Walmart Canada to Build Dozens of Stores and Sell Fleet Business

Walmart Canada said Thursday (Jan. 30) that it will build dozens of new stores across the country over the next five years and that it will sell its fleet business.

These moves will help the company further accelerate its growth in Canada, it said in a Thursday press release.

“Walmart Canada is on an ambitious growth journey to serve even more Canadians — better and differently than ever before,” Gui Loureiro, regional CEO, Walmart Canada, Chile, Mexico and Central America, said in the release. “This $6.5 billion investment is the largest we’ve made in Canada towards expanding our footprint since we first arrived here 30 years ago.”

The new stores will include five new Supercentres that will open by 2027 and a new distribution center that will open in spring 2025, according to the release. The company will also modernize all its distribution centers.

Walmart Canada signed an agreement to sell its fleet business to fleet services provider Canada Cartage, per the release.

“Through Canada Cartage we can serve customers even better and more flexibly and provide fleet employees with exciting growth opportunities at one of Canada’s largest and most trusted supply chain service providers,” Matt Kelly, vice president of supply chain, Walmart Canada, said in the release.

In its own press release about the transaction, Canada Cartage said the move will allow Walmart Canada to focus on expanding its stores and supply chain and will allow Canada Cartage to strengthen its fleet outsourcing capabilities.

“Canada Cartage will operate the fleet as a dedicated operation — ensuring business continuity for Walmart Canada while building on its reputation as a trusted provider in the dedicated transportation industry,” the fleet services provider’s press release said.

Subject to customary closing conditions, the transaction is expected to close within weeks, per the release.

Walmart Canada’s new investment follows its $3.5 billion investment announced in 2020 that saw the company modernize more than 180 stores, open four new stores and open five distribution centers, one of which is set to open in the spring, according to its press release.

Walmart Canada now has more than 400 stores nationwide, more than 100,000 associates, and an online store that is visited by more than 1.5 million customers daily, per the release.

Walmart is growing its footprint in the U.S., too. The company said in January 2024 that it planned to build or convert more than 150 stores and remodel 650 more across the U.S. over the next five years.