RANKING: Where Canadians grocery shop has changed

Where and how Canadians shop for groceries is changing.

A new detailed analysis of the Canadian grocery market from dunnhumby, a customer data science platform, reveals the top stores and how people are shopping.

Consumer behaviour is changing in response to inflation and value propositions such as price, promotions, rewards, and digital offerings, the report reveals.

Costco tops the list among grocery retailers in Canada.

“Costco clearly distinguishes itself from other retailers by achieving both better than average quality and price, promo, rewards perceptions – the only retailer in Canada to do so,” dunnhumby says in the report.

Supermarkets ranked in the top 10 offer either food discount, club or a super centre format. Walmart, NoFrills and Food Basics make the list.

Different stores are favoured for varying reasons. Maxi (Quebec) and Metro Inc. food discounters offer price and mass promos, while Loblaws stores and Metro lead in personalized promo and rewards. Farm Boy, Fortinos and Longos rival international organic/natural/sustainability standard Whole Foods in quality, the report states.

The ranking also looked at top stores by province. In Ontario, Costco, Food Basics and Fortinos take the top spots.

Online grocery shopping is growing in Canada, the report finds.

Three in 10 Canadians shop on Amazon for groceries but Walmart is best-in-class in online shopping.

“Online grocery and competitors’ digital capabilities in Canada are poised to grow faster than any other developing market, over the next few years,” dunnhumby

Many Canadians shop at multiple stores and online because their favourite products are only available at certain shops.

For more information, see the dunnhumby website here.

Lead photo: Tara Clark