Stackt Market Toronto Asian snacks store Auntie’s Supply leaving

Nearly two years after it first opened its doors at Stackt Market, Auntie’s Supply will be taking its goods to a new location this spring.

The Asian-owned snack and grocery store will have its last day in the shipping container market in the Fort York neighbourhood on March 26, it announced on social media this month.

“When I opened my location at @stacktmarket in June 2021, I thought I was launching a six-month pop-up to test an idea,” the Instagram post reads. “In less than a year, we opened a second location and hired three people, and the rest was history.”

The shop will be moving its snacks, sauces and condiments to Ready Go Convenience on Queen Street West, founder Christina Tolosa Pack told the Star. The estimated date for its arrival is mid-April, although Pack said it might be sooner.

Despite the sweet memories made at Stackt near Bathurst and Front streets, Pack said the economy slowing down and less foot traffic pushed her to consider different options.

“I wanted to pivot my business model to essentially just partner with other small businesses in the city — to have an experience of having a curated section of Asian snacks and ingredients,” she added.

Pack said doing so will help her keep rent and labour costs down, while continuing to pursue the “common goal of together offering really good food.”

The future of Auntie’s Supply

Auntie’s Supply brands itself as a shop that helps Asian millennials “recreate our fondest food memories and make new ones,” the website reads.

Pack said apart from the grocery staples that can be found in other stores, Auntie’s Supply hosts pop-ups for other small Asian-owned businesses. It features curated products for a week or a month at a time, and has provided vendors with a space outside its Stackt location to hold a stand and gain visibility.

“In terms of the community and the different business owners that I got to meet, it felt like there was a good foundational support system there,” she said, adding that it was through that experience that she eventually got to open her second Auntie’s location on Bloor Street West.

The move won’t mean fewer pop-ups.

“It’s something we plan on replicating at a somewhat larger scale at the new location,” Pack said, pointing out that the new location will be in a plaza with a parking lot.

Additionally, she plans to have monthly small business features, including takeaway food, such as ice cream tubs and pizza slices.

“My big dream is to have Auntie’s Supply everywhere, not just in Toronto, and to have these express shops to make Asian food accessible to the suburbs, and places where maybe you have to commute to get to an ethnic grocery store,” Pack said.

Where else you can find Auntie’s Supply

The store will continue to sell its goods online and at its Bloor West location in Superfresh, a food market with various Asian vendors.

Ahead of its move, the shop is holding a moving-out sale until it closes on Mar. 26.

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