Canadian Retailer - The Technology & e-Commerce Issue - 45

CANADIAN RETAIL TOP 10
Est. Retail
Sales
($Millions)

Number
of Chains

Number
of Stores

Est. Sales
Growth
(%)

Corporate Ownership (Key Banners)

Capital
Control

Weston Group (Shoppers Drug Mart, The Real Canadian Superstore, No Frills)

CAN

45,945

2,769

+1.2

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (Wal-Mart Supercenters, Wal-Mart)

USA

31,369

408

+2.7

Rank

Empire Company Limited (Sobeys, Safeway, IGA)

CAN

23,806

1,907

-3.3

Costco Wholesale Corp (Costco)

USA

22,571

+9.4

Metro Inc. (Metro, Food Basics, Metro PLUS)

CAN

12,788

979

+4.6

Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd. (Canadian Tire, Sport Chek, Mark's Work Wearhouse)

CAN

10,007

1,294

+5.6

McKesson Corporation (IDA Pharmacy, Rexall Pharma Plus, Rexall Drug Store)

USA

9,275

1,955

+76.9

Lowe's Companies Inc. (Rona, Lowe's, Rona Home & Garden)

USA

7,931

893

+308.8

9
10

The Home Depot, Inc. (The Home Depot)

USA

7,854

182

+3.1

Home Hardware Stores Ltd. (Home Hardware, Home Building Centre)

CAN

6,000

1,065

+3.5

total sales, and this 'Billion Dollar Club' accounted
for 66 per cent, or $235 billion, of non-automotive retail sales in Canada for 2016. These top retailers also
controlled a network of approximately 20,000 stores
and accounted for almost 432 million square feet of
retail store space. Overall, the group accounted for
89 per cent of total CSCA Retail 100 sales, 67 per
cent of total Canadian non-automotive sales, and 43
per cent of total Canadian retail sales in 2016.
2016 Conglomerate Rank Changes

There were several important changes in the
2016 rankings of the CSCA Retail 100. Some of the
largest gains and losses in rank were primarily
due to structural changes such as mergers and acquisitions, though many were due to actual gains
or losses in reported or estimated performance.
Rank Increases

The top rank increases in 2016 were Nordstrom,
Inc. (+33), Lowe's Companies Inc. (+18), Mountain
Equipment Co-operative (+14), Farm Boy Inc. (+12),
Carter's, Inc. (+11). After opening its first three
stores in 2015, Nordstrom continued its organic
Canadian expansion by increasing its footprint to
five stores. Openings at the Toronto Eaton Centre
and Yorkdale mall gave Nordstrom a significant
presence in two of the largest super regional shopping centres in Canada's largest market, increased
its Canadian square-footage to 972 thousand and
pushed its estimated Canadian retail sales to $590
million. Lowe's Companies Inc. made major headlines in 2016 as a result of their long-pursued acquisition of Rona Inc. The addition of the 12 Rona
home improvement banners catapulted Lowe's
into the top 10 retailers in Canada and added
close to $5.5 billion in network retail sales, putting
Lowe's just barely one spot ahead of Home Depot
Inc. by less than $100 million over their long-time
competitor in the Canadian market.
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Rank Decreases

Notable CSCA Retail 100 rank decreases in
2016 were International Clothiers Inc. (-11), Gordon Brothers Group (-10), and Genuity Capital
Markets (-6). Isaac Benitah's International Clothiers fashion conglomerate had significant store
closures in 2016 as a result of numerous bankruptcy filings related to the Les Ailes de la Mode, Designer Depot, Style Exchange, and International
Clothiers fashion chains. This follows the 2015
bankruptcy proceedings affecting the B&C Group
chains controlled by Fred Benitah that were reported on last year. However, the bankruptcy filings of International Clothiers are not surprising
considering the significant competition in Canada's fashion subsector. The top four fashion retailers in Canada control just 21 per cent of sales
in that subsector, indicating a very competitive industry with many different players involved and
where business failures will be common.

Market Control

Canadian-controlled conglomerates accounted
for 56.41 per cent of the 2016 CSCA Retail 100 sales,
a significant decrease from 59.58 per cent in 2011,
largely accounted for by the Lowe's Companies
Inc. acquisition of the formerly Canadian Rona Inc.
operations. While other countries, mainly from
Europe, did have a presence in Canada's retail market, their market share in 2016 of 2.13 per cent pales
in comparison to that of Canadian and American
firms. Debate concerning foreign control of Canadian retail sales continues to revolve around the
presence of major U.S. retailers in Canada.
For more information concerning the CSCA Retail Top
100, or to download a full version of the report, visit
https://csca.ryerson.ca/collections/research-insights

THE TECHNOLOGY & E-COMMERCE ISSUE

| CANADIAN RETAILER | 45

https://csca.ryerson.ca/collections/research-insights http://www.retailcouncil.org/cdnretailer

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