Mar. 24, 2026 "Dollarama to only pass on price increases from war where ‘absolutely necessary’: CEO": Today I found this article on BNN Bloomberg:
As conflict in the Middle East drives up the cost of many daily essentials, the head of Dollarama Inc. says the company will try to resist hiking its own prices as much as possible.
“We will only pass on price increases where absolutely necessary,” CEO Neil Rossy told analysts on a Tuesday call.
The declaration comes weeks after the U.S. and Israel launched attacks on Iran, subsequently hindering the flow
of fuel
and other goods through one of the world’s key shipping passageways.
The conflict almost immediately pushed up gas prices and stands to spark increases on a whole myriad of consumer goods that require fuel for manufacturing or shipping.
“It’s still early days and unfortunately, higher energy costs will permeate throughout the supply chain for all retailers and for consumers over the next few months to a year,” Rossy said.
“The duration of the conflict will decide the scale of the effect,
but certainly,
inbound costs,
outbound costs,
production costs,
raw material costs
are all being affected by the increased cost of oil
and that will eventually make its way down the supply chain.”
Rossy wants the conflict to end as quickly as possible but suspects no retailer will be able to escape its ramifications.
He said Dollarama will stick to its strategy of being a “price follower”
-- a company that lets competitors set the tone for whether prices should increase or decrease
-- to ensure it keeps luring in value-focused shoppers
despite the challenges of the war.
Rossy’s remarks came as Dollarama revealed its fourth-quarter profit and sales rose compared with a year ago even as harsh winter weather hurt store traffic.
The Montreal-based dollar store owner earned $392.5 million or $1.43 per diluted share for the 13-week period ended Feb. 1.
The result compared with a profit of $391 million or $1.40 per diluted share in the 14-week period a year earlier.
Sales for the quarter totalled $2.10 billion, up from $1.88 billion in the same quarter a year ago.
Comparable-store sales in Canada for the quarter were up 1.5 per cent, as the average transaction size rose 3.1 per cent, offset in part by a 1.6 per cent drop in the number of transactions.
The results were boosted by Dollarama’s acquisition of Australia-based Reject Shop
and an increase in the number of stores in Canada.
The company will spend this year opening more locations -- it expects its net new store openings for its current fiscal year to land somewhere between 60 and 70 -- and shaking up the Reject Shop.
It is taking a close look at every product sold across the acquired chain to see where it can deliver more value
and has plans to renovate up to 80 locations this year.
Once a Reject Shop location feels more like a Dollarama, Rossy said the company will change the store’s branding.
“This work will be both gradual and disruptive,
but it is a prerequisite to setting up our Australian operations for future success,”
Rossy said.
After he spoke, the company’s share price sank about seven per cent or $13.56 to $173.02 in late-morning trading.
The retailer also announced Tuesday that it had raised its quarterly dividend to 12 cents per share, up from 10.58 cents per share.
Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 24, 2026.
Jun. 16, 2026 "Dollarama and BMO cite affordability as they announce new loyalty points partnership": Today I found this article by Daniel Otis and Tammy Ibrahimpoor on BNN Bloomberg:
Dollarama has partnered with the Bank of Montreal’s Blue Rewards loyalty program.
In a news release on Tuesday,
BMO announced that Blue Rewards members can now earn points
at more than 1,700 Dollarama stores across Canada
on purchases of $20 or more.
BMO’s announcement on the “multi-year exclusive strategic partnership” with the budget retail giant made several references to affordability as Canadians continue to grapple with inflation, which rose to 2.8 per cent in April.
“With affordability top of mind for many,
Canadians are focused on managing their budgets
and getting the most from every dollar,”
Wragg, BMO’s vice-president of strategic partnerships, said in the news release.
“By meeting our members where they already shop for essentials,
we’re making it easier to turn routine purchases
into meaningful value
and bring this benefit to more Canadians across the country.”
Bruce Winder, a retail analyst, said the partnership comes at a time when many Canadians remain focused on stretching their budgets.
“I think the newly launched Blue Rewards program is meeting customers where they are in an affordability crisis,”
Winder said in an email to CTVNews.ca.
“Customers’ everyday spending is now converted into everyday value.”
You must have a linked BMO payment card to earn Blue Rewards points on Dollarama purchases.
Those with a BMO Blue Rewards Mastercard can earn additional points,
which can be redeemed for things like
gift cards,
merchandise
and travel bookings.
“Dollarama is focused on making everyday shopping
simple,
and accessible
for Canadians,”
the company’s chief information officer, Nicolas Hien, said in the news release.
“Partnering with Blue Rewards allows us to enhance that experience by adding rewards.”
Uwe Stueckmann, a co-founder and partner with Innovate Marketing,
said the deal is a significant win for BMO because it adds a retailer that Canadians visit regularly.
“The dollar-store segment is the fastest growing retail segment in Canada,” he said in an interview with CTVNews.ca,
adding that millions of Canadians shop at dollar stores every week.
For Dollarama, Stueckmann said the partnership marks a notable shift because discount retailers have historically placed less emphasis on loyalty programs.
“They were focused on delivering the lowest price to the consumer,” he said.
Dollarama has proven to be a popular shopping choice for Canadians as they face inflation and rising food prices,
which were up 3.5 per cent year-over-year in April.
In June, Dollarama reported a first-quarter profit of $302.3 million,
up from $273.8 million in the same quarter last year.
BMO’s most recent financial report showed net income of $2.63 billion in the second quarter of 2026,
up from $1.92 billion a year ago.
Stueckmann said the partnership is also likely to resonate with Canadian consumers, who have long embraced loyalty programs.
“Canada is the most sophisticated,
most highly penetrated,
loyalty market on the planet,”
he said.
“Canadians love their loyalty programs.”
He said consumers who combine the rewards program with an eligible BMO credit card could see greater value from the partnership.
“The dividend that Dollarama pays back to the customer is less than one per cent,”
he said.
“But if you stack it with the BMO credit card, it becomes six per cent or more.”
With files from The Canadian Press
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