Battle Of The Stores: No Frills Vs. Fresh Co.

Have you ever wondered which budget grocer is better? Both Fresh Co. and No Frills are owned by grocery store conglomerates, with Fresh Co. falling under the Sobey’s umbrella and No Frills apart of the Loblaw family.
Battle Of The Stores: No Frills Vs. Fresh Co.

Saving your money has never been more important, and one of the biggest monthly costs for Canadian families is groceries and food.  Every month, Canadians are looking for ways to save more money at the register, and one of the best ways to do so is to pick the right place to shop. After searching through the various shopping options it seems clear that if you’re going for everyday groceries it’s pretty hard to beat No Frills  & Fresh Co. so we decided to compare the two.

Have you ever wondered which budget grocer is better? Both Fresh Co. and No Frills are owned by grocery store conglomerates. Fresh Co. falls under Sobey’s umbrella and No Frills is part of the Loblaw family. While both offer food for less, over the years we’ve noticed some difference between the two. Is one better than the other?

Check out our comparisons of No Frills and Fresh Co.

Experience & Return Policy

Fresh Co. was quite empty at 8:30 pm on a Monday night, with few people working in general and only one cashier ringing customers through. As for their return policy, it states on Freshco.com: “At Fresh Co. we stand behind our products. If you aren’t satisfied with an item, bring it back with your receipt within 14 days and we’ll give you your money back.”

No Frills was quite busy at 9:00 pm as it was staffed accordingly with 3 cashiers as opposed to Fresh Co.’s one. There was also an abundance of flyers around which highlighted the week’s deals. As for their return policy, the honor was the same one as Fresh Co.

Assortment/Offerings

Fresh Co.’s variety did not compare to No Frills, as the displays were not nearly as pleasing to the eye and lacking. Point blank – Fresh Co. seemed to have less variety in several areas, but in particular pertaining to the kale, spinach, and salad section.

Not that No Frills is perfect or high-end in any way, but No Frills trumps Fresh Co. in the assortment. They had more of a variety of items throughout the displays and aisles.

Another thing to note is that the Fresh Co. flyer featured 103 items on sale or promotion while No Frills featured 71 items.

Atmosphere/Cleanliness

When I walked into Fresh Co. I noticed that the lighting had a cold tint to it and there were no flyers readily available or visible for shoppers to read.

No Frills was brightly lit with a warm tint, it was much more welcoming and stacked flyers featuring the week’s deal were adjacent to the grocery store entrance. No Frills seemed to be cleaner and offered what at least appeared to be higher quality, fresher vegetables, and meat.

Prices

Both locations had sales and good deals but Fresh Co. actually had more sales and promotions at this particular time. In terms of quality and freshness, there are some items I would buy from Fresh Co. over No Frills. These include ice cream, snacks, cereal, etc. For meat and produce, I would choose No Frills. 

All locations for any merchant vary due to geographic location, management, and different franchise owners. It’s definitely key that these factors are taken into consideration when comparing the two grocery stores overall!

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