Author: Varinder Singh

Supporting the Humboldt Broncos Billet Program with a $200,000 Donation

Posted on by Varinder Singh

Last April, Canadians united in shock and sorrow when 16 people lost their lives in a tragic collision, including 10 Humboldt Broncos players. In the weeks that followed, our country came together to show support for the victim’s families, team and community.

Local store teams responded immediately following the tragedy by providing food for crisis centre volunteers and flowers, gift cards and care packages for the billet families who provided a ‘home away from home’ for players. Sobeys Inc. also made a $15,000 donation to STARS air ambulance in Saskatchewan to honour the efforts of local first responders and the Humboldt Broncos hockey team. And like our fellow Canadians across the country, Safeway employees showed their support for the Humboldt community by wearing sports jerseys and green ribbons, baking special donuts and cookies, and raising funds in-store.

We also made a promise to stand with the Humboldt Broncos, their families, and the entire community when the team was ready to move ahead. That time came last week ahead of the Humboldt Broncos home opener.

At Elgar Petersen Arena, home of the Humboldt Broncos, we came together again to show our support. Sobeys Inc. announced a $200,000 donation over two years to support the Humboldt Broncos Billet Program. At the event, the Broncos billet families were joined by Jamie Brockman, president of the Humboldt Broncos Board of Directors, Kathleen Keen, Humboldt Broncos’ Billet Co-Ordinator, Northern Saskatchewan District Operator Todd Leibel, Humboldt Sobeys franchisee Dave and Joann Doepker, and Natalina Porpiglia-Dafnis of our Community Investment team.

Each season, the Broncos recruit talented hockey players to play at the junior hockey level. To take advantage of this great opportunity, the players need billet families willing to share their homes. The billet program is an important example of the Humboldt community opening their doors to help nurture and support the young men who begin their journey with the 2018-19 Broncos team, and these funds will go a long way in making that happen. As part of this support, each month one Humboldt Broncos home game will be billed as the Sobeys Family Day Game, where we will provide food samples and giveaways.

Across the country, but especially among Safeway team members in Saskatchewan, we will remain steadfast in our support as the Broncos and Humboldt community continue to heal.

Working hard to compete in today’s grocery landscape

Posted on by Varinder Singh

It’s no secret that how people shop is changing. And so are customer expectations.

Today’s shoppers demand different levels of service, more convenience and more value. That’s why we are working to tap into new opportunities that will keep customers in our stores.

Changing customer trends have led many Alberta retail businesses to rethink their structures, their practices and their offerings to keep people coming back.

Especially as the economy slowed over the past few years, the companies that are successful are those who have changed what they did and how they did it — tightening their belts and adjusting their operations to react faster to industry changes and customer needs.

These changes gave our competitors a leg up in the new economy, and we have to make sure we can position ourselves in a way that allows us to better compete. We need increased operational flexibility and reduced labour costs so we can continue to provide good, stable jobs for our teams across Alberta.

We’ve undergone a lot of change to keep our business healthy. We’ve restructured offices across Canada, improved our Retail Service Centre network and expanded our store offerings, specifically in the area of health and wellness. We’ve also been able to successfully negotiate new collective agreements in other markets that will help us to become competitive in those areas.

There are a lot of options out there to meet customers’ grocery shopping needs. Huge stores like Walmart and Costco have entered our communities and are growing fast, as are discounters like No Frills. In this highly competitive environment, we have to provide the experience shoppers are looking for — so they don’t find it somewhere else.

Now, our evolving store network strategy includes offering our customers more options to address their shopping needs. Many of our customers now have the option to shop at our discount banner FreshCo, as well as our full service banners Safeway, Sobeys and IGA.

We must listen to the needs of our customers to strengthen our growing business and make sure we are able to compete in this new landscape.

Our goal is to build a stable future for our Company — positioning us not only to survive, but to thrive in Alberta. That way we can give our customers what they want and provide thousands of good jobs in communities across the province.

It’s more important than ever to evolve and meet our customers’ changing needs so that we can return to our place as one of Alberta’s leading grocery stores.

Stay up-to-date with us at www.safewaytalks.ca.

Safeway Celebrates Two Value Champions

Posted on by Varinder Singh

Our Value Champion program recognizes 25 employees across Canada each year that, through their decisions and actions, bring our core values to life every day.

Jen Barrett, grocery clerk at Safeway 100 Mile House, was recently named a Sobeys Value Champion for going above and beyond for her coworkers and her community during last summer’s wildfires in British Columbia.

Barrett, who has worked at Safeway for 25 years, showed her commitment to the community by making sure her coworkers were accounted for and knew where to go for help after the community of 100 Mile House was evacuated. She also coordinated passes through the roadblocks so she could get to the store to keep it clean, check temperatures of the refrigerators and rotate inventory.

Store manager Jon Graham, who joined Jen in-store to prepare for the heavy demand for food and supplies, praised Jen’s efforts during a difficult time.

“She just knew that there were people that needed the resources that we could offer and she felt the only way that could happen was by her doing her fair share,” said Graham. “She did that plus more.”

Barrett and Graham cycled between cleaning and helping fill shopping carts to bring to emergency responders and residents in areas that were cut off from the rest of the community because of roadblocks.

“It’s just something that a person does, I believe. You just want to make sure that everybody’s fed,” said Barrett.

Hatty Thompson, the second assistant store manager at Safeway Williams Lake, was also named a Value Champion for her relief efforts in the community of Williams Lake, B.C. during last summer’s wildfires. Hatty was instrumental in ensuring her community had access to food during and after the wildfires.

Marnie Millership, her store manager, said Thompson was at the store during the evacuation helping get food to the community and played a huge role in preparing the store to be re-opened.

Barrett, Thompson and the other Value Champions from across Canada will be flown to Halifax in November to be honoured at our National Gala.

Safeway has a long history of being a community leader and being there for our customers when they need us most. We are extremely proud of Jen Barrett and Hatty Thompson for going the extra mile for their communities and leading by example.

Congratulations to Jen and Hatty on being named Value Champions.

This article is adapted from a story that originally appeared in 100 Mile Free Press.

Cheering on Safeway employee Jesse Bouchard at the Special Olympics

Posted on by Varinder Singh

The Special Olympics Canada 2018 Summer Games kick off today in Antigonish, Nova Scotia and Safeway will be well-represented by incredible athletes who are also Safeway employees. One of those athletes is 34-year-old Jesse Bouchard from Safeway Callingwood in Edmonton, Alberta.

How/when did you first become involved with Special Olympics?

Since 2011, I have been involved with Special Olympics. I became involved because my interest in sports and I wanted to meet and interact with others who had their own challenges. Since then, I have established many friendships and gratification from my participation.

How has Special Olympics impacted your life?

I love meeting other people with different challenges, and I love the team camaraderie and coaches.

I’ve developed long-term friendships and have been able to go to different levels that I wasn’t sure that I could accomplish while illustrating my competitiveness. I am very competitive.

What sports do you play?

I play soccer, floor hockey and other sports. I also enjoy bowling and golf.

What has been your greatest accomplishment?​

Beating the doctors’ odds that I wouldn’t be able to walk or talk. And bowling a perfect game in 5-pin, scoring 450 points! And also representing Team Alberta this year at Nationals.

What are some goals you have?

To make another provincial team through the Edmonton open 5-pin bowling tournament. My goal is to win Nationals in soccer in Antigonish, Nova Scotia.

How long have you worked at Safeway?

I have been working for Callingwood Safeway for 10 years and 5 months.

What do you like best about working at Safeway?

I love helping others and I like being part of such a great team at Callingwood Safeway.​

 

Keep up with stories like Jesse’s by following @SobeysSpecialOlympics on Instagram and share your own story using #YourBiggestFan.

Sobeys Inc. is a co-presenting sponsor of the Special Olympics Canada 2018 Summer Games and will be at the games providing thousands of healthy snacks and meals to fuel athletes, coaches and volunteers and cheering on the incredible Special Olympics athletes.

Two Winnipeg Safeway Stores converting to FreshCo banner

Posted on by Varinder Singh

Today, Sobeys Inc. announced plans to convert two Safeway locations in Winnipeg to the discount FreshCo banner in order to meet growing customer demand for more competitive food prices. The two FreshCo stores will open in Spring, 2019.

The decision to convert these two stores follows an extensive review of customer feedback and demand, demographics, and the evolving preferences of consumers. Converting these locations to the FreshCo format will allow us to meet the needs of local customers and continue to grow our business.

We remain committed to providing our customers with the best grocery shopping experiences in their communities. In addition to our full-service format stores, the FreshCo stores will now offer customers a discount grocery experience with clear low price messages, an easy shopping experience, and high-quality products at the best value for their money.

As always, we are sincerely grateful for the commitment and dedication of our Safeway employees for providing the best service our customers.  We will work closely with our employees and their union to ensure the terms of the collective agreement are met.

The following Safeway locations in Winnipeg will be temporarily closed for renovations beginning October 13, 2018:

  • Safeway Kildonan Crossing: 500 – 1615 Regent Ave. West, Winnipeg
  • Safeway Jefferson: 920 Jefferson Ave., Winnipeg

The pharmacies at both locations and the gas bar at Safeway Jefferson will remain open and continue to serve customers.

This change will not only better meet the needs of our customers in these communities, but will also help to strengthen our growing business.

We will continue to keep you informed of these two conversions on SafewayTalks.ca.

More time to take part in the Alberta Summer Kickoff!

Posted on by Varinder Singh

We have extended the deadline for the Safeway Talks Alberta Summer Kickoff contest to July 31.

Safeway Talks is the best way to hear first-hand about all things Safeway and we want to make sure all of our Alberta staff have the chance to get involved in the contest.

It’s important to us that we can share news on company updates and exciting initiatives with everyone who works in our stores.

If you haven’t already, visit www.safewaytalks.ca/contest today to enter for your chance to win one of three great prizes:

  • A Big Green Egg barbecue
  • A $750 Safeway gift card
  • A $500 Safeway gift card

If you’re already signed-up, great! Tell your friends and make sure they don’t miss out on the fun. The draw will now take place on August 1.

Thank you for being a valued part of Safeway’s success. Together, we can keep building stronger stores and great teams across Alberta.

Keep checking in with us at SafewayTalks.ca.

Safeway celebrates Canada Day

Posted on by Varinder Singh

Safeway stores across the country were decked out in red and white on Sunday, July 1 to celebrate Canada’s 151st birthday.

Customers visiting our stores over the long weekend were treated to barbecues and celebration events where they had the opportunity to sample some of Canada’s best locally-sourced products and see the impressive Canada Day-themed merchandising displays built by store team members.

Here are a few pictures of our stores:

 

Great job to everyone who gave our customers a memorable and fun-filled Canada Day experience!

Safeway stores kick-off summer season with National Summer Food Fair

Posted on by Varinder Singh

On Saturday, June 23, Safeway stores across Canada kicked off the start of the summer season with the first-ever National Summer Food Fair.

While the celebrations varied slightly from store to store, all of our customers were treated to an afternoon of good food and entertainment at their local Safeway stores all across the country.

Our Summer Food Fair is all about celebrating summer and highlighting our great product offerings so our customers can enjoy a thrilling shopping experience. Themed More Summer, More Fun, More Sun, And More Yum! our customers sampled delicious new products featured in our Summer 2018 magazine to inspire them to “Get More Summer”.

Customers also had the opportunity to sample some great locally-sourced products during the Summer Food Fair.

In addition to the food, fun and games, many of our stores also used the Summer Food Fair as an opportunity to give back to their local communities. Thanks to the generosity of our customers, we were able to raise funds for a variety of local causes and community partners.

Congratulations and a job well done to all of the stores that participated in our first-ever National Summer Food Fair. Your commitment to serving the customers with great service and selection in our Safeway stores gave our customers a great start to summer!

Sign up for the Safeway Talks Alberta Summer Kick Off!

Posted on by Varinder Singh

We’re kicking off this summer with a Safeway Talks contest for our valued Alberta employees!

From June 11 to July 15, 2018, Alberta staff can log onto www.safewaytalks.ca/contest and enter to win:

  • A Big Green Egg barbecue
  • A $750 Safeway gift card
  • A $500 Safeway gift card

Plus, the Alberta Safeway store with the most sign-ups will win a pizza party.

Since you’re already signed up with Safeway Talks, just visit the contest website and re-enter your name, employee number and contact information for your chance to win.

Safeway Talks is a great place to hear first-hand about company updates, industry changes and challenges, and exciting initiatives going on in our own stores. Please spread the word to your friends and coworkers so they can get signed up and take part in the fun too.

Thank you for working hard with us every day to help build stronger stores for our Alberta communities.

Keep checking in with us on SafewayTalks.ca for the latest company news.

The way people shop for food is changing. So must we.

Posted on by Varinder Singh

Online grocery shopping is quickly becoming the new normal, and success means staying competitive as the market evolves. According to a report from One Click Retail, Amazon’s online grocery sales climbed by almost 50% this year. And it’s not just non-perishable items anymore. Today, customers are becoming more comfortable buying household staples like milk and cream online too.

Our customers’ tastes are changing and we need to change with them to remain competitive. Online grocery shopping is a significant competitor that is taking more market share away from traditional bricks and mortar grocery stores.  In order to grow our market share, we have to become even more innovative, more service oriented, more flexible to serve our customers and more cost effective than ever before.

Customers are telling us that they want more options to do their shopping.  Giving our customers what they want is the best way to win them back and grow our overall business. One of the ways we will win them back is through our partnership with Ocado, a global leader in e-commerce solutions.

We will work with Ocado to build the most strategic and sustainably profitable e-commerce infrastructure in Canada, offering our customers the biggest online selection, freshest products, and most reliable delivery available anywhere on the planet.

Keep checking in with us for industry updates on www.SafewayTalks.ca