Category: British Columbia

Six Sobeys women achievers win Canadian Grocer Star Women Awards

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

I am extremely pleased and very proud to announce that six Sobeys employees have been named 2020 Star Women Awards recipients by Canadian Grocer.  Since 2012, this award has been given annually to recognize exceptional women who demonstrate influence, innovation, and leadership in the Canadian grocery industry.

Our Star Women honourees are individuals that bring passion and commitment to their work and their communities each day. They are recognized by both their Sobeys peers and industry professionals as role models who deliver business excellence through collaborative team engagement. I am very pleased that they are being given the recognition they deserve, not only within Sobeys, but by the country’s grocery industry.  Their achievement serves as an inspiration for all leaders on our team.

This year, two of our Sobeys recipients were named in the Senior Level category, three in the Store Level category, and one in the Rising Star category.

Please join me in celebrating and congratulating our 2020 Star Women awardees:

Senior Level Stars

Kerry Tompson, Vice President of Talent & Inclusion

Kerry is innovative, customer-driven and willing to set bold ambitions to drive results. Since she joined Sobeys Inc. in 2018, Kerry has worked tirelessly to ensure the company’s people practices were “best in class” so that Sobeys could attract and retain the best talent. In 2020, when the company faced the COVID-19 pandemic, Kerry, together with a dedicated team, rallied to create a national Talent Acquisition SWAT Team, employment branding and labour dashboard to ensure our stores were supported to serve families during a difficult time.

Vittoria Varalli, Vice President of Sustainability and Chief of Staff to the CEO

As a future- oriented strategy driver, Vittoria is highly skilled at building consensus and mobilizing action plans as the retail industry evolves. Vittoria’s commitment to reducing avoidable plastic in grocery retail has already created a lasting impact. In July 2019, under Vittoria’s direction, Sobeys Inc. was the first national grocer to announce it would eliminate single-use plastic grocery bags at all banner locations in Canada, starting with its 255 Sobeys stores, taking 225 million plastic bags out of circulation annually.

Rising Star

Julia Mallett, Manager Retail Operations, Atlantic Division

Julia is knowledgeable, passionate and solution-orientated.  She does not hesitate to find opportunities for improvement, whether they be for the industry, our stores or our customers. Focused on serving the total team, Julia actively works towards identifying root cause issues and solutioning them, helping to improve internal processes, communications and reporting which benefits everyone. Recently, Julia worked diligently with the strategic sourcing of key supplies to assist with pandemic safety measures.

Store-level Stars

Alice Warner, Store Manager, Safeway McBride, New Westminster, BC

Alice is a store operation professional with a unique leadership style that inspires strong team engagement, customer loyalty and community recognition. She is a committed advocate for the advancement of leadership opportunities for talented women in store-level grocery operations at Sobeys. Alice is dedicated to mentoring her store staff to pursue career development opportunities, and has committed her time and energy in helping to establish Sobeys’ Women’s Inclusion Network in B.C.

Suzanne Horner, Store Manager, Sobeys West River Road, Pictou, NS 

Suzanne’s depth of store operations experience and an approachable and highly motivating leadership style have been essential to building strong workplace engagement and business performance. A key element to her success is a commitment in creating opportunities to welcome and advance diverse talent within her community to support operational success. Her inclusive hiring experiences have brought process improvements and identified areas to improve accessibility within her store that have resulted in more inclusive experiences for both employees and customers.

Leslie Robb, Store Manager, Safeway Fort St John, Fort St John, BC

Leslie is a strong, experienced business and community leader who goes above and beyond to support her store teams as an authentic role model and mentor of individuals in early stages of their careers. As a member of Sobeys’ Alberta Women’s Inclusion Network, she has undertaken a deep interest in supporting advancement of female professionals in her store and within her operating district and boasts a high-performing and accomplished team of department managers that consistently contribute to operational success.

Winners will be featured in the August 2020 issue of Canadian Grocer and will be celebrated at the Star Women in Grocery Awards Breakfast on October 29, 2020.

It seems that every year, more and more Sobeys women leaders are recognized through this awards program.  In 2018, we garnered two spots in the program, followed by four in 2019, and now an amazing six recipients for 2020! I look forward to congratulating more of our hardworking and passionate female leaders winning this award in the coming years.

Celebrating Pride Month at our stores

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

The bright, colourful displays that have popped up in our stores can only mean one thing- Pride Month is here! June is a time for celebrating LGBTQ2+ communities and a time to reflect on the challenges and barriers these communities have faced and continue to face today.

In solidarity and celebration, our stores have shown up in full force as rainbow balloons, flags and décor have made their way to our displays. Not only have you shown your creativity, but you also are continuing to enforce that we are a family that supports all families.

Pride Month celebrates the LGBTQ2+ community and is globally recognized in honour of the Stonewall riots, which took place in New York City in June 1969. The Stonewall riots (also referred to as the Stonewall uprising) were a series of violent confrontations that began in June 1969 between police and gay rights activists outside the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in the Greenwich Village section of New York City. As the riots progressed, an international gay rights movement was born. This year marks Canada’s 51st anniversary of the decriminalization of homosexuality.

This year Pride Month is also a nice reminder that even during these uncertain times we have so much to celebrate. Thank you to our stores for always spreading love to our communities, especially when they need us most.

 

Four new FreshCo locations in Manitoba announced

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

Today, Sobeys Inc. announced the decision to close three Safeway locations in Manitoba and convert them to FreshCo stores. In addition, Sobeys Inc. will reopen one previously closed Safeway location as a FreshCo store.

The following locations will reopen as FreshCo stores in Spring 2021

  • Safeway Niakwa Village, Winnipeg
  • Safeway Sargent, Winnipeg
  • Safeway Pembina & McGillivray, Winnipeg
  • Safeway Henderson & Bronx, Winnipeg

Our customers’ needs are changing, and they’ve told us that they’re looking for more discount shopping options. By expanding our store network to include full-service Safeway stores, as well as additional discount FreshCo stores, we’re better equipped to meet our customers’ diverse needs.

We will be working closely with impacted employees and the union in the coming weeks to ensure the terms of all collective agreement are met. We will be entering the collective agreement specified process soon.

Pharmacies at these Safeway locations will remain open throughout the closures, renovations and FreshCo re-openings.

Stay up-to-date at SafewayTalks.ca.

Celebrating the grand opening of Safeway Davie Street in Vancouver

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

Davie Street, located in the west end community of Vancouver, British Columbia, welcomed a new shopping experience as Safeway Davie officially opened for business on Thursday, May 21.

In this critical time, we thank our teams for their continued focus on providing an essential service in our communities so residents can access the food and pharmacy necessities they require for their families.

Store Manager, Steve Hogeweide and his staff participated in the store’s physical distancing opening and ribbon cutting ceremony. Steve has been involved in the grocery industry in British Columbia for over 30 years and is currently celebrating his 21st year as a store manager with Safeway.

Steve is particularly excited about the enhanced organic produce offerings and the wide assortment of local British Columbia products that will be available in store. Some of his favourites include Nora’s Non-Dairy Ice Cream (Vancouver), Rocky Mountain Pizza (Kitsilano) and Fernwood Coffee (Victoria).

Congratulations to Steve and his team on the official opening of their beautiful new store!

The new store can be found at:

Safeway Davie Street

1641 Davie Street

Vancouver, BC

V6G 1W1

A message from Michael Medline to our valued teammates.

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

To our Valued Teammates,

This challenging crisis continues to test our strength. I am filled with pride every day as you continue to rise to the occasion with great courage, resilience and –above all –teamwork.

Our business has adapted to so many changes with unwavering dedication to the safety of our communities. As this has happened, we’ve been able to reflect on where we are in this crisis and what it means to be an essential service. Canada needs us.

We’ve all had to make sacrifices out of necessity and safety –like postponing some of life’s pleasures such as birthday celebrations or sports pursuits or staying apart from family members. While these short-term adjustments are intended to help everyone and allow us to focus on doing what’s right, we look forward to returning to more normal ways of life and business down the road. And when provinces across the country slowly start to open back up again, we will continue to do what is needed to keep our stores safe for our teammates and our customers.

We realize this has not been easy. Our frontline teammates are serving Canadian families during a time of great anxiety. Our distribution centres have adapted to 24/7 delivery. Our backstage teams are doing absolutely everything they can to put our stores and customers first.

And while we’ve been intensely focused on our stores, we have not forgotten about our communities. Our Community Action Fund is pitching in to help Canadians in need by supporting food banks and other much-needed causes across the country. Teammates are painting beautiful messages of hope on our store windows and display cases. These are simple, powerful reminders that we’re all in this together. They keep community morale high.

The way you’ve pulled together has made our company stand above the rest through the toughest days. As we look to brighter days ahead, we do so knowing we have the strongest team in Canada. Thank you!

If there is anything this crisis has taught us, it’s that when we stand together nothing will knock this team down. Early on, I was inspired by a quote from one of our teammates, “tough times don’t last, tough teams do.” This is our mantra.

I’m so humbled to be on your team. Let’s keep going. Canada needs us.

Sincerely,

Michael Medline

President & CEO

The Employee Family Assistance Program is here to help

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

We know that delivering essential services to Canadians during a time of crisis can be challenging, to say the least. Plexiglass shields, physical distancing floor markers, cart sanitization after each use; all of these and many others have been put into place to make sure we are doing our part in protecting the health of our teammates and customers. We’re so proud of your commitment to our Alberta customers and communities in the face of unprecedented change.

Keeping this in mind, we recognize that this crisis can create anxiety and stress for all of us. Your health and well being is our very top priority, and prioritizing health also means supporting your mental well-being.

Mental health is just as important as your physical health and we’re committed to supporting you and your family throughout this difficult time and encourage you to use our Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP).

Our EFAP program provides you with tools to support your mental health and well-being through our EFAP provider, Morneau Shepell. You have free access to:

  • Telephone counselling
  • Video counselling
  • E-counselling
  • Online group counselling
  • Online tools and resources

You can access the Morneau Shepell Care Access Centre by calling (toll-free) 1-844-880-9142 or by accessing their services online through www.workhealthlife.com. Under “Get in Touch”, you can request services and e-Counselling, exchange messages with a counselor, or read the various articles and resources available to you. Don’t forget, you can always reach out to your Store Manager or Human Resources Business Partner for support, as well.

Thank you for your continued commitment to one another and our customers. Your health and well-being will continue to be our very top priority, and we’ll get through this, together.

From our friends at TSN, thank you.

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

To all of our frontline workers, our friends at TSN would like to say thank you.

Every day, you continue to rise to the occasion for those in need—supporting Canadians coast to coast. Even in some of the most challenging of circumstances, the country can still depend on you. Your hard work, selflessness and commitment to your communities have inspired us all.

Each and every one of you is a hero, and TSN (and all of Canada) is truly grateful.

Thank you.

Thank you! A letter from Michael Medline

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

To our Store Heroes,

Over these last few weeks, we have witnessed all of you pull together in this time of crisis with dedication, compassion
and resilience. You have lived our values. You have stepped up to the challenge. We realize it has not been easy.
We have asked all of you to go above and beyond for Canadians every day in these extraordinary circumstances.
You continue to rise to the challenge without fail.

You’re on the front line, delivering essential services to families across Canada. And while you’ve been working
hard to provide the important products and services Canadians need, you’ve also implemented a wide range of
new policies and procedures to keep our stores safe. Your incredible composure and bravery in the face of change
is admirable.

There are new cleaning physical distancing and sanitization procedures, new customer protocols, and a number of
new rules as we constantly adapt our in-store services and product offerings to be there for the families we serve.
With every change, you’re willing to adapt and keep going. As teammates, you are truly embracing your role in this
global crisis as an essential service that plays a critical role in communities across Canada.

Just the other day, two of our retail teammates decided to come to work dressed up as a banana and a penguin,
to keep customers smiling, while they were cleaning grocery carts. Some of our banners have started selling Girl
Guide Cookies to help them out. Our store teams have started creating displays with positive messaging for our
customers, “Be strong, storms don’t last forever” – we couldn’t agree more. We know there are hundreds of examples
like this.

You continue to amaze us every single day with how well you adjust and adapt to the rapid changes in our business
and the world around us. You are the face of the company, always smiling and providing our customers with
confidence and support. You’re a loyal, hardworking team. We could not be more proud of each one of you.

Stay safe and thank you!

Michael Medline
President & CEO

To our Valued Safeway Customers

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

The following letter is being distributed to all customers.

To our Valued Safeway Customer,

Since the terrible escalation of Coronavirus, we have been blown away by the dedication and thoughtfulness of our hardworking teammates. We’d like to salute our team of 123,000 people across our great country who are working so hard every day to support Canadians throughout this difficult time.

Yesterday I was reminded yet again that we have such a great team. One of our teammates, Taeler, put a poster together for her store team filled with wonderful comments from customers and co-workers to lift their spirits and cheer them on. At the centre of the poster she wrote, “Tough Times Don’t Last, Tough Teams Do.” That really says it all.

We’ve asked so much of our front-line grocery and pharmacy heroes in recent days.

With everything that’s going on, they’re showing up every day determined to serve Canadians. They understand how vital it is in this extraordinary time to get us the food we need, safely and securely. In moments of crisis, they understand that grocery stores are an essential service with a critical role to play in communities across Canada. They’re working around the clock to make that happen. To that end, we’ve received incredible feedback from people applauding our team’s great morale and extraordinary service. I have personally witnessed how much it means to our people when people thank them for serving customers in these tough times.

We have excellent standards in place to keep our stores clean and sanitized and our customers and teammates healthy. We are looking at every opportunity to improve on these standards.

The safety and health of all of you is imperative to us.

Thank you to our customers for your patience with us in moments when our shelves are not fully stocked. It’s a busy, unpredictable time, and our team members are doing everything within their power. Thank you to all of our governments for their collaboration in helping us and our grocery customers.

We have trust in Canada’s strong and secure food supply chain. If you see an empty shelf, know that it will be full again shortly. Our warehouse and distribution teams are working the hardest in our history to get you the goods you need.

It’s more apparent than ever right now that the journey to get food onto Canadians’ tables is a team effort.

Sincerely,

Michael Medline

President & CEO

Thank You For Your Tremendous Efforts

Posted on by Sudhanshu Rewari

Teammates,

I continue to be overwhelmed by the many stories I am hearing about how you are supporting our stores and our customers. Customers are applauding you for the service they are receiving and the morale of our teams. I’m hearing about store associates taking the time to help seniors bring their groceries to their car, even though their stores are packed. I’m hearing about customers praising great store conditions, even considering the line-ups and flurry of activity to meet unprecedented demand.

These last few weeks have been a truly herculean effort. With many Canadians staying home to reduce the spread of the coronavirus, we know their reliance on grocery stores will continue to be strong. In moments of crisis, grocery stores are truly an essential service and we have such an incredibly important role to play within our communities.

You all are the true heroes right now in our stores and distribution centres. You are doing a tremendous job welcoming our customers with warm smiles to keep everyone calm. Our warehouse and distribution teams are tirelessly working around the clock to keep our stores full of the product they need to feed millions of families across Canada. Our back-office teams are completely dedicated to supporting our stores. This is truly an all hands on deck effort.

We are all so immensely proud of what you are accomplishing by serving Canadians during these very uncertain times. Thank you for everything you are doing today and for all of your efforts in the coming weeks and months.

Sincerely,

Michael Medline

President & CEO, Empire Company