Farm Boy, a Canadian food brand with a farm-to-table business model, is continuing its aggressive expansion into southern Ontario with new locations in Burlington and St. Catharines.
The Ottawa-based company, which specializes in selling fresh produce and food products, has announced plans to build a new 25,000-square-foot store on Walkers Line at Dundas Street in Burlington and a 24,000-square-foot location in St. Catharines at Fourth Avenue West and First Street Louth.
“After opening locations in Toronto, Oakville and Hamilton, we’ve received many requests from residents of Burlington asking us to bring Farm Boy to their city,” Farm Boy co-CEO Jeff York said. “We’re excited to share the news with the St. Catharines community and we’re thrilled for the opportunity to earn their business.”
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York says the expansion will create 150 jobs in Burlington and 120 in St. Catharines.
Farm Boy opened up its first location, a 300-square-foot store that sold only produce, in 1981 on Cumberland Street in Cornwall.
As of late 2018, when the chain was acquired by Sobeys’ parent company, the franchise counted 26 stores, with its last opening in Hamilton at Mohawk Road and Magnolia Drive in March.
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The grocery outlet is not only known for its fresh produce, meat, artisanal cheese and fresh dairy but also its made-to-order grilling stations and Wi-Fi-enabled seating areas.
No specific dates were released by Farm Boy regarding when the two new locations will open, but the company said its Burlington location has a targeted opening in late 2019 while the St. Catharines location would be open in early 2020.