Weston rejects ‘misguided criticism’ of Loblaw as boycott begins

Article content

BRAMPTON, Ont. — Loblaw President Galen Weston, as well as the company’s new CEO, rejected what they called “misguided criticism” of the grocer as a boycott against the company gains traction online.

“As a well-known company and Canada’s largest grocer, it’s only natural that Loblaw would be singled out as a focal point for media and government and, of course, consumer frustrations,” Weston said at the grocer’s annual meeting Thursday.

Article content

Article content

He said that while shareholders “may be concerned about these oft-repeated stories,” they should be assured that Loblaw will continue to act with integrity.

The president and CEO of Per Bank said there is a lot of misinformation online about Loblaw and reiterated that the company is not responsible for rising food prices. Inflation is a global problem, he added.

Canadians are under pressure and frustrated, Bank said.

“Let me assure you that in every corner of the business, our colleagues are working hard to reduce costs and do things more efficiently. These efforts allowed us to reinvest savings to offset the impact of price inflation in our stores,” he said, adding that the company’s internal measure of food inflation was lower than Canada’s grocery inflation index for the past three quarters.

A Reddit page created for Canadians to complain about Loblaw and other big grocers, where talks of a boycott began, had surpassed 67,000 members as of noon Thursday.

Consumers are frustrated with food prices, which have risen double digits in just a few years, while Canada’s biggest grocers have reported higher profits.

Article content

Article content

The boycott is an example of “misguided criticism,” Weston said. She said allegations of profiteering by shopkeepers are false.

The company said Wednesday that it reached out to boycott organizers to schedule a meeting with the Bank, which an organizer confirmed was scheduled.

Bank and Weston also criticized recent calls to steal from Loblaw, with whom boycott organizers have said they are not affiliated.

“There is a group of people who have been relentlessly propagating a narrative that they know is false. And now it is being used to justify large-scale theft,” Weston said.

“I’m optimistic and hopeful that Canadians will reject the idea outright.”

In his comments, Weston referenced an earlier demand by boycotters that the company reduce prices by 15 percent, although boycott organizers have since rescinded their original demands and posted new ones on Reddit that include signing a code of conduct in supermarkets and commitment to affordable prices. .

This type of price reduction “is equivalent to approximately three times the company’s total revenue in a given year, the consequence of which would have been the end of our company, the loss of more than 200,000 jobs and billions in annual investments” , he claimed. Weston.

Article content

“The frustration is understandable. But these kinds of expectations reveal a misunderstanding of what is really driving up food prices in this country,” he stated.

Weston said Loblaw is working hard to provide more value to customers through private labels, deep discount stores, new promotions and pushing back against “unjustified” price increases from manufacturers.

The company has said consumers are increasingly going to discount stores like No Frills, buying sale items and switching to private brands as they try to reduce their grocery bills.

On Wednesday, Loblaw reported that profits grew nearly 10 percent year over year to $459 million.

Article content