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Boxing Day Still Matters for Canadian Retail, New Data Shows

By
Craig Patterson
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Black Friday shopping. Photo: Unsplash

Despite the growing prominence of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Boxing Day continues to hold a meaningful place in Canada’s retail calendar. New data from Vividata suggests that while the nature of participation has evolved, Boxing Day shopping in Canada remains both resilient and strategically important. Rather than fading into irrelevance, the event has become more deliberate, more researched, and more closely aligned with planned purchasing behaviour.

The latest findings point to a retail moment that is no longer defined by impulse or door-crasher chaos. Instead, Boxing Day has become a destination for consumers who arrive informed, prepared, and ready to complete purchases they have often deferred earlier in the season. This shift has significant implications for retailers, landlords, and brands seeking to understand how seasonal shopping patterns are reshaping consumer decision-making.

“Boxing Day still matters, just not in the way people expect,” said Pat Pellegrini, President and CEO of Vividata. “Black Friday tends to reward impulse buys, while Boxing Day is increasingly about planned purchases. Canadians are waiting, researching, and showing up with purpose.”

Participation Levels Hold Steady Despite Retail Calendar Crowding

According to Vividata’s SCC | Study of the Canadian Consumer, approximately 8.6 million Canadians are expected to participate in Boxing Week shopping this year. That figure represents roughly one in four Canadian adults and has remained remarkably stable in recent years, even as promotional activity has expanded earlier into the fall shopping season.

This consistency challenges the narrative that Boxing Day has been eclipsed by imported retail events. While Black Friday and Cyber Monday have undoubtedly captured consumer attention, Boxing Day shopping in Canada continues to attract a sizeable and committed audience. The difference lies less in the number of participants and more in who they are and how they approach the event.

The data suggests that casual browsing has declined, replaced by a shopper who is more intentional and more decisive. Consumers are no longer treating Boxing Day as an exploratory outing, but rather as a targeted opportunity to secure value on items already identified.

Regional Variations Reveal Where Boxing Day Still Peaks

Boxing Day participation is no longer evenly distributed across the country. Regional performance varies significantly, creating distinct competitive environments for retailers operating in different markets.

British Columbia emerges as the most engaged region nationally. Vancouver residents are 33 percent more likely than the average Canadian to shop Boxing Week, while British Columbians overall are 26 percent more likely to participate. This elevated engagement makes the province the most competitive Boxing Day environment in Canada, both in physical retail settings and online.

Ontario continues to deliver scale rather than disproportionate enthusiasm. The province accounts for approximately 40 percent of all Boxing Week shoppers nationwide, reflecting its population size. Toronto alone represents nearly one in five participants, ensuring that malls, high streets, and e-commerce platforms experience significant volume, even if participation largely tracks demographic distribution.

The Prairie provinces are showing notable strength. Calgary and Edmonton rank among the top five cities in Canada for Boxing Week participation, indicating that value-driven promotional periods continue to resonate strongly in these markets. Retailers in these cities benefit from consumers who remain responsive to pricing incentives and seasonal timing.

Quebec stands apart from the national pattern. Residents continue to under-index on Boxing Day participation, reinforcing that the event’s cultural relevance is not universal. For retailers operating in Quebec, Boxing Day remains a secondary consideration compared with other promotional moments.

A More Mature and Affluent Boxing Day Shopper Emerges

The demographic profile of the Boxing Day shopper has shifted in ways that challenge long-held assumptions. Canadians aged 35 to 49 now make up the largest share of Boxing Week participants, accounting for nearly one-third of all shoppers. This age group tends to balance household needs, career stability, and discretionary spending power, making them particularly receptive to planned purchasing opportunities.

Adults aged 25 to 34 are also more likely than average to shop Boxing Week, while younger consumers are increasingly concentrating their spending earlier in the season. This suggests that Boxing Day shopping in Canada is no longer driven by youth-oriented bargain hunting, but by households making calculated decisions about timing and value.

Income data reinforces this narrative. Participation has increased year over year among households earning more than $100,000 annually, particularly those in the $100,000 to $150,000 range. Rather than signaling financial stress, this trend points to consumers with the means to spend choosing that spending moment strategically.

For retailers, this shift underscores the importance of aligning Boxing Day assortments with consumers who are confident, informed, and less motivated by necessity than by optimization.

Digital Research Shapes Boxing Day Purchasing Behaviour

Boxing Day shoppers are more digitally engaged than the average Canadian consumer. Vividata’s data shows that these shoppers over-index on exposure to online advertising, product reviews, social media content, and influencers. More than one-third report increasing their online shopping frequency over the past year, a figure that reflects broader changes in consumer research habits.

This heightened digital influence suggests that Boxing Day success is increasingly determined well before December 26. Many consumers arrive at the event having already selected specific products, retailers, or brands. The in-store or online transaction is often the final step in a longer decision-making process that unfolds across multiple digital touchpoints.

For retailers, this places greater emphasis on pre-Boxing Day visibility, consistent pricing communication, and ensuring that digital content aligns with in-store availability. Boxing Day shopping in Canada is no longer a standalone event, but the culmination of weeks of research and comparison.

Practical Categories Outperform as Spending Becomes Purposeful

The types of products Canadians purchase on Boxing Day have also evolved. Spending has become more utilitarian, with practical categories outperforming discretionary luxury segments. Apparel remains a standout, particularly women’s clothing, which continues to over-index during Boxing Week.

In contrast, categories such as jewelry underperform relative to the national average. This suggests that consumers are prioritizing wardrobe refreshes, everyday essentials, and household needs rather than indulgent or symbolic purchases. Boxing Day has become less about splurging and more about completing practical shopping lists.

This trend aligns with broader economic signals, as households balance cautious optimism with disciplined spending. Retailers that position Boxing Day assortments around functionality, quality, and clear value propositions are better aligned with current consumer expectations.

Boxing Day Reflects Distinctly Canadian Shopping Behaviour

“While Black Friday has become increasingly American in tone and timing, Boxing Day continues to reflect Canadian shopping behaviour,” Pellegrini added. “It’s more measured, more intentional, and more closely tied to how households actually plan their spending.”

This distinction is critical for retailers seeking to balance global promotional calendars with local consumer realities. Boxing Day shopping in Canada is not simply a legacy event, but a uniquely Canadian expression of value-seeking that emphasizes timing, preparation, and confidence.

The findings are drawn from Vividata’s Fall 2025 SCC | Study of the Canadian Consumer and Vividata’s Fall 2025 SCC/Digital. Together, these studies represent Canada’s largest syndicated research into consumer behaviour, based on responses from more than 75,000 Canadians nationwide.

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WingsUp! sees delivery drive growth, expansion

By
Mario Toneguzzi
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Fresh never frozen (CNW Group/WingsUp! Restaurants)

Across Canada, the takeout-and-delivery model has quietly become one of the strongest pillars of the foodservice industry. As dining habits evolve, consumers are increasingly prioritizing speed, convenience and food that travels well – not just for dinner, but for office lunches, weekend gatherings and group events.

Many restaurant operators are now adapting their business models accordingly. Some are redesigning kitchens to support higher delivery volumes, others are upgrading packaging and many are expanding catering options to meet the rise in group orders.

Darren Czarnogorski, President of WingsUp! restaurants, has been watching these shifts closely.

“We’re seeing consumers embrace takeout and catering not as an occasional convenience, but as an everyday solution,” said Czarnogorski. “Good food that travels well has become its own category – and it’s changing how restaurants operate.”

WingsUp! restaurants were built on a takeout-first model long before it became mainstream, and they’re now experiencing significant growth not only in delivery, but also in group orders and catering for offices, sports teams and community events. 

Darren Czarnogorski
Darren Czarnogorski

Czarnogorski said delivery continues to anchor the company’s business model as the chain expands across Western Canada.

He said the company currently has 38 locations and is building another in Surrey, B.C. He added that WingsUp! is also working to finalize a lease for a site in the north end of Calgary. 

“You never really know until we sign it, but we’re having some good conversations,” he said.

Czarnogorski said delivery accounts for between 60 and 70 per cent of the company’s sales. 

“That’s a huge chunk of our business,” he said. He added that WingsUp! was built around the idea that consumers would increasingly eat at home rather than in restaurants. “People want more delivery options at home,” he said.

He said the shift in consumer habits has made large dine-in restaurants less viable, especially as rent costs increase.

 “People’s habits have changed,” he said, adding that COVID-19 accelerated the move away from going out. He said people feel less need to socialize in person because they follow friends on social media, and many prefer to stay home because time is limited.

Czarnogorski said that emphasis on delivery has influenced how WingsUp! manages food quality in transit. “Whenever we can, we try to do deliveries with our own drivers,” he said, noting that in-house couriers allow better control of timing, handling and presentation.

He said packaging is also central to the product experience. “Packaging has to absorb moisture,” he said. He explained that paperboard and cardboard prevent condensation that can make food soggy, unlike plastic containers and bags. “The key is quick delivery,” he added.

Source: WingsUp!
Source: WingsUp!

Czarnogorski said workplaces have begun ordering more catered meals as employers try to entice staff back into offices. “Catering is a big part of it for sure,” he said.

The company’s busiest periods, he said, arrive in late September and again in November and December. “People like delivery when it’s cold,” he said, adding that families tend to stay home to watch sports and movies during those times. “This is the best time of year for our business.”

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AI-Driven Pricing May Be the Next Shock to Canadian Grocery Shoppers

By
Sylvain Charlebois
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Loblaws store at Maple Leaf Gardens in downtown Toronto. Photo: Echo Chamber

Canadians have grown accustomed to a lot when buying food. Shrinkflation has reduced package sizes. Skimpflation has diluted quality. Loyalty programs increasingly resemble surveillance rather than savings. Prices often feel disconnected from what is happening at the farmgate. Yet 2026 may mark a more consequential shift: consumers realizing that artificial intelligence itself may be pushing grocery bills higher, not because food costs more to produce, but because the industry knows more about them, individually.

At the center of this shift is dynamic pricing. The practice is not new. Airlines, hotels, and ride-sharing platforms have used it for years, and consumers, however begrudgingly, accept the logic. Groceries are different. Food is not a discretionary purchase. It is a necessity, and the social contract around food pricing has long been grounded in predictability and fairness. That contract is now under pressure.

Crucially, this is no longer just an online issue. With the rapid adoption of digital shelf labels, dynamic pricing can now be deployed inside physical grocery stores. Prices can change in real time and potentially vary by location, timing, or consumer profile. The line between online and in-store pricing is disappearing, bringing algorithmic price-setting directly into the aisles.

Charging different consumers different prices for the same food, in the same store, at the same time, simply because an algorithm decides so crosses an ethical line. Evidence from the United States suggests this is already happening. A recent investigation by Consumer Reports, the Groundwork Collaborative, and More Perfect Union asked 437 shoppers in four cities to purchase identical grocery baskets online at the same time. Nearly three-quarters of items appeared at multiple prices, with some products showing as many as five different price points. On average, price differences reached 13 percent per item and about 7 percent across entire baskets.

Digital price tags via AI-driven pricing allow for rapid price changes in the grocery store. Photo: Popular Science

At one Seattle grocery store, identical baskets ranged from roughly $114 to $124, a spread of more than nine dollars on a single order. Extrapolated over a year, researchers estimate that such pricing variability could cost a family up to $1,200 annually. For households already struggling with food affordability, that is not insignificant.

Once pricing becomes individualized—or appears arbitrary—trust erodes quickly. Consumers are no longer comparing stores; they are unknowingly being compared against each other. Whether online or in-store, the checkout ceases to be a level playing field.

Platforms argue these are limited tests to optimize pricing. But consumers never consented to be part of experiments involving essential goods. Algorithms are trained on data—purchase history, location, loyalty activity—and when pricing decisions are opaque, “randomness” begins to resemble profit maximization by design. Digital shelf labels simply make this easier to execute, faster and at scale.

Canada is already grappling with food affordability and declining trust in pricing. Governments are debating transparency and codes of conduct precisely because consumers feel squeezed. Introducing opaque, AI-driven price variability into this environment—especially in physical stores—would only worsen that distrust.

This is not a rejection of technology. AI can reduce waste, improve forecasting, and strengthen supply chains. But using it to quietly test how much more consumers will pay, without disclosure or consent, breaches a fundamental expectation of fairness.

If two people buy the same food, from the same store, at the same time, they should pay the same price. Full stop. If pricing experiments exist, consumers should be told. And if fairness cannot be guaranteed for essential goods, regulators should intervene—decisively.

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Canadian Retail News From Around The Web For December 19, 2025

By
Retail Insider
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Canadian Retail News From Around The Web

News at a Glance

Retail Insider is streamlining its Canadian retail news from around the web to include a handful of top news stories that can be viewed quickly during the day. Here are the top stories from the past 48 hours.

Canada shoppers face first holiday season without Hudson’s Bay since 1881 (Costar)

Lululemon shares up after Elliott Management builds US$1B stake, seeks CEO change (The Canadian Press)

Massive retail theft ring dismantled in three province police operation, 21 charged (CityNews Toronto)

Thieves dressed as Santa and his elves steal $3K worth of goods from Montreal grocery store (CBC)

Shop Canadian this holiday season at the Buy Canadian online department store (NOW Toronto)

B.C. supermarket to pay $750,000 over washroom videos that ended up on Russian porn site (CTV)

New Ethnic Supermarket to open in Burlington, Ont. in September (Grocery Business)

Ottawa’s “shoeman” laces up for retirement; Kiddie Kobbler St. Laurent set to close (CTV)

Organized crime group busted in theft of over $1M in drugstore face creams, razors in Ontario and Quebec (CBC)

Victoria businesses and police reshaping the ‘wild west’ image of downtown (Vancouver Island Free Daily)

NRG Haus to Bring Social Wellness Club to Liberty Village (6ix Retail)

The ultimate holiday gift guide to Toronto’s Roncesvalles neighbourhood (BlogTO)

Actual Body Opens Regenerative Wellness Clinic in Toronto 

By
Craig Patterson
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Actual Body Toronto. Photo: Pat Ryder

Actual Body Toronto has officially opened its first regenerative wellness clinic near Yonge and Sheppard, introducing a concept that blends science-based treatments with a hospitality-influenced guest experience. The clinic, which opened September 30, brings acoustic wave therapy, autologous exosome treatments, and a focused men’s sexual health program to a neighbourhood where demand for innovative health services is growing rapidly.

Founded by entrepreneur Ricky Fung, best known for creating the well-established Chronic Ink tattoo brand, Actual Body Toronto is an expansion into the wellness category. The clinic aims to deliver regenerative treatments that help support sexual function, pain reduction, hair restoration, and long-term skin health. With design, technology, and a wellness philosophy shaping the concept, the new clinic enters a competitive Toronto market with a distinct offering.

“We are building something grounded in science and guided by the belief that the body already knows how to repair itself,” says Fung. “Actual Body is designed to support that process rather than replace it.”

Ricky Fung

A Founder Known for Spotting Emerging Cultural Shifts

Fung has spent almost two decades building businesses that bridge culture, personal expression, and wellness. Chronic Ink’s rise from a single location to a multi-city creative brand reflected a period when tattoos were shifting into mainstream acceptance. The company, known for specializing in Neo-Traditional Asian tattooing, expanded across Toronto, Vancouver, Las Vegas, New York, and Taiwan.

His entry into regenerative wellness began with a personal experience. After living with a shoulder injury for more than 20 years, Fung visited a small clinic in Scarborough on the recommendation of a friend. A single acoustic wave therapy session resolved his chronic pain, prompting him to research the science behind it. The experience became the catalyst for what eventually evolved into Actual Body Toronto.

“It was unexpected,” says Fung. “I had tried every treatment available. Suddenly the pain was gone. That pushed me to dig deeper into how the technology worked.”

Fung spent months studying the clinical literature, meeting practitioners, testing equipment, and exploring supplier networks. He later secured exclusive Canadian rights to a proprietary acoustic wave therapy device used in men’s health and orthopedic applications, laying the groundwork for the clinic’s launch.

Regenerative Therapies Driving Growth in the Canadian Wellness Category

Actual Body Toronto is centered on two core technologies that are increasingly influencing the global wellness market: Acoustic Wave Therapy and autologous exosome therapy.

Acoustic Wave Therapy, or AWT, uses controlled sound waves to stimulate blood flow, promote microvascular development, and support tissue regeneration. It is widely used internationally for sexual health, injury recovery, circulation improvement, and certain aesthetic goals.

At Actual Body Toronto, AWT is offered across four categories: sexual health rejuvenation, cellulite reduction, pain relief, and non-surgical fat loss acceleration.

Men’s sexual health has become one of the clinic’s strongest-performing service lines, driven by both clinical outcomes and increased consumer openness around sexual wellbeing. Fung notes that many clients are seeking alternatives to pharmaceuticals or invasive procedures, and AWT offers a non-surgical option with measurable results.

This category includes one of the most significant findings from the clinic’s early testing: measurable increases in penile size among participants undergoing AWT for erectile function.

Photo: Actual Body Toronto

Clinical Findings on Erectile Function and Size Enhancement

Before launching the business, Fung recruited 20 volunteers from his personal network to test the AWT device under informal but evidence-informed conditions. Nineteen participants reported measurable improvements in erectile strength, firmness, and function. Many also documented increases in penile size ranging from 0.4 inches to approximately one inch after completing a series of sessions.

The results appear to align with broader research on angiogenesis, the process by which AWT stimulates new blood vessel formation. Fung says this regenerative response can lead not only to improved erectile performance but also, in certain cases, increased size.

“The mechanism is biological,” says Fung. “When microvascular density increases and circulation improves, tissue is better supported. What we have seen in our early testing is that this can lead to a measurable change in size for some clients. It is a regenerative outcome rather than an artificial enlargement.”

Sessions take only a few minutes, require no anesthesia or recovery period, and rely entirely on sound-based stimulation rather than injections or surgical intervention. Fung says the accessibility of the treatment has lowered barriers for men who might not otherwise seek help for sexual health concerns.

“We see clients across a wide age range,” he says. “For many of them, improvements in function or confidence are life-changing.”

The clinic expects this service category to remain a key pillar of its business as demand continues to grow in the GTA and across Canada.

Photo: Actual Body Toronto

Autologous Exosome Therapy and the Expansion of Regenerative Aesthetics

The second major offering at Actual Body Toronto is autologous exosome therapy. Exosomes are naturally occurring messenger cells responsible for delivering regenerative signals within the body. At Actual Body, they are derived from a client’s own platelet-rich plasma, processed, stabilized, and then used in treatments related to hair restoration, skin rejuvenation, and anti-aging.

These treatments complement the clinic’s regenerative focus by leveraging the body’s own cellular communication system. According to Fung, clients are looking for skincare and anti-aging solutions that feel more natural and deliver gradual, compounding improvements.

“This is a category with significant potential,” says Fung. “It gives clients a way to work with their biology, not against it.”

Exosome stabilization is a key differentiator. Once extracted from the body, exosomes typically lose efficacy quickly. Actual Body Toronto uses a laboratory process that encapsulates and preserves them, allowing for both microneedling treatments and topical applications that penetrate the skin barrier.

The clinic expects the exosome program to become an anchor for its broader expansion strategy.

Hullmark Centre at 4773 Yonge St in Toronto. Photo: Metropolitan Commercial Realty

A Design Strategy That Supports the Clinic’s Positioning

Actual Body Toronto also distinguishes itself through the design of its physical space. The 800-square-foot clinic was developed with VLC Studio and creative director Vanessa Cesario to create a calming, cocoon-like environment. Walls feature a warm limewash finish in Cardamom by Bauwerk, while a curved glass block wall offers visibility into the clinic’s lab.

Brushed steel millwork and a sculptural Concord Lighting installation composed of more than 100 hand-assembled fins contribute to a modern, wellness-forward aesthetic. A signature scent supplied by Saje, combined with a pre-treatment grounding session through a headset-based relaxation program, reinforces the clinic’s emphasis on sensory experience.

“We designed the clinic to be restorative from the moment a client walks in,” says Fung. “The treatments are technical, but the environment is built for comfort.”

Actual Body Toronto. Photo: Pat Ryder

Client Outcomes Illustrate Demand for Regenerative Care

Although the clinic is new, Fung says early client outcomes have reinforced the need for accessible regenerative treatments in Toronto. Clients with longstanding injuries, such as chronic back or shoulder pain, have reported improvements after only a few sessions. Others seeking greater sexual confidence or improved performance have sent feedback describing meaningful changes in daily life.

One client with severe pain following a motorcycle accident reported experiencing her first pain-free day in more than 18 years. Another, in his sixties, regained erectile function without the need for injections after completing a series of AWT sessions. A younger client shared that improvements in performance helped resolve long-standing confidence issues in intimate settings.

“These stories matter because they highlight the human impact,” says Fung. “People want treatments that work and that fit their lives.”

Photo: Actual Body Toronto

A Hybrid Business Model Positioned for Scale

While Actual Body Toronto offers a full range of in-clinic services today, Fung says the company will refine its approach as it prepares for expansion. The long-term model is hybrid, combining in-house services with a wholesale product distribution strategy.

The clinic will continue to offer sexual health treatments, including erectile dysfunction programs and performance-focused AWT sessions, as well as select pain-management services. These categories align with the clinic’s exclusive technology rights and deliver clear differentiation in the market.

The cosmetic and skincare components, particularly exosome-based products, will transition into a wholesale model aimed at medical spas, dermatology clinics, and cosmetic practices. Rather than competing with established providers, Actual Body Toronto intends to supply them.

“Thousands of clinics already have the clients,” says Fung. “We can complement what they do by providing the regenerative component.”

Fung notes that his previous experience running a wholesale body jewelry business gives the company an advantage in building a scalable distribution network.

Positioning in a Changing Toronto Wellness Landscape

Toronto has seen a significant rise in wellness concepts over the past decade, including IV therapy lounges, infrared studios, functional health clinics, and recovery centres. Consumers are increasingly seeking non-invasive treatments grounded in science, particularly those that focus on longevity and regenerative outcomes.

Actual Body Toronto is entering the market at a time when wellness is becoming a larger component of mixed-use retail environments. Neighbourhoods like Yonge and Sheppard, which combine high-density residential towers with transit accessibility and service-oriented retail, offer a strong environment for growth.

Fung says the location supports clients seeking privacy and convenience. “People want wellness services close to home,” he says. “This neighbourhood gives us access to a diverse and engaged client base.”

Actual Body Toronto is now open at 4773 Yonge Street, Unit 3D, in Toronto.

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Is Your Toronto Commercial Lease Ready for World Cup 2026?

By
Retail Insider
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Financial District in Toronto. Photo: Destination Toronto

By Arman Poushin, Associate in the Commercial Leasing Practice Group at WeirFoulds Toronto

December 5 and 6, 2025 marked major milestones on the road to the FIFA World Cup 2026™. The final groups were drawn on December 5, and the next day FIFA revealed the schedule confirming where every match will be played and when the action will kick off. Toronto will host six World Cup games, including one knockout-round match, guaranteeing massive crowds, global attention, and a summer unlike anything local businesses have seen before.

As bars, restaurants, hotels, retailers, and event spaces begin planning viewing parties and special programming, one question cannot be ignored: Is your commercial lease ready for the World Cup?

With the tournament expected to draw thousands of visitors into the city, even the most routine business operations can turn into potential leasing issues. Thinking ahead now can prevent last-minute headaches when the World Cup kicks off in June 2026.

Start with your lease!

The excitement around hosting World Cup events can make it easy for businesses to forget that many of their planned initiatives like adding themed decorations, expanding patios, hosting ticketed events, installing extra television screens, opening earlier or staying open later may directly conflict with their lease provisions.

A quick refresher on the lease can make all the difference.

For example, signage provisions in your lease often control what can go on windows, patios, or storefronts. A tenant might assume that hanging flags or World Cup banners is harmless, but many leases limit temporary signage or require landlord approval and consent before anything can go up on the exterior of the premises. Check your lease to ensure that hanging any banners or flags, or adding new signage, will be permitted. If not, ask your landlord for consent! And if the signage even looks like FIFA branding, that will introduce a whole different compliance issue (discussed below).

The permitted use clause may also be more limiting than tenants expect. A bar that casually shows sports on television probably won’t have issues with standard match-day viewing, but a full-scale viewing party, a ticketed event, or an outdoor projection screen may go beyond the lease’s scope. The same goes for retail tenants who might want to host crowd-drawing promotions tied to the tournament. Check your permitted use clause to ensure that you are actually permitted to show the games. Lastly, if you intend on serving alcohol during the games, ensure that your lease permits you to do so.

Before you start setting up tables and chairs outside, ensure that your lease permits you to use the outdoor area as a patio. You may also need to or want to apply for the CaféTO program, which has its own set of guidelines. Landlords and tenants should consider noise restrictions and rules around operating hours which become relevant for match times, which don’t always align with ordinary business hours. Landlords, especially in mixed-use developments, often set specific opening and closing times, and those don’t automatically change just because Canada is playing.

Even cost-sharing provisions may come into play. Many leases allow landlords to pass through increased operating expenses. More crowds can mean higher utilities, security needs, and waste removal. Tenants planning big events should anticipate that those additional costs might show up in their operating expense reconciliations.

The takeaway? Reviewing the lease now gives businesses room to adjust their plans or seek approvals well before the tournament kicks off.

Photo: The Rabbit Hole

Toronto Will Be Watching – And So Will City Officials

Beyond the lease, tenants should expect heightened attention from the City of Toronto. The City has been clear that it will enforce bylaws related to noise, signage, patios, crowd management, business licensing, and vending. Businesses that push the envelope without permits may face fines or charges. If City staff suspect counterfeit merchandise or improper use of FIFA trademarks, they may also escalate the issue to the rights-holders.

Tenants planning viewing parties should confirm early whether they need special event permits, patio extensions, noise exemptions, or any zoning-related approvals not just from the landlord but from the City. The City’s Community Activation Toolkit (link below) is a helpful starting point, but it doesn’t replace the need to check your lease and talk to your landlord. Most leases include clauses requiring tenants to comply with all applicable laws, by-laws, and regulations. Tenants who are unaware of licensing requirements could unintentionally violate their lease by holding unauthorized or illegal events.

FIFA’s Rules: A Different Layer of Compliance

As if lease provisions and municipal bylaws weren’t enough, businesses hosting World Cup-related events also need to be mindful of FIFA’s strict intellectual property protections.

FIFA’s logos, emblems, mascots, and branded terms like FIFA World Cup™ and FWC26™ are protected worldwide. Businesses can’t use them in signage, menus, or storefront displays unless they have formal authorization. Adding phrases like “unofficial viewing party” won’t fix a violation.

On top of that, FIFA has its own licensing regime for public viewing events. The rules depend on the nature of the event:

  • Regular bars, restaurants, and hotels can show matches on their existing screens without a license, as long as they don’t charge admission, add event-specific sponsors, or host more than 1,000 people.
  • Larger or more elaborate events do require a license, including outdoor gatherings, ticketed events, or anything involving sponsors or large screens.

Applications should be submitted at least 60 days in advance through FIFA’s online Public Viewing Platform. Landlords should also keep an eye on this, as improper use of FIFA branding by a tenant can create reputational or even legal exposure for the property.

FIFA logos

Making the Most of the Moment, Without Breaching the Lease

For tenants, the best approach is to treat the World Cup like a temporary but major operational shift. That means:

  • Reviewing the lease now, not a week before kickoff.
  • Talking to the landlord early about any approvals or flexibility needed.
  • Confirming any municipal permits well in advance.
  • Making sure no marketing materials imply FIFA affiliation.
  • Getting clarity on potential additional rent or operating expense impacts.

For landlords, World Cup planning can be an opportunity to improve tenant communication and building coordination. Establishing consistent rules around signage, noise, patio extensions, crowd control, and FIFA branding can help prevent disputes and keep the property running smoothly.

Final Thoughts

With Toronto hosting six World Cup matches, the summer of 2026 will be one of the busiest and most exciting periods the city has ever experienced. For commercial tenants, it represents a tremendous business opportunity. However, without proper planning, the same crowds and celebrations that draw customers could also create unintended lease disputes, regulatory issues, and licensing problems.

By reviewing their leases, understanding the City’s expectations, and respecting FIFA’s rules, businesses can take full advantage of the World Cup while keeping their operations smooth, compliant, and ready for kickoff.

Should you have any questions about your lease rights, or should you have any other commercial leasing questions, please reach out to Arman Poushin at apoushin@weirfoulds.com or by telephone at 416-947-5018.

City of Toronto Community Activation Toolkit [PDF]

City of Toronto’s FIFA World Cup 26™ website

Arman Poushin is an associate in the Commercial Leasing Practice Group at WeirFoulds. He practises commercial real estate law, advising landlords and tenants on retail, industrial, and office leasing matters, including lease drafting, negotiations, amendments, and due diligence. He previously worked at a large real estate developer and brings a practical, client-focused approach to his leasing practice, with a strong understanding of the Greater Toronto Area market.

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Jim Pattison Group Buys Cherry Lane Shopping Centre

By
Craig Patterson
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Cherry Lane Shopping Centre in Penticton, BC. Photo: JLL

Penticton’s Cherry Lane Shopping Centre has changed hands, with the Jim Pattison Group completing the acquisition of the long-standing retail property from Manulife. The transaction, confirmed in early December, marks a significant shift in ownership for the only enclosed shopping centre serving the South Okanagan and Similkameen regions, and comes at a pivotal moment for the asset following the closure of its former anchor tenant, Hudson’s Bay.

The developments arm of the Jim Pattison Group confirmed that the purchase closed on December 3, according to reporting by Penticton Western News. While the sale price was not disclosed, public assessment data places the value of the property at $68.7 million, suggesting the transaction occurred in the tens of millions of dollars. The shopping centre had been formally listed for sale in late July 2025, shortly after Hudson’s Bay ceased operations at the mall as part of the retailer’s broader bankruptcy-related shutdowns across Canada.

Located at 2111 Main Street, Cherry Lane Shopping Centre occupies a highly visible site with direct access from Penticton’s main commercial corridor and proximity to Highway 97. The property has been a central feature of the city’s retail landscape for five decades, having originally opened in 1975 as Penticton’s first enclosed regional mall.

A Longstanding Retail Anchor in the South Okanagan

Cherry Lane Shopping Centre was developed in the mid-1970s at a time when Penticton’s retail environment was largely defined by downtown high-street stores and smaller commercial nodes. Its enclosed format, extensive surface parking, and full-line department store anchor represented a change in how residents shopped locally. The centre officially opened in 1975 following a community naming contest that selected the name “Cherry Lane Shopping Centre,” a reflection of both the region’s agricultural heritage and the mall’s role as a new civic gathering place.

At opening, the mall featured Woodward’s as its primary anchor tenant, giving Penticton access to a major British Columbia-based department store for the first time. Local recollections of the period often describe the opening as a moment when the city “felt significantly different,” underscoring the cultural and economic impact of the development. Woodward’s offered a broad assortment spanning apparel, home goods, food, and general merchandise, positioning Cherry Lane as a true one-stop shopping destination for residents of Penticton and surrounding communities.

Following the collapse of the Woodward’s chain in the early 1990s, the anchor space transitioned through several retail eras, reflecting broader changes in the Canadian department store sector. Over time, Cherry Lane’s anchor lineup evolved to include Hudson’s Bay, London Drugs, and Save-On-Foods, alongside a mix of national chains, regional retailers, and local service providers.

Cherry Lane Shopping Centre in Penticton, BC. Photo: JLL

Current Scale, Tenant Mix, and Foot Traffic

Today, Cherry Lane Shopping Centre comprises just under 280,000 square feet of retail space and is home to approximately 50 stores. The tenant mix emphasizes everyday and essential retail categories, a positioning that has helped the centre maintain relevance despite increased competition from power centres, big-box clusters, and regional malls in larger markets such as Kelowna.

Current tenants include Save-On-Foods, London Drugs, Best Buy Express, Coles Bookstore, Royal LePage, The Shoe Company, Booster Juice, several jewelry retailers, and a range of fashion and service-oriented businesses. This blend reflects a shift away from traditional fashion-led mall merchandising toward grocery, pharmacy, value, and convenience-driven retail, a trend seen across many mid-sized Canadian markets.

According to marketing materials published by JLL Capital Services, which has managed the property for several years, Cherry Lane attracts approximately 2.5 million shoppers annually. This figure reinforces the centre’s continued role as the primary enclosed retail hub for the region. The site spans approximately nine hectares and includes parking capacity for more than 1,100 vehicles on the main parcel, along with an additional 1.5-acre parking lot located across Warren Avenue West that forms part of the same legal property.

Entry sign to the Cherry Lane Shopping Centre in Penticton, BC. Photo: JLL

The Hudson’s Bay Closure and Sale Timing

The sale of Cherry Lane Shopping Centre is closely tied to the departure of Hudson’s Bay, which closed its Penticton store in June following the retailer’s bankruptcy proceedings. The closure left a large anchor box vacant, estimated at roughly 94,600 square feet, and materially altered the centre’s near-term leasing profile. The loss of the Bay also created both a challenge and an opportunity for the property, particularly in the context of repositioning or redevelopment.

Manulife, through Manulife Investment Management, had owned the property for several years prior to the sale, with day-to-day operations handled by JLL Capital Services. In 2025, the asset was formally marketed with guidance in the high-$60-million range, aligning with BC Assessment’s valuation of $68.7 million. Marketing materials highlighted the stability of the existing tenant base, the centre’s strong traffic levels, and the potential to re-tenant or redevelop the former department store space.

The timing of the sale, roughly five months after the property was listed, suggests strong investor interest in well-located community malls, particularly those with grocery anchors and redevelopment optionality. For the Jim Pattison Group, the acquisition aligns with a long-established strategy of owning and operating grocery-anchored and community-focused retail assets in Western Canada.

Jim Pattison Developments and Its Retail Strategy

Cherry Lane Shopping Centre will fall under the umbrella of Jim Pattison Developments, the real estate arm of the Jim Pattison Group. Headquartered in Vancouver, Jim Pattison Developments operates as an independent business unit within one of Canada’s largest privately held companies. The firm focuses on the ownership, development, and management of commercial and residential properties across Canada and, increasingly, the United States.

Jim Pattison Developments formally emerged as a distinct business in 2006, although the broader Jim Pattison Group has been active since 1961 across sectors including food retail, automotive, media, packaging, forestry, and entertainment. Leadership includes David Bell as President, supported by an in-house team covering development, asset management, leasing, design, construction, and finance. This vertically integrated structure allows the company to pursue long-term ownership strategies while maintaining flexibility in how assets are repositioned over time.

A core component of the firm’s portfolio has been grocery-anchored shopping centres, many of which are closely aligned with Pattison Food Group banners such as Save-On-Foods. By the mid-2010s, Jim Pattison Developments controlled more than 10 million square feet of income-producing assets, a figure that has grown through continued acquisitions and development activity. The acquisition of Cherry Lane fits squarely within this strategy, particularly given the presence of Save-On-Foods as a key anchor tenant.

One of Cherry Lane Shopping Centre’s distinguishing features is its immediate proximity to residential density, a factor that adds to its long-term strategic value. Multiple residential buildings are located directly behind the mall, including the 11-storey Cherry Lane Towers and the Athens Creek Towers. This existing population base supports daily foot traffic and reinforces the centre’s role as a community shopping node rather than a purely discretionary destination.

The presence of residential towers also raises the prospect of future densification or mixed-use redevelopment, particularly on underutilized portions of the site or within the former Hudson’s Bay footprint. 

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Simpsons WWII Roll of Honour Finds New Home at TD Museum

By
Craig Patterson
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Simpsons WWII Roll of Honour dedication ceremony, November 2025. Photo: TD

An important piece of Canadian retail and wartime history has found a permanent new home in downtown Toronto. The Simpsons Roll of Honour, a historical memorial commemorating employees of the former Simpsons department store who died during the Second World War, has been installed at the TD Terrace museum on Front Street West.

The plaque, which lists the names of employees who “made the supreme sacrifice,” was unveiled in November at TD’s publicly accessible museum space. Its installation marks the preservation of a rare retail-based war memorial at a time when the physical legacy of Canada’s traditional department store sector is rapidly disappearing.

From Department Store Landmark to Cultural Artifact

For decades, the Roll of Honour was displayed inside Hudson’s Bay Company’s flagship store on Queen Street in Toronto. Hudson’s Bay acquired Simpsons in 1978, inheriting not only the retail business but also responsibility for the memorial, which remained on display through multiple store renovations and ownership changes.

The memorial’s future became uncertain in 2025, when Hudson’s Bay closed its department stores across Canada amid insolvency proceedings. As locations shuttered and assets were prepared for liquidation, historically significant artifacts housed within the stores, including war memorials, required urgent decisions about their long-term care.

Rather than being sold or placed into private collections, the Simpsons Roll of Honour was gifted to TD Bank Group, ensuring its preservation and continued public access.

Simpsons WWII Roll of Honour dedication ceremony, November 2025. Photo: TD

A Meaningful Return to a Historic Site

The Roll of Honour now resides in TD’s museum inside the street-level branch of the TD Terrace building. The location carries historical resonance. The site was once home to the R. W. Simpson Warehouse, established in 1905 by Robert Simpson as part of the mail-order business that later grew into the Simpsons department store empire.

“The museum is a publicly accessible site, so we can maintain the connection between the Roll of Honour and the community,” said Amy Korczynski, Curator and Manager, Corporate Heritage Collections at TD.

“It’s now the Bank’s to care for in perpetuity, alongside the TD war memorials that document the service of TD employees.”

The placement connects multiple layers of Canadian commercial history, linking a legacy retailer, a major Canadian bank, and the individuals whose names are inscribed on the memorial.

World War 2 memorial of lost Simpsons employees at Hudson’s Bay Queen Street in Toronto. The memorial wall is beside the escalators on the main floor of the store. There are calls to save the memorial. Photo taken April 24, 2025 by Craig Patterson

Ensuring Public Access and Long-Term Stewardship

Korczynski emphasized that the decision to install the memorial at TD Terrace ensures it remains visible and accessible to the public.

Installing the plaque at the museum allows anyone, whether they have a personal connection to the people listed, have served themselves, or have family members who served, to visit and reflect on its significance.

The museum setting also places the Roll of Honour within a broader historical narrative, surrounded by artifacts documenting more than a century of Canadian business, banking, and civic life.

Simpsons WWII Roll of Honour dedication ceremony, November 2025. Photo: TD

A Ceremony of Remembrance

The Roll of Honour was officially unveiled during a small ceremony attended by members of TD Salutes, the bank’s employee resource group made up of veterans, reservists, and allies across North America.

Korczynski said the ceremony carried a powerful reminder of the importance of remembrance.

“There was a really meaningful remark at the event about how after you die, you die a second death when no one says your name anymore,” she said.

“We’re giving visibility to the names of these people who put everything on the line and did not come home.”

The ceremony reinforced the memorial’s purpose, not only as a historical artifact but as a living reminder of individual sacrifice.

Simpsons WWII Roll of Honour, now in a new location in Toronto open to the public. Photo: TD

War Memorials in Canadian Retail Spaces

War memorials embedded within retail environments represent a lesser-known but important part of Canada’s cultural landscape. Department stores such as Simpsons and Hudson’s Bay historically served as major employers and community hubs, particularly during the first half of the twentieth century.

The memorials honoured young men who worked in retail before enlisting, many of them in their late teens. As the decades passed, these plaques became, in many cases, the final physical record of their lives and service.

By 2025, nearly 80 years after the end of the Second World War, few direct personal connections to those named on the memorials remained. The plaques themselves became critical carriers of memory.

Historical Simpsons branding revealed on the former Hudson’s Bay building at 176 Yonge Street, October 12, 2025. The building was occupied by Simpsons from the late 1800s to 1991. Photo: Craig Patterson

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BHC Chicken Tests Canadian Market With Toronto Flagship

By
Craig Patterson
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Photo: BHC Chicken
BHC Chicken at The Well in Toronto. Photo: BHC Chicken

BHC Chicken has quietly used its first Canadian restaurant as a proving ground for broader North American ambitions. After opening at The Well in downtown Toronto in October 2024, the Korean fried chicken brand has spent its first year observing customer behaviour, refining operations, and assessing what it takes to scale responsibly in a demanding urban market.

Located at 486 Front Street West within The Well’s Wellington Market, the roughly 2,560 square foot restaurant with seating for about 90 guests serves as BHC’s North American flagship. The store anchors the brand’s entry into Canada and reflects a deliberate strategy to test performance in a diverse, high-expectation city before accelerating expansion.

“BHC Chicken is the No.1 brand in the Korean fried chicken market, built around proprietary recipes and a strong focus on operational consistency,” said Hwayeon Nam, Senior Executive Director of Dining Brands Group’s Global Business Division. “In Korea, fried chicken is part of everyday dining culture, and BHC has grown by steadily refining both the food and how it’s made and served over many years.”

Toronto, she explained, was selected not simply as a launchpad, but as a learning environment. “Toronto felt like the right place to begin in Canada. It’s a city where people are open to different cuisines but also very clear about their expectations. From the start, we saw Toronto not just as an entry point, but as a place to understand how a single BHC store performs in a diverse, high-expectation market.”

BHC Chicken celebration party at The Well in Toronto. Photo: BHC Chicken

Measuring Early Demand in a Competitive Market

During its first year of operation, the Toronto location recorded more than 110,000 visitors, a figure that BHC views as validation of underlying demand rather than a singular success metric. According to Nam, what mattered most was repeat visitation.

“Reaching more than 110,000 visitors in the first year suggested there is steady demand for Korean fried chicken in Canada,” she said. “More important than the number itself was seeing customers return over time, which showed that the experience met their expectations.”

Toronto’s dining landscape includes an increasingly crowded field of Korean fried chicken operators, ranging from independent concepts to international chains. While BHC anticipated strong engagement from Korean and broader Asian communities, the breadth of its customer base proved notable.

“While we expected interest from Korean and Asian communities, what stood out was how naturally non-Korean customers engaged with the menu,” Nam said. “Many were open to bold, seasoning-forward flavors and comfortable making BHC part of their regular dining choices.”

For BHC, the takeaway was clear. “The first year reinforced a simple point for us: cultural curiosity may bring customers in, but consistency and execution are what keep them coming back.”

Photo: BHC Chicken
BHC Chicken at The Well in Toronto. Photo: BHC Chicken

Menu Performance and Operational Adjustments

BHC entered Toronto with its core menu intact, led by signature offerings such as Bburinkle, Matcho King, and Gold King, flavours that have driven tens of millions of servings globally. These items performed strongly, reinforcing the brand’s confidence in its proprietary seasoning and sauce systems.

“Our core chicken items, especially those built around BHC’s signature seasonings and sauces, were received very well,” Nam said. “These flavors are central to the brand and difficult to replicate.”

Operating a busy downtown restaurant also surfaced areas that required refinement. The Toronto store experienced peak-time traffic patterns and service demands that differed from some Asian markets, prompting adjustments to menu balance and service flow.

“At the same time, operating a busy Toronto location highlighted areas that needed adjustment,” Nam said. “We fine-tuned menu balance and service flow to better match local dining habits and peak-time traffic.”

Those changes, she added, were informed by experience rather than experimentation. “One advantage BHC brings to this market is experience. The systems behind the food, recipes, training, and daily operations have been tested over time, which allowed us to make thoughtful adjustments rather than constant changes.”

Using Toronto as an Operational Benchmark

BHC’s Toronto location now serves as an internal reference point for evaluating future stores across Canada and the United States. According to Nam, the first year provided a realistic picture of what it takes to operate in a North American urban environment.

“The first year in Toronto gave us a realistic view of what it takes to operate in a North American urban environment,” she said. “We saw how supply, staffing, costs, and customer flow come together in practice.”

Rather than pursuing rapid multi-unit openings, the company is taking a measured approach built around single-unit franchised restaurants. Initial expansion will remain concentrated in Toronto and the broader Ontario market.

“With that experience, we’re now looking to expand through additional single-unit franchise locations, starting in Toronto and the broader Ontario area,” Nam said. “We’re also beginning to apply what we’ve learned as we explore future opportunities, keeping the focus on moving forward efficiently while staying grounded in day-to-day operations.”

Photo: BHC Chicken
BHC Chicken at The Well in Toronto. Photo: BHC Chicken

Canada’s Role in a Broader North American Strategy

While the Toronto store functions as a flagship, BHC does not view it as a standalone showcase. Instead, it serves as a data point that informs how the brand evaluates site performance, staffing models, and operational balance.

“Canada plays an important role in how we think about North America,” Nam said. “Toronto isn’t just a showcase store. It’s a reference point. Its performance helps us understand what a healthy store looks like in terms of traffic, staffing, and overall balance.”

Ontario’s density and retail structure have made it a natural focus for near-term growth. “Ontario, in particular, has the density and market structure that allows individual stores to stand on their own,” she said. “Our approach is to build solid locations one by one, using what we’ve already learned rather than rushing ahead.”

This strategy aligns with Dining Brands Group’s broader international expansion philosophy, which emphasizes disciplined growth over rapid footprint expansion.

Maintaining Consistency Across Borders

As BHC scales further into North America, maintaining consistency remains a central concern. The company relies on centralized recipe management, structured training, and close control of key ingredients to ensure uniformity across markets.

“Consistency has always been central to BHC,” Nam said. “We rely on centralized recipe management, structured training, and close control of key ingredients to ensure the food tastes the same wherever it’s served.”

At the store level, that consistency is reinforced through standardized operating guidelines and ongoing oversight. “As we grow, the focus isn’t on changing how the food is made, but on making sure new locations are set up to execute properly from day one,” she said.

BHC Chicken one year celebration at The Well in Toronto. Photo: BHC Chicken

Word of Mouth Drives Early Momentum

Marketing efforts in Toronto have been intentionally restrained, with an emphasis on organic discovery rather than heavy promotional campaigns. According to Nam, word of mouth and social sharing proved more effective than traditional advertising.

“In Toronto, much of the traction came from word of mouth and organic social activity, supported by simple local marketing,” she said. “Customers responded more to consistency and familiarity than to heavy promotion.”

The customer base has spanned multiple demographics, unified less by age or background and more by expectations around reliability and quality. “Our customer base has been broad, young professionals, families, and people who enjoy trying different foods, but what connects them is an expectation of reliability,” Nam said. “Seeing customers return regularly has been one of the most encouraging signs for us.”

What Comes Next for BHC in Canada

Looking ahead, BHC plans to build on the foundation established in Toronto through carefully selected franchised locations across Ontario, with Canada continuing to play a strategic role in its North American footprint.

“Customers can expect to see more BHC locations, starting with additional single-unit franchised restaurants across Toronto and Ontario,” Nam said. “The first location helped us understand what works here, and we’re building from that experience as we grow.”

The company also plans to continue integrating Korean culture into the brand experience as it expands. “Our focus is on expanding in a way that stays true to the food, and the experience people expect from BHC, while gradually introducing the brand to more communities across Canada and North America,” she said. “In addition, we plan to expand and introduce more locations where customers can experience BHC’s distinctive menu along with Korean culture.”

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Canadian Retailers Face a Growing Convenience Trap

By
Jared Gordon
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Self-checkouts at Loblaw Maple Leaf Gardens (Image: Dustin Fuhs)

Self-checkout was supposed to solve everything. Labour shortages. Rising wages. Customer demand for speed. Retailers across Canada invested millions in automation, convinced that convenience would unlock growth and protect margins.

Instead, it’s created a mess. Theft is soaring. Customers are frustrated. And the promised labour savings have been wiped out by shrinkage. As Sylvain Charlebois reported in Retail Insider earlier this month, some grocers are now removing self-checkout lanes and reopening staffed registers—not out of nostalgia, but because the business case collapsed.

This is the convenience trap in action. And it’s not limited to self-checkout.

Across Canadian retail, executives are betting on convenience as their competitive strategy. Push customers to e-commerce. Automate the in-store experience. Digitize everything. Make it faster, easier, more self-serve. The assumption is simple: if we’re the most convenient option, customers will choose us and margins will improve.

But here’s what they’re missing: convenience doesn’t win. At best, it just buys you time.

Why Convenience Feels Like Strategy (But Isn’t)

The appeal of convenience is obvious. It seems measurable. Quantifiable. Modern. You can show the board a clean ROI projection. You can track adoption rates of your app. You can measure average transaction time.

But convenience investments share a critical flaw: they don’t create defensible competitive advantage. They create operational parity.

Think about self-checkout. When one grocer installs it, competitors match within months. The “convenience advantage” disappears instantly. You’ve spent millions on technology that’s now table stakes, created new operational problems (like theft and customer frustration), and you’re no more differentiated than you were before.

The same pattern plays out with digital investments. Curbside pickup. Mobile ordering. Delivery partnerships. These aren’t strategies—they’re responses to changing customer expectations. And responses, by definition, aren’t differentiation. They’re just keeping pace.

The Hidden Costs No One Talks About

Beyond the obvious costs—capital investment, technology maintenance, training—convenience strategies carry hidden penalties:

You attract the wrong customers. Convenience appeals to price-sensitive, promiscuous shoppers who will abandon you the instant someone offers marginally less friction. These aren’t loyal customers. They’re transaction-seekers.

You shift work without shifting value. As Charlebois points out, grocers have transferred labour to customers without offering any benefit. Customers now scan, bag, and troubleshoot errors while paying 27% more for food than five years ago. That’s not a value proposition. That’s asking customers to work harder and pay more for the privilege.

You create operational complexity. Every new convenience feature adds complexity to your operations. More technology to maintain. More integration points. More failure modes. And when it fails—like self-checkout’s constant “wait for assistance” messages—the convenience promise becomes a source of frustration.

Future Walmart store at Lime Ridge Mall in Hamilton. Image: Walmart Canada

The Real Winners Aren’t Competing on Convenience

Here’s where it gets interesting: the companies we think of as most convenient aren’t actually competing on convenience at all.

Take Walmart. Yes, they have stores everywhere. Yes, they offer pickup and delivery. But that’s not what they’re competing on. Walmart competes on operational excellence—massive scale, ruthlessly efficient supply chains, and supplier negotiations that let them pass savings to customers across every category.

The convenience is a feature of that operational excellence, not the strategy itself. Their “Everyday Low Prices” promise is delivered through quality execution: reliable products, consistent availability, predictable value. The convenience just makes that quality easier to access.

The convenience doesn’t create the advantage. The quality creates the advantage. The convenience just removes barriers to accessing it.

What Happens When You Start With Quality Instead

The alternative isn’t to ignore convenience. It’s to understand what convenience should actually do: enable access to the quality outcomes customers value.

This means asking different questions.

Not “How can we make checkout faster?” but “What checkout experience actually serves our customers’ needs?”

Not “How do we push more transactions to our app?” but “What problems does our app solve that improve outcomes for customers?”

Not “How do we automate everything?” but “Where does human interaction create value customers will pay for?”

When you start with quality—defining what outcomes your customers actually value—convenience becomes a tool to deliver that quality more effectively. Not the strategy itself.

Consider Decathlon or Uniqlo. Both retailers use RFID tags on merchandise. Customers drop items in a bin, the system calculates the total instantly. No scanning. No errors. No “unexpected item in the bagging area.”

That’s not convenience for convenience’s sake. It’s technology deployed to deliver a quality outcome: an accurate transaction that respects the customer’s time and trust. The convenience serves the quality promise.

The Strategic Question Canadian Retailers Need to Answer

Here’s the test: If a competitor matches your convenience investments tomorrow, what competitive advantage do you have left?

If the answer is “none,” you’re not competing on quality. You’re competing on convenience. And convenience advantages are temporary at best, counterproductive at worst.

The retailers who will thrive aren’t the ones investing most heavily in convenience. They’re the ones who understand what quality means in their category, then use convenience to make that quality more accessible.

That might mean removing self-checkout if it degrades the transaction experience. It might mean maintaining staffed departments even when automation is cheaper. It might mean slower checkouts that actually work rather than faster ones that frustrate.

The convenience trap is seductive because it promises measurable results and modern solutions. But convenience without quality is just efficiency at delivering mediocrity. And in 2025, customers can tell the difference.

The question for Canadian retail leaders isn’t “How do we become more convenient?” It’s “What quality do we deliver that customers value enough to choose us?” Answer that first. Then figure out how to make it convenient.

Because if you’re betting everything on convenience, you’re not building a competitive advantage. You’re just buying time until someone else out-conveniences you.

If you are interested in learning more about the convenience delusion and other strategies that keep companies from competing on quality, you can request a copy of The Courage to Compete on Quality here.

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