Canada’s largest discount retailer says it plans to open a lot more combined food and general merchandise stores this year, further challenging established grocers and helping boost Wal-Mart Canada Corp.’s overall sales.
The Canadian unit said it plans to open between 25 and 27 new stores this year, most of them supercentres, the kind that combine a full supermarket with its usual offering of electronics, toys, clothing and housewares.
About half will be built in Ontario, where Wal-Mart opened the first such stores 18 months ago.
Only two or three stores will be the more traditional type of Wal-Mart that carries general merchandise and dried goods but no fresh meat or produce or baked goods.
