Viral former face of No Name latest to join Loblaw boycott

Plans for the forthcoming boycott of all Loblaw-owned grocery stores are still going strong, and apparently, some of Loblaw’s own people will be among the tens of thousands across Canada partaking.

The event, organized by consumers in a social media group dedicated to airing grievances about the company, comes with a list of demands, including that Loblaw executives immediately reduce prices, agree to the government’s proposed Grocery Code of Conduct, address shrinkflation through greater cost transparency, and more.

And, the latest person to support the cause is a woman who actually at one point had the job of promoting Loblaw’s discount chain, No Frills.

“I’m the 2019 face of No Name and I’m boycotting Loblaws this May,” Rachel Manson, a Toronto-based comedian and actor who indeed worked on No Frills commercials says in a recent TikTok post.

@rachelmansoncomedy Join us and watch me tank my yellow career 👋🏻 @LoblawsIsOutofControl Shoutout to @Brendan ‘s chair that shed so hard it made it look like I had dandruff. Which I do. But still. Cheap shot. #comedy #groceryshopping #femalecomedian #canadiancheck #groceryhaul #CapCut ♬ original sound – Rachel Manson

In the clip, she encourages others to join the month of action, saying “There’s been a lot of talk recently about inflation and greedflation and increasing grocery prices,” and jokes that “the question on everybody’s list is ‘What does the face of the 2019 viral No Name campaign have to say about this?'”

Manson goes on to outline some facts, such as the $6 billion in profits Loblaws and its competitors raked in last year — “an 8% increase from the year before,” she notes — as she condemns the nation’s big supermarkets for profiteering practices that seem to have become the norm.

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“For those of us who can, and those of us who have the choice, why not boycott Loblaws?… boycotts do work, they let massive conglomerates know that we’re not going to take their shit anymore,” she asks fellow shoppers, urging people to shop local rather than at Metro, Sobeys, Walmart, Loblaws and all of their affiliated stores.

She also directs viewers to the Loblaws is Out of Control subreddit, which offers further details about the boycott, along with tons of other information and discussions about the brand and the state of the market in Canada.

I seen prices rise 4 or 5 times during the past year or so at Walmart and No Frills as they are trying to take an extra bite out the customer wallet just because they can

— Randy Orser (@Orserrandal6) March 23, 2024

Since so many residents have taken interest in what’s been going on in the sector, the group has grown to more than 55,000 members, many of whom are vowing not to shop at any Loblaw banners (Loblaws, Shoppers Drug Mart, No Frills, Valu-Mart, Real Canadian Superstore, T&T, Your Independent Grocer, Zehrs and others) for all of May and even beyond.

Some experts actually have faith that the action could make a difference.