Dominion (supermarket) - History

History

Dominion store started from one Toronto store on May 23, 1919. The store was founded by American businessmen Robert Jackson of New Hampshire and William J. Pentland of Connecticut. Pentland was manager of A&P stores in Connecticut and was hired by Jackson. By the end of 1919 they had a 20 store chain with 18 acquired from rival Loblaws and 61 stores a year later. In 1929 it tried to acquire a stake in Loblaws, but the stock market crashed ended the growth. During the Depression, Dominion lost both founders: Jackson went bankrupt and Pentland was killed in an auto accident in 1933.

Dominon's leadership was not resolved until 1939, when J. William Horsey became president. He in turn sold Dominion Stores to Argus Corporation. Smaller stores were consolidated from 574 to 195 by 1954. In the 1950s, Dominion began to build large stores with airy ceilings and large glass fronts. The chain also expanded beyond Toronto to other parts of Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and Newfoundland.

Competition in the 1970s forced the chain to discount and led to the collapse in the 1980s. By 1984, Dominion was closing unprofitable stores in an attempt to stem its losses.

A 1984 attempt to break union agreements by closing some existing locations and reopening franchised operations at the same locations under the Mr. Grocer name ultimately failed.