While the announcement was made back in January, Safeway officially closes 8 Metro Vancouver stores this week.

The owner of Safeway, Empire Co., stated that it planned to close stores that were “consistently underperforming.” In a competitive market with a plethora of discount brands, as well as increased labour costs, it had trouble integrating the brand.

The corporation had originally slated the closures for early May; however, union disputes pushed the transition back by two months.

The closures affect nearly 1,000 employees, and many will lose their jobs as a result of the closures.

Safeway Stores to Close

In Metro Vancouver, the following locations will no longer operate under the Safeway brand on July 5th.

Lougheed Mall, Burnaby

Sunwood Square, Coquitlam

West Point Grey, Vancouver

Royal Oak, Burnaby

Blundell, Richmond

Broadmoor, Richmond

Newton Town Centre, Surrey

Strawberry Hills, Surrey

In addition, the Safeway in Mission will also close doors on July 5th. Afterwards, Vancouver’s City Square location will close doors on July 28th.

While details are unconfirmed, the corporation may reopen some of the stores as the discount brand FreshCo. These stores include: Blundell and Broadmoor in Richmond; both Newton Town Centre and Strawberry Hill in Surrey; and the Lougheed Highway location in Mission.