Empire Company Limited is launching a national marketing and community engagement campaign linked to the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, positioning its grocery banners alongside Team Canada athletes and their support networks.
The company said that its Feed The Dream campaign will run across its Sobeys, IGA, Safeway, Foodland, Thrifty Foods, Farm Boy and Voilà brands, with programming designed to connect consumers, communities and athletes in the lead-up to and during the Games.
Campaign scope and business focus
Empire said the campaign is intended to unify activity across its grocery portfolio while reinforcing its role as the official grocer of Team Canada. The initiative includes athlete-focused content, in-store and digital contests, community events and broadcast partnerships, as well as continued direct support for Olympic and Paralympic athletes.
“As Canada’s family grocery store, we’ve stood behind Canadians and their dreams since 1907. With the surge of Canadian pride and unity over the past year, we broadened our Feed The Dream campaign to be about inspiring and feeding not only our athletes but the dreams of all Canadians,” said Erika DeHaas, vice-president of corporate marketing at Empire. “With our campaign creative, we worked to really capture this spirit by highlighting both our deep Canadian roots and our Team Canada partnership.”
Empire said the campaign will highlight the role of food, families and communities in athletes’ development, while also engaging customers through experiential and promotional elements tied to the Games.
Athlete content and community activation
As part of the rollout, Empire said it will release short films and athlete imagery featuring members of its Team Sobeys roster, focusing on the support systems behind their paths to Milano Cortina.
The company will also deploy a Feed The Dream Mobile Food Experience Trailer to Pictou County, N.S., offering food sampling, giveaways and community activities. Empire’s hometown is Stellarton, N.S.
In addition, Empire said it has partnered with CBC to deliver custom Olympic and Paralympic coverage, including behind-the-scenes athlete content, as part of the broadcaster’s Games programming.
Ongoing athlete and employee programs
Empire said it will continue providing grocery support to Team Canada athletes before and after the Games through its Athlete Grocery Card program.
Internally, the company said four employees will be selected through a company-wide contest to travel to Italy as correspondents for the Paralympic Winter Games. The selected employees will deliver behind-the-scenes content from the Games. As part of the program, employees can also nominate a local community sports organization to receive one of three donations valued at $5,000.
For consumers, Empire said the campaign includes a national contest offering Feed Your Team prize packages, which include a viewing kit, snacks and a $100 grocery gift card. Separate in-store and digital contests will offer shoppers a chance to win one of three prizes of one million Scene+ points.
Team Sobeys athlete roster
Empire also announced its Team Sobeys athletes for the 2026 Games. The roster includes Blayre Turnbull of Stellarton, N.S., in ice hockey; Isabelle Weidemann of Calgary in long-track speed skating; Kalle Eriksson of Kimberly, B.C., in para alpine skiing; ice dance figure skaters Paul Poirier and Piper Gilles of Toronto; Sarah Nurse of Hamilton, Ont., in ice hockey; and Tyler Turner of Campbell River, B.C., in para snowboard.
Empire said the athletes will represent the company across campaign content and appearances tied to the Games.
Olympic and Paralympic partners respond
The Canadian Olympic Committee said the partnership supports athletes and broadens public engagement with the Games.
“The support of partners like Sobeys, who understand what it takes for Canadian athletes to realize their Olympic dreams, is essential for Team Canada’s success on the world stage. Our shared values are helping Feed The Dreams of not only Team Canada but the entire country who will be cheering on Canadian athletes this winter,” said Jacquie Ryan, chief brand and commercial officer at the Canadian Olympic Committee and CEO of the Canadian Olympic Foundation.
The Canadian Paralympic Committee said Empire’s involvement contributes both materially and symbolically to Paralympic athletes’ preparation.
“Sobeys helps provide two critical ingredients towards the Canadian Paralympic Team’s success – providing access to proper nutrition and helping rally the nation’s support by shining a spotlight on the athletes,” said Karen O’Neill, CEO of the Canadian Paralympic Committee. “It takes a huge team to bring the dreams of Canada’s Paralympians to life and we can’t wait to celebrate them on the world stage.”
Company background
Empire Company Limited is a Stellarton-based food and real estate company whose primary business is food retailing through its wholly owned subsidiary Sobeys Inc. The company reported approximately $31 billion in annual sales and $17 billion in assets, and said it employs about 129,000 people across its operations, affiliates and franchisees.
Empire said information on campaign activities, contests and Team Sobeys athletes will be available through its Sobeys-branded digital platforms as the Milano Cortina Games approach.
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