Richmond will not be the only Canadian city getting a new Walmart store this year. Walmart Canada has announced plans to build 35 “supercentres” over the next year across Canada.
The company has not identified where the new locations will be, but it’s no secret that one of them will be Richmond.
In November, Richmond city council approved a $150 million shopping centre that is to be anchored by a Walmart. It will be the city’s first Walmart store.
The new store will be located on Alderbridge Way across the street from the currently vacant Garden City lands. Work is now underway clearing the construction site.
There is also speculation that a new 1.8 million square-foot mega-mall in Delta on Tsawwassen First Nation treaty land may also include a Walmart, though the company has yet to confirm the speculation, according to the Delta Optimist.
Walmart Canada said in a press release that the 35 new stores would create 7,500 new jobs in retail, distribution and e-commerce.
The company said it plans to complete the projects within this fiscal year, which ends January 31, 2015.
“Customers in every region of Canada are looking to save money on their entire list of shopping needs,” Walmart Canada CEO Shelley Broader said in a news release. “Delivering on our commitment to help lower the cost of living is our top priority, and our growing network of supercentres and our expanding walmart.ca offering enable us to do just that.”
With the addition of 35 stores, Walmart will have 395 stores in Canada by the end of January, 2015, including 282 supercentres and 113 discount stores.
