How Canadian Retailers Are Building The Future of Shopping In 2025
Canadian retail saw quite a year. Throughout 2024, waves of new immigration transformed shopping patterns, while tech changed how retailers connect with customers. Mix in shifting consumer preferences, and you’ve got a retail landscape in constant motion.
With inflation still squeezing budgets and economic uncertainty looming large – particularly from new U.S. economic policies – retailers have had to innovate. The result? A wave of new trends responding to an increasingly diverse and budget-conscious shopper.
As we look to 2025, four key trends are emerging in retail design. Bud Morris, Founder and President of Canada’s Best Store Fixtures, shares his insights on what’s ahead and how these changes will reshape Canadian retail space.

Trend One: Rapid International Grocery Expansion
Canada’s immigration boom is reshaping retail. With nearly 98% of population growth coming from international migration in 2023, grocery stores are expanding their offerings to reflect cultural diversity. The international food market is growing at 14% annually, with 56% of Canadians seeking international food options.
Major players are taking note:
- Georgia Main Food Group launched Meiga Supermarket, a grocery store that specializes in Asian cuisine for the local Port Moody, BC community
- Sobeys’ Chalo! FreshCo, a South-Asian grocery store that also offers Caribbean, Middle Eastern, and European products, has 13 locations between Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario
- Loblaw’s T&T Supermarket, the largest Asian supermarket in Canada, is expanding to the United States – the first U.S. location opened in December 2024 in Bellevue, Washington
- Walmart Canada is using demographic research to tailor its product assortment to local communities with high immigrant populations – the initiative is part of its Store of the Community program
- There’s a rise in independent international grocery stores across the country

What does it mean for retail design?
- Grocery stores are rethinking their spaces to accommodate more international products
- Multicultural signage is crucial
- Custom fixtures and displays are needed to showcase international products effectively
- Retailers are incorporating cultural design elements, such as colour schemes and scents, to create a unique sensory experience

Trend Two: Tech-Powered Transformation
Technology is fundamentally changing retail design and the shopping experience. Retail is becoming more interactive, personalized, and automated. By leveraging technology, retailers can create personalized shopping experiences that surprise and delight customers.
The latest tech trends in retail:
- AI-powered recommendation engines that suggest relevant products
- Virtual shopping assistants that engage in natural conversations
- Smart mirrors that enhance the try-on experience
- Cashier-less stores
- AI-powered self-checkout systems
- Smart shopping carts that automatically scan items

What does it mean for retail design?
- Retailers are moving towards more seamless online-offline experiences, i.e. creating in-store pickup areas for online orders
- Smart mirrors, interactive displays, and AR/VR stations will be integrated into the store design
- Data-driven AI recommendations and analytics will optimize store layouts and product placements
Trend Three: The Boutique Retail Experience
Urban centres are going through a retail revolution. Former office buildings are being converted into curated shopping experiences, such as boutique grocery shops and small-format retail stores. Think Summerhill Market — where every square foot is designed with purpose and experience in mind.

What’s driving this trend?
- Young professionals and empty-nesters moving into city centres
- Demand for walkable neighbourhoods with convenient access to amenities, such as retail stores on the ground floor of new residential developments
- The shift in consumer preferences toward local, specialty food options
- A desire for a curated, high-quality shopping experience over driving to shopping centres

What does it mean for retail design?
- Smaller, more intimate retail spaces will take centre stage
- Unique store design will tell brand stories by creating special environments and experiences
- Custom, artisanal fixtures will be incorporated into design choices
- Urban spaces will be adapted to mixed-use retail developments

Trend Four: Market-Style Food Court Conversions
Quick-service restaurants and fast-casual dining both experienced growth in 2024, but a major emerging trend is market-style food courts. Traditional mall food courts are being converted into vibrant, dynamic community gathering spaces. Innovative concepts like Market & Co. at Upper Canada Mall and The Food District at Square One, which created experiential market-style food halls, are leading the charge.
Real-World Case Studies:
- Upper Canada Mall: $60 million redevelopment featuring a 40,000 sq. ft. Food Market
- In 2017, the mall began converting an old Target location into a one-stop shop curated Food Market, intending to elevate the food shopping experience and remind shoppers of a simpler time. The market, which opened in 2018, features local and artisanal vendors.
- In 2017, the mall began converting an old Target location into a one-stop shop curated Food Market, intending to elevate the food shopping experience and remind shoppers of a simpler time. The market, which opened in 2018, features local and artisanal vendors.
- Square One: 34,000 sq. ft. Food District catering to urban demographics
- The Food District opened in 2019 and features an array of local vendors selling high-quality food products. It also seeks to elevate the shopping and dining experience inside the mall setting, as well as cater to the urban demographic in Mississauga.

What does it mean for retail design?
- Market-style layouts will replace traditional food courts
- Flexible spaces will accommodate permanent and pop-up vendors
- Layouts will include demonstration kitchens and interactive culinary experience zones
- Design elements will invoke a farmer’s market or food hall atmosphere

The Future of Retail is Personalized and Experiential
The retail design of 2025 is about selling products–that will never change–but more than that, it’s about creating immersive, technology-driven, culturally rich experiences that connect with customers on multiple levels.

Ready to transform your retail space in 2025?
As experts in retail fixture and store design with 10,000+ successful installations, we can help you navigate these trends. Let’s turn these ideas into next year’s competitive advantage.
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