Susan Krashinsky Robertson

Retail industry reporter @globeandmail
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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Cost increases throughout the grocery supply chain are putting pressure on food prices -- and stoking concern among small independent retailers, who worry they're disproportionately bearing the burden of added fees from suppliers.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

For years, if you were shopping for something online, you'd Google it. Now, more and more people are asking ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and other AI agents for help finding the products they want. Our story on how retailers are coping with this new world:

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Unilever is applying a 9% increase in the price it charges retailers for Hellmann’s mayonnaise – another signal of soaring fuel costs putting pressure on grocery prices.

It's among a number of suppliers that recently imposed price hikes to grocers
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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

The pressure on consumer prices resulting from the Middle East conflict has been multiplied for communities in Canada’s North

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Food suppliers are beginning to charge retailers across Canada extra fees to offset the soaring cost of fuel, a move that will put pressure on grocery prices. “There is no excess margin we can absorb," one independent grocer told me.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Canada’s billionaire Weston family is funding the launch of a national digital-media startup, according to sources familiar with the venture. The online publication, being developed under the working title Be Giant, is preparing to launch this spring.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Vancouver e-commerce company Article plans store expansion, during a tough time for furniture retailers
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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Since the Trump administration eliminated the "de minimis" exemption last year, small Canadian businesses have been scrambling to understand complex trade rules they never had to worry about before. For some, the uncertainty is too much.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Online pharmacy services have boomed, and advertisements for quick access to in-demand drugs are all over social media. But many of these promotions are violating Canadian regulations on prescription-drug advertising, a Globe and Mail analysis has found.
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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

From a small Toronto liquidator left holding a bill for $200,000, to major toy brands like Mattel, Lego, Spin Master and Hasbro that are owed millions -- the financial collapse of Toys "R" Us Canada has reverberations across the industry.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Signs of financial distress are mounting at Toys “R” Us Canada, with multiple locations closing in recent weeks and landlords saying they are owed unpaid rent.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Two of Canada’s most prominent families, the Thomsons and the Westons, are set to prevail in their $18-million bid to buy the 1670 Hudson’s Bay charter, and will donate it to four cultural institutions to keep it in Canada and accessible to the public.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Brewing giant Molson Coors Canada has uncovered an alleged embezzlement scheme that led to losses totalling at least $9-million. The details were revealed in a lawsuit naming former Molson employees, the president of Firkin Hospitality Group, and others.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Hudson's Bay auctioned off the highlights of its art collection yesterday. Here's what it was like inside the sale room:
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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

I spent months following Ruby Liu's contentious bid for 25 former Hudson's Bay stores. This is the story of how the deal fell apart.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Since its founding in 2013, Knix has built its brand by focusing squarely on women. Now, the retailer is branching out with men’s products for the first time.

https://t.co/Uw7tZ7Hs0i #retail

[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

The Ontario government will introduce a bill to ban closed preferred pharmacy networks, a kind of exclusivity deal between insurers and pharmacies that restricts where patients can buy medication.

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[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

After its $30M deal to acquire the Hudson's Bay intellectual property, Canadian Tire is launching a collection decorated with the HBC stripes for the holidays.

https://t.co/FmZmnqnPOH #retail

[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

A Popeyes franchisee whose restaurants were shut down last month over unpaid wages is also a defendant in a lawsuit against the fast-food chain and its restaurant owners, which alleges some franchisees bought "unsafe" meat from an unauthorized supplier.

https://t.co/2hreR3vYU7

[Susan Krashinsky Robertson @susinsky]

Canadian Tire will soon begin selling the distinctive Hudson’s Bay point blanket. It will direct all proceeds – a minimum of $1M/yr – to Indigenous-led initiatives, ensuring a program HBC launched with the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund will continue.

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