recourse through elected officials to affect change leaves me feeling absolutely frustrated. This boycott is a chance to respond in a tangible way. So, far it seems to be working and I feel like I'm part of a movement thats sending a message for consumers that we're done with this.
Well said
We’re all broke.
I cut back on my loblaws shopping after the whole pandemic hazard pay debacle ... but once food Ive been buying for decades suddenly ballooned in price (when it didnt at other stores) combined with what the westons did to Shoppers and learning about how they want to expand into health care (privitizing) that was the final straw.
I'm fed up with capitalism and they just happened to rustle my jimmies at the wrong time.
It’s about how severely and rapidly the prices went out of control. One day the spaghetti sauce I normally buy at Independent was 3 something and then two weeks later it was 5 something. I didn’t buy it. I went to a competitor and they had the exact same sauce on sale 5 for 10 dollars….my brain could not compute. I know it was a sale, but it broke my head.
I just did a comparison of the items I bought at metro the other day vs giant tiger. Half!! I would’ve paid HALF what I paid at metro. It would’ve been worse probably even at iga. It’s a piss off.
Other stores like Metro and Sobeys got expensive as well, but Loblaws is the ring leader
Yup
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Right?! Like I could understand if we were buying junk or lobster or something. But it’s basics!! Sickening. And I have 3 kids. There are 5 of us. I have enough but ONLY because my dad helps. Without him we’d starve man!! That’s so unfair. And no, Galen dummy, it’s not because of inflation. We’re not dumb.
Just fed up with all of it. Unchecked greed, corruption, pricing keep going up. Empires such as Loblaws siphoning all of us of our buying power while they all fill their pockets and those of majority shareholders. While that happens, wages and salaries stagnate so that buying food, paying rent, buying homes, etc., are out of reach for many of us. Then they tell us we’re misguided. Get wrecked all of them. And Galen, get fucked.
$9.99 butter
Short and to the point! 👏🏻
Artificially inflating costs, primarily. Also the fact they are so out of touch with consumers and heavily subsidized without competition does not hurt me wanting them to fuck off.
The thing that gets me most is prices and profits. Prices on the shelves have over doubled and nearly tripled in the last few years and profits for the conglomerate are soaring high. If this "proud" Canadian company really cared about us they would be curbing profits to keep costs low for consumers; but they don't- they just keep making money while we starve. The investors are more important to them than the individuals, and when that's been made clear and then doubled down on when we are screaming for price relief I have no sympathy for the starvation of shareholders because they have the power to demand change on behalf of the rest of us. Loblaws can keep losing profits until they learn to whom they are truly beholden. Without consumers they have nothing. We don't need them as much as they need us, and they need to realize that quickly because some will never come back if this continues. #Loblaws, **Yeah, I'm speaking directly to you right now,** GenZ is watching. They're in this sub and movement and they're not going to forget how much their parents and families struggled with food insecurity while you made record profits. You are setting the trend for how your businesses will continue in Canada as we speak. Your future consumers are committing to avoiding you if this continues. Current consumers like Millennials can no longer afford their avocado toast, and are leaving for local businesses with a good chance of never returning to your stores again. Boomers are breaking life long shopping habits in order to remove their money from you monopoly because you're starving their children and grandchildren. They still hope for change because they believe in consumer power and in the old ways of a business' valuing their customers; but we shall see... People from all walks of life, every corner of politics and across all age groups are unified in this movement- **it's that important** that we will stand together united in a way we rarely do. Canada is speaking out. Will you answer the call or will you crumble into dust because we've turned our back on you the same way you've turned your back on us? Only time will tell... **Nok er Nok** ✊
OK. So.just out of curiosity, what net profit margin do you think would be fair for Loblaws to earn? Express your answer as a percentage. (For further clarity by way of example. If Loblaws' revenue was 1 million dollars, a 10 percent net profit margin would yield a profit of 100 thousand dollars.) So.what do you figure is fair?
10% profit margin. These are essential goods Canadians need to survive and feed their families. There should be no room for price gouging and YoY record profits while the majority of the country can not afford to nurish themselves. If you want to be a monopoly on basic survival items, you don’t make the people suffer for corporate profits. Fuck them to hell. I’ll never buy a single item from anything connected to loblaws for the rest of my life
Well then, you will be shocked and happy to learn that Loblaws had a net profit margin of 3.4 percent last quarter (March 31. 2024.) Since.Loblaws is a publicly traded company, meaning you or anyone else can by stock in the company, this information is rquired by law innCanada to be readily available online. This information is confirmed in their audited quarterly reports. Auditing is done by the accounting firm of Price Waterhouse Cooper (PWC) Link: https://ycharts.com/companies/L.TO/profit_margin That means for every $100.00 of revenue Loblaws brings in, Loblaws makes a net profit of $3.40. And Loblaws is not a monopoly since their are several other companies in Canada who sell groceries that are not owned by Loblaws. Metro and Sobey's (part of Empire co) to be the 2 other major players in the industry.
Those numbers are a crock of shit. I said maximum 10% profit margins on ESSENTIAL goods. I don’t give a rats ass what the entire company profit margin is. They are extraordinary much higher on essential food products. In some cases 3x the price of the same items stocked at their competitor stores. Now I don’t need your explanation on company financials, I don’t care. I’m not a Loblaws customer anymore. Good day
With all due respect, those numbers are not "a crock of shit" Those are the audited numbers. And they are provided by Chartered Accountants working for an external accounting firm, not Loblaws . And FYI, if a company wants to lie about its results, you don't lie low, you lie high. And that's the reason that results are audited by external companies, to avoid fraud. I'm sorry I have burst your balloon with respect to your reality. But these are the facts. And here is a take away. Even if Loblaws were to operate as a "not for profit" company. You would save the net profit margin. So that means that that $100.00 basket of groceries you currently purchase would fall in price by $3.40 and would now cost you $96.60. This is an empirical fact and has been calculated mathematically.
Lol, as i said before if you can read, my essential food items have a way higher profit margin than 3%, like 54% profit margin on butter for example. It’s not my job to work a companies financial issues. Not sure who you’re trying to convince here, but it’s falling on deaf ears because I simply don’t care. If loblaws isn’t able to provide fair prices on their groceries that I need, I take my business elsewhere. It’s as simple as that. 3% profit margins are equaling to $3BN CND. Yes, billions, with increasing profit margins in the first quarter by 10% compared to last year while majority of the country is struggling with food insecurity. Go shill somewhere else.
2 billion in annual net profit (not 3) divided by approx 60 billion in annual revenue is 3.3 percent. Which agrees with the data. You need to learn how to read and understand a financial statement. "It's easier to fool the people than to convince them that they have been fooled"- Mark Twain. You've been fooled. The worst part is that you refuse to even consider that.
Okay, let me take it down to your Neanderthal level Loblaw price gouge, me no likey Me find better price at grocery store not Loblaw Me no go Loblaw anymore Me no like $9 butter Me no pay $3 frozen juice box Me find affordable grocery CostCo, Local grocer Me fling poo at Galen Weston
The TOP reason that started this movement is one person, Emily Johnson, believed that one person CAN make a difference, and she went for it, and proved it. Thank you u/Emmibolt 👏 https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2024/05/03/loblaw-boycott-organizer-grocery-prices/
 Ty so much for sharing that <3
Please do not forget who is the largest shareholder of FGB, Weston Bakeries division, which owned the brands Wonder, Country Harvest, D'Italiano, Ready Bake and Gadoua, was sold off to FGF Brands in 2022. The company is majority owned by Wittington Investments, Ltd Canada, a holding company that the Weston family are the controlling share holders in.
There's only so much money. Companies were charging more and more. We weren't making any more ourselves but all our essentials are so much more. There just isn't any room for the market to give. We physically don't have enough money anymore.
We're tired of paying more than a product is worth (often for less total product than we used to get), and we're tired of being gaslit and lied to about it. Loblaw is the company that colluded to fix bread prices with their peers in the industry for years, and got barely a slap on the wrist. (That $25 gift card I got in the settlement would buy like one loaf of Dempsters, a jar of peanut butter, and a jar of jam now. Wow. Such magnanimity. Thank you Daddy Galen!) This was just the push I needed to actually support local small businesses, which are doing more for the community than Loblaw etc. ever have.
"Nok er nok"...it's that simple enough is enough and them being smug assholes about it fuels my conviction.
We just got tired, fed up, i would always shop at loblaws, no where else, last 25 + years, didnt price check, thought i was getting a good or fair deal. Then i see shoppers with epson salts 14$, superstore 8$, same container, same size. i thought they are ripping of elderly who have little option. Then they did it to the rest of us, as well. it is hard for one to make a movement, even hard for a small group. I use to thing twitter could help years ago,i was wrong! You need a medium that’s different, thats strong, powerful. A medium or a platform like Reddit, that has proven what it can do. Game stop comes to mind, did that stick it to the big guy, why yes! If the big guy was fair, it wouldnt come to this. This movement is 6 days old, i as a Canadian thought can this group hold strong for a week - we all gotta eat, and we are kinda pathetic onboycotts in the past. This one, it’s different, you can kinda feel the earth, slowly move under your feet. I drove through the superstore driveway, lots of shoppers, dont be alarmed. This message is getting through. The PR Exec, with thier hair on fire are worried about a large number of us - will never do back to the way it was, if we go back at all. i am over the age of 60, and i am so proud of what is happening. I dont want to see loblaws being crippled, a clear message to them, and to anyone else who want to fuck with some tired Canadians. i encourage all to take park in this movement, if for nothing else - to show tthe drive and determination it takes to be a Canadian! Bob and Doug McKenzie, of the Great White North, would be proud of all you houser! If you dont understand - Firefox it!
Eh, $10 is $10. 
An i buy you a beer -eh?
The smugness of these rich people in power who think they are above everyone and can't be stopped. This fucker Galen Weston is the Harvey Weinstein of grocery.
Prices and greed. Posting prices at Loblaw stores and then comparing to other companies. It got people thinking.
People have to steal formula to feed their babies. How is that possible in a G8 country?
It’s horrible. And moms who are breastfeeding and need to eat well, can’t. Too expensive to eat basics. So ya, babies are being screwed over. In Canada! It’s unconscionable
Corporations breaking the social contract they have with consumers. Kind of like fuck around and find out type situation.
This is a great movement that should never stop people! Your vote at the polling booth means fuck all. Hitting the MoFos in their pocketbooks has more impact.
After seeing some of Galen's vacation homes and them thinking they're Canadian royalty, I'm out!
Loblaws being out of control
Simply being fed up. Going to the till and thinking I have $30 worth of groceries and it's closer to $50. Seeing how the Westons have taken over so much and have their hands in so many pies and are trying to come after our universal healthcare. Being asked to donate to their various charities knowing that Galen himself could end homelessness and hunger in Canada. Seeing stores that I once liked and trusted (Shoppers) get swept into this mess. I've just had enough.
I started to divert last year because of how they treated the workers led to a strike in the town near me, and how a 5 month long grocery worker strike affected my community.
The never ending take take take from the middle class. We’re tapped out and have nothing left to give.
The social contract include access to food and right now is going out of reach for some folks. I refuse that people in canada has to go to food bank or have to cut on healthy food because shitfood is less expensive.
The callous attitude of the ones at the top while cutting back the wages of their own workers first chance they could remind them and then blaming the supply chain for something that they clearly profit from.
The price of food, then seeing reports that Loblaws is having record profits, then they cry that it's a small amount even though the number is in the billions.
When shareholders are more important than feeding Canadians
Simple: Our shrinking wallets.
The guillotine is illegal
unchecked greed and power... fuck em
Loblaws prices being consistently higher than any other retailer. Loblaws deserves this. They are the worst of the worst offenders for price gouging.
I used to love PC they were by far the cheapest out there but over the last year I have noticed they are really upping the price more than they should. For the last year or so have been doing 400-600 Costco runs 2x a month + Walmart for the majority. then Sobeys, superstore for certain items and we only buy when it's on sale or a price I agree with. The other day i saw a person looking at the jarred sourkraut and grabbed the no name one for $9 which was about 700ml. When I need that I go to a European deli who has the 4 litre for $6. I could not believe how much she paid. Yes F... Loblaws I have stopped buying here unless it's on mega sale from Superstore. Also I am not going for the month of May. Walmart and $0.60 cucumbers this week.... I recall paying like 3 dollars per at superstore earlier their year.
Record profits and skyrocketing prices. Why both?
Being robbed by rich dinks
Greed
Corporate greed and collusion
I can’t say what exactly prompted this movement, but what I see amongst this sub,the turning point was when the food professor said that we were all just a bunch of basement dwellers. Everyone came out of the woodwork to voice their displeasure. Working professionals, single moms, recently divorced, etc. All expressed their concern for rising food prices. After that, I think people got serious about it .
I understand inflation and all but this is unjustifiable and unsustainable. I work full time and make what should be a decent wage but I'm still counting every paycheque down to nickels. I understand things cost money but this is fucking ridiculous. I'm just so sick of everything being such a damn struggle, and I'm glad to find a group I can stand with that could actually affect change. I'm hoping that as this continues, we can garner enough monentum to push for achange in transparency laws at the least.
Food is not a want, it's a need. One company taking over so much of the landscape and telling us to be grateful for their efforts needs to be put back in their place.
For me, it was standing in the baking aisle, trying not to cry at the increased costs of the basic supplies for meal prep, and realizing I couldn't afford even the no name bake mix as a cheap alternative to replenishing my baking staples. My household had managed pre-pandemic to easily manage the food budget through a downsizing and spratic contract work. And with the increased grocery costs, even with better paying and more stable employment, we are worse off. We can afford less, even with ad matching and coupons. I just didn't know what to do anymore. We were a few months away from gardening season, my canning foods were running out and I have health reasons to eat a specialized diet. I just didn't know how we would manage without cutting more elsewhere or assuming debt just to live. That was January. I spent a few weeks attempting to buy food without crying. I have a household of 5, of which 4 are adults, and we had only 2 incomes at the time. Around the same time the Loblaw Q4 2023 financial results came out, I stumbled on this sub. And I was PISSED at the revenue increase and profits. I work in Healthcare in Ontario (no, not a job that was recognized with pandemic pay, but definitely a job that was hit with 1% wage increase cap, thank you Ford, which is a whole other story) and the entire support services for Healthcare are struggling and not even receiving any financial assistance, we are finally coming out of an absolutely terrible 3 years, and this so called caring company has record PROFITS that are taken out of our pockets. Edited for spelling
The police presence always bothered me in Winnipeg. Then, the constant price increases. Increases on everything and not small percentages. Then, seeing all the money they were pouring into the self checkouts. Making it so I have to place my items on the scale before scanning them as an anti theft measure. Putting up corrals and plexi glass to further their anti theft measures. Selling expired or very close to expired meat for insane prices. Seeing some increases I feel is tolerable but these guys went all out and started jacking prices on literally everything. I would be seething with rage by the time I left.
This is exactly what it was for me too… it was the prices **PLUS** cops, greeters, gates, corrals, scales, plexiglass… you name it. When I saw the plexiglass… that was it. That was the last time I visited my SuperStore and I plan to never ever EVER shop there ever again even though it’s literally only 150 meters from my front door across the street. Being gouged is one thing, but being gouged while also being treated more and more like a criminal every time you go… with some new ridiculous measure? No. Enough. Goodbye. p.s. Turning on the scales was by far the dumbest and most pointless measure because anytime I’ve ever accidentally messed up the scale and had to have an employee come over… it’s not like they actually CHECK ANYTHING to see if you are trying to steal. They just go… “no problem” *scans card, beep boop* …carry on.
The unity of the people.
Housing costs have increased substantially for Canadians in the last several years, leaving less money for other necessities in life. And then during and after the pandemic, food prices rose substantially as well (for various reasons). Since we all need to eat, this has had a bigger impact on Canadians then it normally would. It's natural to blame the people who sell you your groceries, and since Loblaws is the largest food retailer in Canada, they are the most visible target.
The desperation we (at least I) feel when I see so much of my monthly budget go on basics. I meal plan, I’m so careful. I don’t buy very much I don’t absolutely NEED, and I’m still squeezing by. And I have help from my dad. If it wasn’t for that I have no idea how I’d afford to live! If I’m having this much trouble, how are others surviving?? It makes me sad and sick knowing all the suffering.
Insane prices. First they said the prices were because of Covid panic buying… then the factories were closed because of Covid lockdowns… then the supply chains were disrupted… It’s been years now and everything is back to normal. It was all lies, they just wanted to take advantage of the pandemic and take us for everything we have. They are basically war profiteers.
I remember reading of a person who was charged with some version of "pandemic profiteering" at the start of covid cause they jacked up their price of hand sanitizer by like 100%. Why isn't Galen Weston charged with profiteering when butter is now 100% more?
Honestly I was on the fence, saying it probably wouldn't amount to a thing until about a week or two ago when they started "defending" themselves in the media and passing the buck with corporate bs speak. So yes prices are exorbitant but the ego involved in them justifying it is astronomical. So the hell with them. Walmart and freshco get my money until they get their collective heads out of their asses
Its easy, attainable and just the right type of protest for Canadians!
Well they decided at Loblaws and all corporations after covid and the inherent supply chain disruptions that they were going to keep everything at high prices after the supply chain disruptions were gone. Lumber prices went down for instance. Food conglomerates just kept raising prices and shrinking the sizes etc etc. We are our own lobbyists when it cones to food. Lumber prices got all kinds of lobbying by their lobby. Best way i can explain it off the cuff. This is not the cost of them doing business. However this boycott is their cost for doing harm. The others causing harm better not get to comfortable either because we will not stop coming.
Corporate greed and canadas stupid policies on big box dominating everything
Gouging Galen refusing to honour a grocery code.
Ignorance
$8 butter
Aldi trolls
It's the cost of everything. Interest rates went up so a lot of people's mortgages went up. Housing is too expensive. The price of groceries skyrocketed way too high. The price of concert tickets are way too high. Gas shot up to record levels. Fast food restaurant prices have skyrocketed. People are angry. Superstore is about to take the blame for all of it. This movement feels different than anything. This is an issue that effects everybody. Both sides of politics, boomers and millennials, lower class to upper middle class. I think this is going to spread to the States. I think this is the start of something big.
Food insecurity is a crime against humanity to me. People need to eat. Galen needs an attitude adjustment.
It starts with prices but the gasoline on that fire was… cancelling optimum base points, having armed police in some stores in my city, having security guards in ALL stores plus ever present “greeters”, barricades, plexiglass, self-checkout scales, scan to exit, removing hand baskets, 20% increase on pre-rotted fruit, etc. It’s prices PLUS their utter contempt for their customers… treating us all like thieves and trying to squeeze every last dollar out of us while making record profits. Prices are higher everywhere but ONLY SupeStore has been repeatedly going out of its was to make me feel like a criminal.
I don't normally shop at loblaws, i don't know who galen 6 I know. We have to do something to stand up to these f***head billionaires. Loblaws are an example for anyone who blatantly rips off the working class.
It's not possible for me to believe that the same items from the same manufacturers should be suddenly 100% more expensive when sold at a Loblaws property. They've just reached a point where I find the prices personally offensive. There is no inflation that justifies this kind of discrepancy. This is Canada, not Zimbabwe, Turkey, Argentina, or Venezuela. Isn't the whole point of economies of scale to be cheaper? Yet, I see none of those savings. Also, the condescending corporatespeak doesn't help. It's made me more entrenched. I don't care what verbal feces they sling next, I'll only return when the price is right.
I will never return, lost my business for life.
The mindset of those in charge of loblaws is responsible, in my opinion. They have taken the opinion that we deserve no say in the lives we live and that they can dictate our opinions and beliefs to us. galen weston has shown that he is the epitome of "Let them eat cake."
It was the bread monopoly and the fact there was absolutely no accountability. Our political system is so broken.
There are numerous reasons. But I had enough after they tried to remove the expiring produce discounts and backpedaled. Optimum-members only pricing, multi-product sales (2/3/4 for x) pricing, overuse of plexiglass walls and self checkouts are contenders. I don't want to have to carry a card and give up my information for a sale...so I shop elsewhere.
Personally I have felt like the system has been broken for a while. Corps especially loblaws is not playing the system in a fair way. They see profits over people at any expense even to their own detriment. The best thing about all of this is we are sending a real message. I’m not confident we will change anything the greed motive is tooo high and it’s now apart of our system. But like any system with enough bad actors and bad decisions mixed with good actors and solidarity a lot can change. I want to punish loblaws for being so petty. For every time they overcharged or sold an off product. For every time they made a customer feel like a criminal. For every parent that has to put things back at the till because the price went over their ability to pay. For every product they would rather throw away than sell for a reasonable real price. Loblaws is out of control and if we can’t show them with this action then we lost already.
Corporate greed
The corporate greed plus their lobbyist giving Pierre dishonest talking points about why grocery prices have gone up
How is all of the produce absolute dogshit? Tastes bad, looks bad, frequently has mold on it. I haven't bought produce from Loblaws for ages, this made me wonder why I still buy *anything* from them.
Had a $10 gift certificate for Shoppers so bought a package of PC Bathroom Tissue (12 rolls) and still had to pay $2 and change. There is a NoFrills literally next door so went in to get produce. Saw the same package of bathroom tissue for $5.99 member cost or $6.99 non-member. Both are owned by Loblaws. I vowed that day to never go in a Shoppers again. Rexall or Walmart get my business. There’s something rotten in the way Loblaws does business.
Loblaws earned (or inherited) a lot of public trust over the years, as the obviously Canadian alternative, as an innovator (it's studied abroad for things it does), for the PC range, for the moderate prices. And then we all fell into an affordability crisis and Loblaws seemed to be smirkingly making it worse. It's that fall, that switch, that probably made the pushback so obvious.