T&T Supermarket Storms Into Downtown Toronto
Despite a heavy snowstorm on the morning of Feb. 13, T&T Supermarket held the grand-opening ceremony for its Downtown Toronto store, its second in the city and 38th in North America. Located at 26 Edward Street near Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), the new store began attracting shoppers as early as 4 a.m. – a full five hours before the doors officially opened.
T&T’s two-level Downtown Toronto location is packed with food offerings that the grocer’s fans already know and love, including a street food section, self-service hot food, sushi, PaPa Chicken and Egg Tarts. According to the company, the 31,000-square-foot location is the only store in the greater Toronto area to feature a self-serve kiosk in its ground-floor street food section, enabling customers to order fancy Chinese crepes, rice wraps and more items on their own.
Progressive Grocer was on hand for the store opening, which, as well as a ribbon-cutting ceremony, featured a spectacular lion dance (believed to bring good fortune to a business) and remarks from T&T CEO Tina Lee, as well as speeches by such local luminaries as Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow and Per Bank, president and CEO of Loblaw Cos., T&T’s parent company.
Inside, the store provided a dizzying array of unique food and nonfood products across Asian cultures and beyond. Just as an example, Lay’s snacks came in such flavors as Mexican Chicken Tomato, Cucumber, Fried Crab, Hot & Spicy Braised Duck Tongue, Hot & Sour Lemon Braised Chicken Feet, Kelp Salt and Grilled Pork. A quick trip to a nearby Loblaws location revealed some of T&T’s private label items on display in the bakery and meat departments.
The Downtown Toronto store’s hours are 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., seven days a week.
Last December, T&T opened its first U.S. store in Bellevue, Wash., with future stores in the States scheduled for Lynnwood Wash., and San Jose, Calif.
Richmond, British Columbia-based T&T operates more than 35 stores in Canada and the United States. Loblaw Cos. operates more than 2,400 stores in Canada, with more than 190,000 full- and part-time employees. The Brampton, Ontario-based company is No. 10 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2024 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.
