The parent company of Extra Foods isn’t saying whether a massive nationwide expansion and upgrade plan includes Flin Flon.
Loblaw Companies Ltd. will invest $1.2 billion across Canada in 2015, with dozens of new stores, improvements to existing stores and other ventures planned.
The news has some Flin Flon area shoppers wondering whether Loblaw will reopen its vacant former Extra Foods store, but the answer is unclear.
“We’re not currently breaking out the details of the announcement,” the company told The Reminder in a statement on Monday. “At this point, there will be more than 50 stores built from the ground up and more than 100 undergoing renos or improvements. To point to one region or store banner would understate the nationwide and business-wide impact we expect this investment will make, across our discount, full-service, grocery, pharmacy and e-commerce offers.”
Extra Foods closed its doors on Oct. 15, 2011, less than eight years after its much-touted opening near Walmart and Canadian Tire at the Flintoba Shopping Centre.
At the time, Loblaw said the store was “no longer economically viable to continue to operate,” while a union official said it had been losing money at least as far back as 2009.
The closure reshaped Flin Flon’s grocery and retail market, leaving two major grocers to compete for customers.
The closure also eliminated one of the community’s largest employers, as Extra Foods had 45 workers, about 17 of whom were full-time.
At 42,000 sq. ft., Extra Foods ranks as one of the largest buildings in Flin Flon. It opened on Feb. 10, 2004 on the strength of Loblaw’s market research suggesting this was a “great market” for the company.
In April 2013, North of 53 Consumers Co-op general manager Tom Therien told members that the Co-op had asked about possibly moving into the Extra Foods building only to be told it wasn’t for sale.
