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TORONTO — Japanese dollar store Miniso is expanding across Canada and has been described as Dollarama’s biggest potential threat, but its diverse product range hews more closely to that of Muji or Loblaw’s Joe Fresh brand.



After debuting its first six stores in Vancouver in the spring, the retailer, which prices the majority of its items at $2.99, opened its first two Ontario locations last month and a third is opening this coming weekend in Newmarket.

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It’s part of a plan to open 30 to 50 Miniso stores in B.C., Alberta, Ontario and Quebec by the end of 2018 and as many as 500 in total across the country over the next few years, says Yi Ma, vice-president of business development for Miniso in Canada.

“We’re in a growth phase right now and looking to open as many Miniso stores in Canada as we can while staying profitable, and securing locations that we deem to be strategic,” Ma said.