Parent Company of Shoppers, Superstore Plans to Close 22 Unprofitable Stores
BRAMPTON, Ont. — Loblaw Companies Ltd. says it has finalized a plan that will result in the closure of 22 unprofitable stores across a range of its banners and formats.
The company says it expects that the closures will be substantially complete by the end of the first quarter of next year. It does not identify in its release which stores it plans to close.
The move comes as Loblaw more than doubled its third-quarter profit compared with a year ago as its results were boosted by the sale of its gas bar business.
The retailer says its profit attributable to common shareholders totalled $883-million or $2.24 per diluted share for the 16 weeks ended Oct. 7. That compared with a profit of $419-million or $1.03 per diluted share for the same period last year.
Revenue totalled $14.19-billion, up from $14.14 in the third quarter of 2016.
The results included a $432-million gain on the sale of the company’s gas station business to Brookfield Business Partners. Excluding the deal and other one−time items, Loblaw says it earned an adjusted profit attributable to common shareholders of $549-million or $1.39 per share for the quarter, up from $512 million or $1.26 per share a year ago.
Last month, Loblaw announced it would cut 500 corporate and store-support jobs.
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The Canadian Press