“And the Store of the Year Award goes to…store #1079, Reh Khalid and his team in Brampton, Ontario!”
Those were the words Walmart Canada’s Head of Store Operations, Joe Schrauder, announced at the company’s annual Year Beginning Meeting that sent the crowd into cheers.
Each year, Walmart Canada recognizes one store amongst its more than 400 stores across the country for exceptional performance, outstanding customer service and achievements throughout the year. And this year, store #1079 took home the winning title thanks to the hard work and dedication of the team and the strong leadership of Store Manager, Reh Khalid.
From fighting crime to filling carts.
Reh never expected to be standing on stage accepting this award, especially just three years into his career as a store manager. In fact, he never thought he’d be leading a Walmart store at all. “My original plans were to become a police officer,” said Reh. “But as I learned more and more about Walmart and the opportunities it presented, my curiosity grew, and I fell in love with retail.”
Reh began his career at Walmart as a part-time photo lab technician in 2008 at the Heartland, Mississauga store. Over the years, he held various roles at Walmart, including hourly associate, department manager, overnight assistant manager, food and fresh manager, backroom manager, front end manager, online grocery manager, store co manager, retail academy facilitator, and now store manager.
“Earning the role of a store manager for Walmart Canada has been my proudest accomplishment to date,” said Reh. “It’s more than just a role, it’s provided me with so much opportunity, way beyond what I ever expected and has not only helped shape my retail career but has helped me grow personally!”
Bring everyone along the journey, trust your team, know your community.
Reh inspires his team by ensuring that every associate is brought along the journey. “Involving everyone as part of a journey is key, it helps to ensure everyone feels they are part of a team and can support one another better,” said Reh. He also believes that by extending trust to his team, they feel more confident and empowered to do their jobs.
Reh and the team are constantly finding ways to better understand the needs of their customers and the Brampton community. They do this by examining data about their community and listening to their customers’ feedback. “Through our customer voice and data, we can rapidly adjust our store’s assortment by involving the right partners to better serve our community,” said Reh.
Reh’s advice:
“There’s growth with every challenge you may come across, capitalize on those opportunities. Celebrate those amazing moments and wins throughout your career, there’s always something to be proud of!”
Since being awarded Store of the Year, Reh has been promoted to Store Manager of our Square One Mississauga store, which recently re-opened as our flagship store for the future.
