Longo Brothers Fruit Markets Inc., known simply as Longo's is a chain of retail

supermarket A supermarket is a self-service shop offering a wide variety of food, beverages and household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earlier grocery stores, but is smaller and more lim ...

s and grocery delivery service serving

Southern Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

, controlled by

Sobeys Sobeys Inc. is the second largest supermarket chain in Canada, with over 1,500 stores operating across Canada under a variety of banners. Headquartered in Stellarton, Nova Scotia, it operates stores in all ten provinces and accumulated sales o ...

parent

Empire Company Empire Company Limited is a Canadian conglomerate engaged mostly in food retail and corporate investments. The company is headquartered in Stellarton, Nova Scotia. Empire Company also owns the Sobeys supermarket chain. The company was founded ...

in partnership with the founding Longo family. Its

corporate office An office is a space where an organization's employees perform administrative work in order to support and realize objects and goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific duti ...

is located in

Vaughan Vaughan () (2021 population 323,103) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located in the Regional Municipality of York, just north of Toronto. Vaughan was the fastest-growing municipality in Canada between 1996 and 2006 with its population increas ...

and operates locations mainly in the

Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) is a contiguous urban region that is composed of some of the largest cities and metropolitan areas by population in the Canadian province of Ontario. The GTHA consists of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA ...

History

Longo's was founded in 1956 by Italian immigrant brothers Joe, Tommy, and Gus Longo, who immigrated to

in 1951 from

Termini Imerese Termini Imerese (; scn, Tèrmini ) , grc, Θερμαὶ αἱ Ἱμερᾶαι , grc, Θερμαὶ Ἱμέραι , or grc, Θερμὰ (Ἱμεραῖα) ; la, Thermae Himerenses; literally " Himera's hot springs". is a town of the Metrop ...

, Sicily. They established their first store at the intersection of

Yonge Street Yonge Street (; pronounced "young") is a major arterial route in the Canadian province of Ontario connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Great Lakes#Geography, Upper Great Lakes. Once the southernmost ...

and Castlefield Avenue in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

, with the name "Broadway Fruit Market". This store was about , and had eight family members working there. After the Longo family joined Antonino in Canada, they opened a store on Yonge Street in 1956. A year after the father's death in 1961, the store moved to East York. Their second location was in Malton, at the southeast corner of Airport and Derry. While a massive gas explosion in 1969 destroyed many businesses in the community, the Longo family cleaned up and reopened after just a few days. They sold their Toronto store in 1971, to focus on their Malton operations. as increased expansion continued. In 1998, Tommy's son Anthony became the president of Longo's. Longo's publishes a free magazine called ''Experience Magazine''. In 2004, Longo's acquired the online grocery retailer Grocery Gateway. Longo's owns and operates 36 stores, most in the

, including several smaller-format "The Market by Longo's" stores in

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

and midtown

. A flagship store opened in

Maple Leaf Square Maple Leaf Square is a multi-use complex and public square located in the South Core neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located to the west of the Scotiabank Arena on the former Railway Lands. The $500 million development was join ...

in downtown Toronto. In September 2016, the chain's southwesternmost location opened in

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, making it the first in Hamilton. Longo's employs more than 5,000 people, and for nine consecutive years was one of Canada's Top 50 privately managed companies by the ''

Financial Post The ''Financial Post'' was an English Canadian business newspaper, which published from 1907 to 1998. In 1998, the publication was folded into the new ''National Post'',"Black says Post to merge with new paper". '' The Globe and Mail'', July 23, ...

'' newspaper (2000-2008), achieving platinum status. Joe Longo Sr. died on September 15, 2008, at the age of 70. Tommy Longo died on January 30, 2011, at the age of 76. On March 16, 2021, it was announced that

, parent company of

, will buy a 51% stake in Longo's and its Grocery Gateway e-commerce business (which was acquired by Longo's in 2004) for $357 million. The deal, which closed in May 2021, includes a clause allowing Sobeys' share to increase in future years. The Longo's stores and Grocery Gateway "will continue to be led by CEO Anthony Longo". The plan was subject to review by the

Competition Bureau The Competition Bureau (french: Bureau de la concurrence) is the competition regulator in Canada. It is an independent Canadian law enforcement agency that ensures that markets operate in a competitive, innovative manner. Headed by the Commi ...

. In September 2021, the Grocery Gateway delivery service was folded under the Longo's banner, with the transitional name "Longo's delivered by Grocery Gateway". The Longo's delivery operation continues as a standalone business, but may collaborate with Sobeys' own Voilà delivery brand.

Locations

36 locations: *

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...

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Brampton Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a lower-tier municipality within Peel Region. The city has a population of 656,480 as of the 2021 Census, making it the ...

(2) *

Burlington Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, ...

(2) *

East Gwillimbury East Gwillimbury is a town (lower-tier municipality) on the East Holland River in the upper-tier municipality the Regional Municipality of York. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area of southern Ontario, in Canada. It was formed by the amalg ...

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as "The Royal City", Guelph is roughly east of Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Well ...

Maple ''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since ht ...

(2) * Markham (2) * Milton * Mississauga (4) * Oakville (3) * Richmond Hill * Stouffville * Thornhill *

(10, including 5 "The Market by Longo's" locations) * Woodbridge (2)

References

External links

* {{Canadian Supermarkets 1956 establishments in Ontario Companies based in Vaughan Retail companies established in 1956 Supermarkets of Canada Privately held companies of Canada Canadian companies established in 1956

History

Locations

See also

References

External links