Loblaw, headquartered in Toronto, is also Canada's largest retailer with sales of more than $23 billion Canadian in 2002. The company is one of the largest employers in Canada with more than 122,000 full and part-time employees. Loblaw encompasses 1,100 coporate and franchised stores, 800 associate stores and 9,000 independent stores.
Loblaw was started in 1919 by T.P. Loblaw and Justin Cork, at the beginning of the "supermarket" revolution, and during the 1930s they grew to become a chain of more than 80 stores.
In 1947 George Weston Ltd. acquired a controlling interest in the company, which became Canada's largest grocery retailer and the third largest in North America.
Loblaw Companies Limited was incorporated in 1956 and throughout the 1970s and 1980s they introduced their private label brands.
Since early 2003, it has been said that Loblaw will bring its Real Canadian Superstore banner to Ontario later in the year. The 140,000 square foot stores are well known in Western Canada, with food and general merchandise offerings. Many of these new stores were originally going to be large Loblaws Market stores but now will instead be Loblaw The Real Canadian Superstore or Zehrs The Real Canadian Superstore. Analysts say that Loblaw made this decision in reaction to the threat of Wal-Mart potentially opening superstores in Canada.