T&T Supermarket
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T&T Supermarket (Template:Lang-zh) is a Canadian Asian supermarket chain headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia. It was founded in Vancouver in 1993 by Jack and Cindy Lee who was the founding CEO.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Cindy's eldest daughter Tina Lee succeeded her mother in 2014.<ref name="ceo-passes-the-torch">Template:Cite news</ref> In 2009, T&T Supermarket was acquired by Loblaw Companies Limited.<ref name=":2" />
T&T is the largest Asian supermarket chain in Canada, operating 37 locations<ref name="Store Locations"></ref> across British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec, as well as one location in the United States. The stores range in size from Template:Convert to Template:Convert. In addition to the many departments found in a regular supermarket, most T&T stores also feature produce, meat, seafood, baked goods, kitchenware, gifts, specialty items from various Asian cuisines,<ref name="TNT-AU">Template:Cite web</ref> hot food bar, dim sum counter, sushi counter and Hong Kong style Chinese barbecue. In 2020, they launched an online shopping platform and an app. In 2024, T&T Supermarket opened its first U.S. store in Bellevue, Washington.
"T&T" is a reference to Cindy Lee's eldest daughters, Tina and Tiffany,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> as well as the initials of two founding investors: Tawa Supermarket Inc. and Tung Yee Uni-President Enterprises Corp.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
History
Establishment and early history
Taiwanese-Canadian businesswoman Cindy Lee started the business with a store located in Burnaby, British Columbia in 1993.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
On March 5, 2007, The Tyee reported a case of a foreign temporary worker who claimed to have been exploited, and had his passport seized by T&T Supermarket. According to The Tyee's coverage, "In a notice of claim filed with the small claims division of the Provincial Court of British Columbia, Gui Qiang Zou claims he was pressured into working longer hours for lower wages than promised after the firm kept his passport and other key documents."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Acquisition by Loblaw
T&T is part of Loblaw Companies, which purchased it in July 2009 for $225 million in consideration, consisting of $191 million in cash and $34 million in preferred shares.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite news</ref> The consideration paid above and beyond the tangible asset base of the company (i.e. the accounting goodwill) which was estimated at $180 million.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Unionization history
The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) filed an application for certification with the Ontario Labour Relations Board on July 16, 2012. Workers at a T&T Supermarket warehouse in Scarborough, Ontario, held a secret ballot vote on Monday, July 23, 2012, for unionization. The workers at the T&T Supermarket Scarborough warehouse sought unionization to attempt improving scheduling issues as well as tying wage more closely to seniority, instead of in-group favoritism. Warehouse staff at T&T Supermarket worked a 39-hour work week, spanning six days in a week and there were cases where staff working for T&T Supermarket for three years were still earning a minimum wage of $10.25 per hour.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On July 23, about 100 employees at the T&T Scarborough warehouse voted participated in the secret ballot unionization vote. However, the Ontario Labour Relations Board sealed the ballot box for review. A dispute arose as the UFCW and T&T Supermarket argued about the eligibility of the voters in the voter list. UFCW national representative Kevin Shimmin said that the dispute caused the secret ballot vote to be reviewed, while T&T CEO Cindy Lee claimed that it was the decision of the Ontario Labour Relations Board to look into whether the union has enough support from employees to in the first place file the application.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Development of largest T&T store and e-commerce platform
In 2018, T&T opened a Template:Convert flagship store in Richmond, British Columbia, which was the first to have a live seafood bar, an Asian street food station, and self-checkouts. Industry experts dubbed the store a "grocerant" because of its restaurant-style offering.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In 2020, T&T launched its e-commerce platform, facilitating online orders and delivery of Asian food products across all provinces in Canada.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In 2022, an even larger store was opened in Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It was the first T&T store to open in Quebec and is currently the largest store in the supermarket chain.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref>
Expansion into United States
In 2024, T&T Supermarket opened its first American location at Marketplace at Factoria in Bellevue, Washington. The outlet, spanning Template:Convert, claimed to be the largest grocery store in the state.<ref name="SeattleTimes-December2024">Template:Cite news</ref>
In 2025, additional locations in Lynnwood, Washington, and San Jose, California were scheduled to open.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Template:Convert Lynwood location opened in the Lynnwood Crossroads center on November 13, 2025.<ref name="lynnwood2025">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Awards
In 2018, CEO Tina Lee received the Executive of the Year Award by Ascend Canada and, together with founder Cindy Lee, were awarded with the Retail Council of Canada Canadian Grand Prix Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award for having "demonstrated outstanding service and dedication to the Canadian retail and grocery industry."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Cindy Lee received the lifetime achievement award at the 2019 Chinese Canadian entrepreneur awards in recognition of her contributions to the Chinese Canadian business community.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
See also
Notes
References
External links
Template:Canadian Supermarkets Template:George Weston Limited Template:Vancouver Corporations