Quality Foods announces new store in Colwood
Quality Foods has announced plans for a new store in the Royal Bay development in the Victoria suburb of Colwood. Construction on the store—its 14th—will start this year, with an expected mid to late 2022 opening.
Quality Foods vice-president and CFO Justin Schley said the Greater Victoria Area is among the markets the company continues to look towards for expansion, particularly as rising housing costs continue to drive people outside the city proper.
Colwood’s small-town-within-a-city feel is similar to that of Quality Foods’ other markets, he said, while the Royal Bay development will be home to the young professionals that comprise the company’s core shopper.
Situated on a 419-acre plot, with 1.3 kilometres of shoreline, Royal Bay is described as a seaside community located on the Southern tip of Vancouver Island, catering to young families and the young at heart. The approximately 35,000 square-foot Quality Foods store will be the anchor tenant in a new retail development, said Schley.
The store will feature what Schley described as the company’s “latest and greatest” features, including a full-service meat and seafood counter. It will also house an 80-seat restaurant called Perk Avenue Café, as well as a sushi bar—a new format for the company that will make its debut in its Parksville store early next month.
The company is currently working through potential store layouts, with Schley saying building from scratch presents an opportunity to do things a little differently. “This area has a very high-quality standard in terms of form and character, and it will definitely carry through
Schley said Quality Foods’ new stores tend to be a combination of retrofitting an existing building and new builds, with the latter providing more leeway in terms of store design. “It’s a lot nicer to work in this type of environment than working around an existing building, for sure,” he said.