T & T Supermarket

T & T Supermarket is a Canadian supermarket chain that sells primarily Asian foods. The company is headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia. In 1993, the first T & T was opened in Burnaby's Metropolis at Metrotown, a shopping centre in the Metrotown area in the Greater Vancouver region. T & T's current CEO is Tina Lee, who succeeded her mother Cindy Lee in 2014.[1]

T&T Supermarket Inc.
TypeSubsidiary
IndustryRetail
Founded1993 (1993)
FounderCindy Lee
HeadquartersRichmond, British Columbia
Number of locations
28 (25 T&T, 2 Osaka Supermarkets, 1 opening in Langley, BC in Fall 2021)
Key people
Tina Lee (CEO)
ProductsBakery, dairy, deli, frozen foods, grocery, meat, produce, seafood, snacks
ParentLoblaw Companies
(2009–present)
Websitetntsupermarket.com

The stores range in size from 35,000 sq ft (3,300 m2) to 74,000 sq ft (6,900 m2). In addition to the many departments found in a regular supermarket, most T & T stores also have an in-house bakery, an Asian deli, a sushi and Chinese barbecue department.

The name T & T itself stands for the names of Lee's two daughters, Tina and Tiffany. T & T also represents the names of the two major investors involved when the company was founded in 1993; Tawa Supermarket Inc. and Uni-President Enterprises Corp. (Chinese name is pronounced "Tung Yee").[2]

History

Establishment of T & T

The chain had been created as a joint venture of Uni-President Enterprises Corporation, one of Taiwan's ten largest conglomerates; Tawa Supermarket Inc., a California-based chain of Asian supermarkets; and a group of Canadian investors. Founder Cindy Lee is a Taiwanese-Canadian who started the business with one store in 1993.

Acquisition by Loblaw

T & T is part of Loblaw Companies, which purchased it in July 2009 for $225 million in consideration, consisting of $191 million in cash and $34 million in preferred shares.[3] The consideration paid above and beyond the tangible asset base of the company (i.e. the accounting goodwill) which was estimated at $180 million.[4] The chain had been created as a joint venture of Uni-President Enterprises Corporation, one of Taiwan's ten largest conglomerates; Tawa Supermarket Inc., a California-based chain of Asian supermarkets; and a group of Canadian investors.

Expansions

With rapid expansion, T & T is Canada's largest Asian supermarket chain.[5] It has twelve stores across British Columbia, six in Alberta (three in Calgary and three in Edmonton), and nine stores in Ontario with seven stores in the Greater Toronto Area, one in Waterloo, and one in Ottawa.[6] More stores are expected to open in the coming years with a target for 10 in Eastern Canada.

Launch of T & T brand and rewards program

In 2012, T & T launched its own T & T brand, a collection of private label products such as crackers, dumplings, cakes, pastries, green tea and marinade sauce.[7] The company also started a rewards program for its customers who can collect points and redeem them in-store for gifts.

Largest T & T store and development of e-commerce platform

In 2018, T & T opened a 74,000 sq. ft. flagship store in Richmond, British Columbia, which was the first to have a live seafood bar, an Asian street food station, and self-checkouts. Industry experts dubbed the store a "grocerant" because of its restaurant-style offering.[8][9]

In 2020, T & T launched its e-commerce platform, facilitating online order and delivery of Asian food products across most provinces in Canada.[10][11]

Locations

British Columbia

Alberta

Ontario

Awards

In 2018, the Retail Council of Canada awarded the Canadian Grand Prix Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award to founder Cindy Lee and CEO Tina Lee for having "demonstrated outstanding service and dedication to the Canadian retail and grocery industry."[13][14] Cindy Lee received the lifetime achievement award at the 2019 Chinese Canadian entrepreneur awards in recognition of her contributions to the Chinese Canadian business community.[15]

Ongoing unionization issues

Huff Post Business Canada reported on July 17, 2012 that workers at a T&T Supermarket warehouse in Scarborough, Ontario, would head to a secret ballot vote on Monday, July 23, 2012 for unionization. The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) filed an application for certification with the Ontario Labour Relations Board on July 16, 2012. According to UFCW national representative Kevin Shimmin, the workers at the T&T Supermarket Scarborough warehouse, are seeking unionization to attempt improving scheduling issues as well as tying wage more closely to seniority, instead of favouritism. Shimmin gave in the article an example that Warehouse staffs at T&T Supermarket are working a 39-hour work week, spanning six days in a week. He also pointed out that there are cases where staff have been working for T&T Supermarket for three years and are still earning a minimum wage of $10.25 per hour. Paul Ho, marketing manager for the grocery chain in Ontario, said he did not have details about wages, but maintained that work hours "vary from individual to individual, and depends on the production schedule."[16]

The Globe and Mail reported on July 23, 2012 the result of T&T Supermarket Scarborough warehouse staff unionization. About 100 employees at the T&T Scarborough warehouse voted in the secret ballot vote on Monday July, 23. However, the Ontario Labour Relations Board sealed the ballot box for review. Dispute arose as the UFCW and T&T Supermarket argued about the eligibility of the voters in the voter list. UFCW national representative Kevin Shimmin said that the dispute caused the secret ballot vote to be reviewed, while Cindy Lee, founder at T&T Supermarket claimed that it was the decision of the Ontario Labour Relations Board to look into whether the union has enough support from employees to in the first place file the application.[17]

Lawsuit of exploitation
The interior of a T & T store

On March 5, 2007, The Tyee blog reported a case of a foreign temporary worker who had been exploited, and had his passport seized by T & T Supermarket. According to The Tyee's coverage, "In a notice of claim filed with the small claims division of the provincial court of BC, Gui Qiang Zou claims he was pressured into working longer hours for lower wages than promised after the firm kept his passport and other key documents."[18]

Structure of the company

Each store has one manager, assistant managers, heads, assistant heads and supervisors of each department, store associates, technicians and security guards. Office positions are usually superior to the store managers. Structure of the company used to be divided into 12 levels. Store associates were on the 1st level and the CEO was on the top level.

Starting from 2007, T & T supermarket has reformed their structure that they use two digits to represent the positions and experience of staff. First digit represents the title. Store associates have "1" for the first digit, supervisors have the number "2" and so on. The second digit represents experiences of the staff. For example, new staff usually have "1" for the second digit and the number will be increased when they are more experienced. Therefore, a new store associate is numbered as "1-1".

See also

References
  1. "T&T Supermarket CEO passes the torch". Canadian Grocer. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  2. Eade, Ron (October 2, 2009). "T&T arrives with a bang". The Ottawa Citizen. Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
  3. "Loblaw buying T&T Asian food chain". CBC News. July 24, 2009. Archived from the original on July 25, 2009.
  4. "2009 Third Quarter Report" (PDF). Loblaw Companies. p. 22. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 13, 2012. Retrieved March 4, 2012.
  5. "Loblaw buys Asian grocery chain". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  6. "T & T Supermarket – T&T Supermarket". T&T Supermarket. Archived from the original on November 11, 2018. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  7. "Loblaw Expands Private Brand Portfolio And Introduces the T&T Brand". Archived from the original on March 27, 2013. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  8. "T&T unveils flagship store in Richmond". Canadian Grocer. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  9. "Canada's largest T&T Supermarket opens in Metro Vancouver". Straight. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  10. "T&T launches e-grocery". Canadian Grocer. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  11. "T&T Supermarket launches online ordering and home delivery across Canada". DailyHive. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  12. "Photos: Canada's largest T&T Supermarket opens in Metro Vancouver". August 17, 2018. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  13. "T&T Supermarket's Cindy and Tina Lee to Receive Prestigious 2018 RCC Grand Prix Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award". Retail Insider. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  14. "T&T Supermarkets' Cindy and Tina Lee receive RCC's 2018 Canadian Grand Prix Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award". Retail Council of Canada. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  15. "2019 Awards Winners". ACCE. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  16. "T&T Union Certification: Asian Grocer's Warehouse Workers In Scarborough, Ontario Seek Certification". Huffington Post Canada. July 17, 2012. Archived from the original on July 21, 2012.
  17. Strauss, Marina (July 23, 2012). "Loblaw locked in labour dispute at Asian supermarket chain". The Globe and Mail.
  18. Sandborn, Tom (March 5, 2007). "Tricked and Exploited?". The Tyee.
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