It took George Weston Ltd. 134 years to transform from a small bakery into Canada’s biggest company, and it did so by going far beyond making bread and into selling many more of life’s other essentials: groceries, drugs, toiletries and even clothing. All told, the conglomerate that owns Loblaw Cos. Inc., Shoppers Drug Mart and Joe Fresh racked up revenues of $46.9 billion in 2015, up 6.8% from 2014, to trump all of Canada’s big banks, energy companies and manufacturers.
But it’s no surprise that food — even beyond the business of fresh-baked bread and cakes — has always been at the heart of the family-owned conglomerate, whose strength lies in the solidity of its business units. The Loblaw retail grocery business, acquired in the late 1940s, has remained resilient over the years as it has grown to become the country’s biggest supermarket chain despite periods of struggle. The retailer was even teetering on the verge of bankruptcy in 1972, but it was thriving a decade later after a strong executive team revamped its stores and introduced now-classic lines of private-label goods, No Name and President’s Choice. Loblaw also suffered in the mid-2000s when it tried to tackle Walmart Canada Corp. (FP500 No. 16) head on by opening massive superstores. The effort produced a loss in 2006, the company’s first in 19 years. But it was able to rebound quickly by renewing its focus on food and shoring up its supply chain.
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