In the 1950s and 60s, Steinberg was a thriving grocery chain in Eastern Canada. It began in 1917 in Montreal as a corner store or “couche-tarde” owned by Hungarian immigrant Ida Steinberg. The business grew exponentially when Sam, Ida’s son, took over.
Sam Steinberg is largely credited with pioneering the concept of a supermarket in Eastern Canada when he opened an all-encompassing grocery store in 1934. Under his leadership, Steinberg became the largest grocery chain in Quebec and had expanded into Ontario and Atlantic Canada.
In hindsight, his biggest failing was doing nothing to prepare the next generation of family leadership. Following his death in 1978, his daughters Mitzi, Marilyn and Evelyn fought over control of the company. In the absence of strong leadership, it began to decline. Rising labour costs and increased competition were serious threats that went largely ignored.
In the 1980s, external help was brought in, but by that point, it was too late. Steinberg was forced into a leveraged buyout for US$1.5 billion in 1992.