Canadian discount retailer has big plans for The Reject Shop.

 

Canadian discount retailer Dollarama has plans to operate 500 to 600 stores in Australia following its acquisition last year of The Reject Shop.

 

Dollarama president and chief executive Neil Rossy told investors last week that he was confident that with an expanded footprint, rebranded Dollarama Australia stores can dominate Australia’s multi-billion dollar discount and general merchandise space, stating that: “while this is a four-year project, once you’ve established a low-cost retail platform in Australia, with by that point, over 500-600 stores, we feel very confident that being the 800-pound gorilla in the market will play very well for our shareholders.” 

 

Dollarama earlier said it sees the Australian discounter store market as under-penetrated versus Canada and plans to drive sales in stationery, kitchen and consumables, as it has done in Canada.

 

The Reject Shop has around 390 stores nationally, some of which have been transitioned to Dollarama.

 

The entry into Australia by Dollarama could be a threat to Officeworks’ stranglehold on the retail stationery market, according to retail analysts.

 

 In January, the company's entity name changed from The Reject Shop Limited to Dollarama Australia Pty Ltd.