Canada’s shopping for a foreign grocer. Can an international retailer succeed here? [Video]

With some Canadians struggling to afford groceries, and as frustrations with corporate profits boil over and manifest as boycotts, the federal government says it’s trying to coax international grocers to set up shop in Canada.

During a Tuesday media conference, Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne told reporters that he continues “to look at whether there are foreign deep-discounters that would be interested in the Canadian market.” 

The minister has been open about his plans for months, and the Wall Street Journal first reported last month that he was courting a dozen European and U.S. companies, including German chains Aldi and Lidl, and U.S. chain Grocery Outlet Holding.

Yet grocery industry analysts in Canada say dangling a carrot in front of an international supermarket brand won’t solve the consolidation problem — if there’s a carrot to dangle at all.

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