Metro gets an image makeover
Metro is currently a patchwork of conventional grocery stores under the banners A&P, Dominion, Loeb, The Barn, Ultra and Food Basics. What the third-largest grocer in Canada is planning to do is change banners in order to shed stale concepts and mixed consumer impressions.
"There is a lot of competition in the market and it makes sense to go with one name," said Serge Boulanger, vice-president of marketing at Montreal-based Metro. "We think it is the next step to go on a national basis and build a national brand. We are going to make sure that we will raise the bar."
Boulanger, added that the long-standing tag line "We're fresh obsessed" needed an evolution. "We think 'fresh obsessed' is a minimum," Boulanger said. "It is not just a matter of fresh, but how we can be different with fresh. Metro's new tag line is "Food at its best."
A designer was hired to fashion a newer, more modern uniform for store employees. Even its private-label food line has had a makeover; Metro's existing Irresistibles line replaces the Master Choice brand. The strategy is gaining traction: The new Irresistibles orange juice line has outsold the Master Choice brand by 10% since its launch.
The retailer is also launching an English-language Web site (Metro.ca) with recipes and how-to videos. Boulanger said Metro's research showed that it could do a far better job of targeting the upper-middle-class urbanites served by many of its Ontario stores. Data revealed 70% of stores cater primarily to two groups of adults, most of them older than 35.
Metro Inc. has annual sales of nearly C$11 billion (€7.3 billion) and over 65,000 employees in Canada, where it operates a network of close to 600 food stores, as well as over 250 pharmacies under the Brunet, Clini Plus, The Pharmacy and Drug Basics banners.
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