A smaller Super Freshmart reopens
TORONTO NEWS / Manager says his store is just the latest Church Street business affected by Loblaws
Andrea Houston / Toronto / Friday, March 08, 2013
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Super Freshmart, the grocery store at the corner of Church and Maitland streets, reopens today, March 8, albeit slightly smaller in size.

With escalating costs and increased competition from Loblaws down the street, owner Daniel Choi says, it was time to make some hard decisions.

“It was a big place for me. After Loblaws moved in, I have seen business drop, even regulars.”

Many in the community know Super Freshmart as the 24-hour store with some of the best drunk food in the city. Tucked into a corner is a full bakery, with ham-and-cheese croissants made fresh every night for those leaving the bars after last call.
Super Freshmart owner Daniel Choi.
(Andrea Houston)


Choi says the bakery is staying, and the croissants will be back. He has also added a sushi bar, and a sushi chef will be on hand making fresh sushi for takeout orders throughout the day.

“Everything is pretty much the same, but we have reduced the size and added sushi,” he says. “It was a very big store. We tried to keep all the things that people want but minimize the size.”

Super Freshmart is one of the last independent grocers left in the Church Wellesley Village. When the store closed for renovations, many expressed fear on social media that it would be gone for good, another victim of a changing Village.  

James Thwaites, who works for the owner of the building, says Super Freshmart has been cut down by about a quarter, and a new small space is up for lease next door.

Thwaites says he does not know whether any business owners have expressed interest in the property.
Super Freshmart reopens today, March 8.
(Andrea Houston)

 


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Reader Comments


 
Just wondering
what Daniel Choi's vote was with the BIA in regards to closing the Fetish Fair?
John, Toronto ON
03/10/13 10:53 AM EST
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Blame yourselves first
This store -- and the Village Rainbow was another -- that practiced light extortion on bubbly village residents and visitors; they ought to reflect on their own role in their suffering. The store was dirty, poor maintained, the staff surly. I specifically remember being horrendously overcharged during the 2003 blackout. During those late-night after-the-bar trips, I doubt I noticed on many occasions. It goes against my nature to attack a small business, and I usually side against the behemoth. Not this time. I no longer live in the Village, but if I did, I think I'd be happy to have the Loblaws handy with their clean store and generally pleasant staff. (Assuming, of course, I was suitably employed to pay those premium prices). The upside of some of this may be that the landlords on Church Street might be squeezed into lowering the rents to keep businesses present. But increasingly, I wonder why we bother with having a Village at all. Do we really feel our quality of life is improved by drinking expensive drinks with rainbow decorations? Are we still aiming for late 80's Provincetown?
Ander, Toronto ON
03/14/13 2:03 AM EST
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