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T&T Supermarket

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T&T Supermarket
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryRetail
Founded1993; 31 years ago (1993)
FounderCindy Lee
HeadquartersRichmond, British Columbia
Number of locations
33 stores[1]
Key people
Tina Lee (CEO)
ProductsGrocery
Websitetntsupermarket.com
T&T
Traditional Chinese大統華
Simplified Chinese大统华
Literal meaningBig United China[a]
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyindà tǒng húa
T&T Supermarket
Traditional Chinese大統華超市
Simplified Chinese大统华超市
Literal meaningBig United China Supermarket
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyindà tǒng huá chāoshì

T&T Supermarket (Chinese: 大統華超市) is a Canadian supermarket chain offering a wide range of fresh produce, meat, seafood, and authentic specialty items from various Asian cuisines. It also sells kitchenware and gifts, and has an extensive in-store kitchens and bakery selection.[3] T&T Supermarket was founded in Vancouver in 1993 by Cindy Lee and Jack Lee with Cindy operating the business as CEO.[4] Cindy's eldest daughter Tina Lee succeeded her mother in 2014 and continues to be the CEO today.[5] In 2009, a majority stake of T&T Supermarket was acquired by Loblaw Companies Limited.[6]

The stores range in size from 35,000 sq ft (3,300 m2) to 75,000 sq ft (7,000 m2). In addition to the many departments found in a regular supermarket, most T&T stores also have an in-house bakery, hot food bar, dim sum counter, sushi counter and Hong Kong style Chinese barbecue. T&T Supermarket currently has 33 stores in Canada. In 2020, they launched an online shopping platform and an app. T&T Supermarket is set to open its first flagship store in the United States, located in Bellevue, Washington in 2024. The new store, spanning 76,000 square feet, will be the largest Asian supermarket in the state. A second American location will open in Lynnwood, Washington, north of Seattle, in 2025[7], followed by a third location at Westgate Center in San Jose, California, also set to open in 2025.[8]

"T&T" is a reference to Cindy Lee's eldest daughters, Tina and Tiffany,[9] as well as the initials of two founding investors, Tawa Supermarket Inc. and Uni-President Enterprises Corp. (whose name in Chinese is romanized as "Tung Yee").[10]

History

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Establishment

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Taiwanese-Canadian businesswoman Cindy Lee started the business with a store located in Burnaby, British Columbia in 1993.[11]

The interior of a T&T store

Launch of T&T brand and rewards program

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In 2012, T&T launched its own T&T brand, a collection of private label products such as crackers, dumplings, cakes, pastries, green tea and marinade sauce.[12] The company also started a rewards program for its customers who can collect points and redeem them in-store for gifts.

Largest T&T store and development of e-commerce platform

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In 2018, T&T opened a 70,000 sq. ft. flagship store in Richmond, British Columbia, which was the first to have a live seafood bar, an Asian street food station, and self-checkouts. Industry experts dubbed the store a "grocerant" because of its restaurant-style offering.[13][14]

In 2020, T&T launched its e-commerce platform, facilitating online order and delivery of Asian food products across all provinces in Canada.[15][16]

The first T&T Supermarket in Montreal, which is also the largest store in Canada

In 2022, an even larger store was opened in Montreal, Quebec.[17] It was the first T&T store to open in Quebec and is currently the largest store of the supermarket chain.[18]

Expansion into the United States

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In June 2023, T&T Supermarket announced that they would open their first store in the United States at the Marketplace at Factoria in Bellevue, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. The store, a former Walmart location, is 76,000 square feet (7,100 m2) and is scheduled to open in 2024.[19] A second American location, north of Seattle in Lynnwood, Washington, is scheduled to open in 2025.[7] A third location at Westgate Center in San Jose, California in the San Francisco Bay Area is also set to open in 2025.[8]

Locations

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British Columbia

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The front entry of the T&T Supermarket at Marine Gateway in Vancouver

Alberta

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T&T Supermarket Sage Hill Location in Calgary, Alberta
  • Calgary (4) – Pacific Place Mall, Harvest Hills Crossing, Deerfoot Meadows and Sage Hill Plaza
  • Edmonton (3) – West Edmonton Mall, North Town Centre and South Edmonton

Ontario

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The entrance of T&T Supermarket Warden Store in Markham, Ontario
The front entrance of the T&T Supermarket College Store in Toronto

Quebec

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T&T Supermarket Saint-Laurent Location in Montreal, Quebec

Washington

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  • Bellevue – The Marketplace at Factoria (Opening 2024)[24]
  • Lynnwood – Lynnwood Crossroads Shopping Center (Opening 2025)[25]

California

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Former locations

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T&T had two stores in Toronto which have closed:

  • The Cherry Street location closed on January 30, 2020 with the redevelopment of the Port Lands after operating for 12 years.[27]
  • The Milliken Crossings location (Middlefield and Steeles) closed in 2015 and now houses another Asian retailer.[28]

Awards

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In 2018, CEO Tina Lee received the Executive of the Year Award by Ascend Canada and, together with founder Cindy Lee, were awarded with the Retail Council of Canada Canadian Grand Prix Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award for having "demonstrated outstanding service and dedication to the Canadian retail and grocery industry."[29][30] Cindy Lee received the lifetime achievement award at the 2019 Chinese Canadian entrepreneur awards in recognition of her contributions to the Chinese Canadian business community.[31] In 2021, Tina was inducted into the inaugural Grocery Business Hall of Fame, and was listed as one of British Columbia’s Top 500 Most Influential Business Leaders.[32]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ As provided in the Canadian trademark registration for 'DA TUNG HUA'.[2] The Chinese name is derived from the Chinese names of 99 Ranch Market (大華超級市場) and Uni-President Enterprises Corporation (統一企業公司).

References

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  1. ^ "T&T Supermarket Store Location". T&T Supermarket.
  2. ^ "DA TUNG HUA Chinese Character Design — 1067488". Canadian Trademark Details. Government of Canada. Retrieved November 12, 2021. The English translation as provided by the applicant is BIG UNITED CHINA
  3. ^ "T & T Supermarket – T&T Supermarket". T&T Supermarket. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  4. ^ Liu, Scarlett. "Entrepreneur's book reveals story behind Asian supermarket chain T&T". Newmarket Today. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  5. ^ "T&T Supermarket CEO passes the torch". Canadian Grocer. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  6. ^ "Loblaw buying T&T Asian food chain". CBC News. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
  7. ^ a b Podsada, Janice (June 5, 2024). "New Asian grocery store T&T Supermarket to open in Lynnwood". The Everett Herald. Retrieved June 5, 2024.
  8. ^ a b "Richmond-based Asian supermarket expands to California". Richmond News. August 15, 2024. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
  9. ^ Devlin, Megan (January 12, 2024). ""For the next generation": T&T Supermarkets CEO on store's viral origin story". Daily Hive. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  10. ^ Eade, Ron (October 2, 2009). "T&T arrives with a bang". The Ottawa Citizen. Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
  11. ^ "How the CEO of Canada's Largest Asian Supermarket Took the Lead on COVID". MONTECRISTO. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  12. ^ "Loblaw Expands Private Brand Portfolio And Introduces the T&T Brand". Archived from the original on March 27, 2013. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  13. ^ "T&T unveils flagship store in Richmond". Canadian Grocer. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  14. ^ "Canada's largest T&T Supermarket opens in Metro Vancouver". Straight. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  15. ^ "T&T launches e-grocery". Canadian Grocer. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  16. ^ "T&T Supermarket launches online ordering and home delivery across Canada". DailyHive. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  17. ^ Template:Title=T&T - Our Story
  18. ^ a b "T&T Asian Supermarket Has Chosen Its Montreal Location & It'll be the Biggest in Canada". January 21, 2022.
  19. ^ Thompson, Joey (June 8, 2023). "Asian supermarket chain T&T taps Bellevue for first US location". Puget Sound Business Journal. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
  20. ^ "T&T Supermarket set to expand to London, Ontario in 2024".
  21. ^ Doradea, Karen (May 4, 2023). "T&T Supermarket to open new Toronto location this month & will have new food offerings". Curiocity. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
  22. ^ "T&T Supermarkets is bringing its iconic shopping experience and selection to downtown Toronto with a second location".
  23. ^ MacDonald, Thomas (December 15, 2022). "Montreal's First T&T Asian Grocery Store Is Now Open & It's Freakin Ginormous". MTL Blog. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
  24. ^ Toneguzzi, Mario. "T&T Supermarkets Expanding into the US with 1st Store". Retail Insider. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
  25. ^ "T&T Supermarket Inc. plans 2nd location in Washington State". Supermarket News. Retrieved May 30, 2024.
  26. ^ "CANADA'S ICONIC ASIAN GROCER T&T SUPERMARKETS CONTINUES US EXPANSION WITH FIRST STORE IN CALIFORNIA". ca.finance.yahoo.
  27. ^ Hatherly, Tara (December 20, 2019). "T&T Supermarket closing Cherry Street store in Toronto". Toronto.com. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  28. ^ Miller, Adam. "Loblaws announces closure of T&T Supermarket in Scarborough". Global News. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  29. ^ "T&T Supermarket's Cindy and Tina Lee to Receive Prestigious 2018 RCC Grand Prix Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award". Retail Insider. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  30. ^ "T&T Supermarkets' Cindy and Tina Lee receive RCC's 2018 Canadian Grand Prix Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award". Retail Council of Canada. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  31. ^ "2019 Awards Winners". ACCE. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  32. ^ "Did you know that Canada's biggest Asian Supermarket T&T is led by an exceptional woman named Tina Lee?". Linkedin. Famous 5 Foundation. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
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