Fredericton — Residents and gearing up to shop till they drop as the development progresses on a new Shoppers Drug Mart and No Frills at Two Nations Crossing on the north side of Fredericton.
“I can’t wait!” cried Erica Allen of Crocket Street. “Soon I won’t have to drive all the way to the Shoppers on Main Street to pay $11 for a stick of deodorant or to Superstore to drop $27 on some grey-ish expired beef.”
Residents are familiar with Shoppers Drug Mart, but No Frills — which has similar prices but offers even lower-quality items than Superstore — is a particularly appealing new addition to the commercial landscape.
“The packaging is an ugly yellow — that’s how you know it’s cheap,” said Amy Francis, who claims she’ll be first in line when No Frills opens. “I don’t even need to compare prices around town; Loblaw’s marketing team has done the thinking for me!”
Bob Smith of Nashwaaksis said he doesn’t discriminate between areas of the city when it comes to groceries — he’s just happy there are more and more stores owned by Loblaw to choose from.
“Whether it’s at the uptown Shoppers, the downtown Superstore or the northside No Frills, I’m personally ecstatic to be able to spend far more than I can afford on everyday essentials,” he enthused. “And it’s nice that I never have to resort to shopping local. I can just get everything from the Weston family.
“And while the only jobs created here are minimum wage, it also feels good to know Galen Weston and Per Bank won’t have to worry about whether they get a new yacht this year. They’re clearly doing very well for themselves!”
A local community Facebook group posted about the sprawling development, and all comments were overwhelmingly positive.
“I mean, I delete comments that are of a different opinion,” explained a moderator, “so no one knows for sure what the real sentiment is, but from what we’re seeing in the feedback that I do allow, people cannot wait for even more Loblaw stores to edge out independent — or at least ethical — grocers and vendors, essentially making it impossible for them to succeed anywhere in our city.
“I, for one, welcome our new greedy, monopolistic overlords.”
The fact is that all the money required to construct a nice clean bright shiny new store … is paid for by the consumer in addition to the exorbitant inflationary prices inside … ???
The fact is that all the money required to construct a nice clean bright shiny new store … is paid for by the consumer in addition to the exorbitant inflationary prices inside … ???
The headline is incorrect. It should be NOT to be price-gouged.