Cookware

For cookware, I'd suggest Superstore or Canadian Tire - in the North Nanaimo Town Centre (known by locals as Rutherford Mall) parking lot, near the Lowes. Canadian Tire is another "everything store" - except no grocery. They have sporting goods, automotive (and car repair), recreation, some furniture, lots of garden and patio, home decor, paint, tools, pet stuff, and a huge house and cookware area.

Grocery

• Country Grocer (🇨🇦 Island-owned!) is an Island chain with a big selection, deli, bakery, great produce, etc. This is our preferred grocery store — we shop at the one at Southgate, on 10th street and Island highway but there is also one at Bowen Road and Dufferin.
• Save On Foods (🇨🇦 Canadian-owned) is one of the larger, average cost grocery stores. There's one at Country Club Centre (where those furniture stores are) and on the Island Highway closer to Departure Bay in a strip mall called Brooks Landing (next to staples), and at Woodgrove Centre (in the parking lot).
• Real Canadian Superstore (🇨🇦 Canadian-owned) (usually known just as Superstore) - this is a very big box Canadian grocery store that has everything - groceries, fresh produce, deli, an extensive freezer section, a JoeFresh clothing boutique, as well as homegoods, small appliances and other home supplies. Everything is yellow, and they have a very extensive store brand called No Name that is really affordable. This is probably on the more affordable end of grocery stores in Nanaimo. It's not far from Woodgrove Centre, on Metral Drive in Nanaimo's north end. I think we only have one Superstore. They also have their own gas bar.
• Another popular local grocery store brand is Quality Foods (🇨🇦 Canadian-owned) - this is/was an Island owned chain but recently was bought by Save On Foods. QF locations tend to be a bit smaller and a little bit more expensive, and have nice cafe/deli counters where you can also eat in, and most have an Upstairs Lounge for meeting for a beer or glass of wine and an appetizer. There's a location in Harewood, in the south of Nanaimo, on Bruce Ave, and one up.
• Thrifty Foods (🇨🇦 Canadian-owned) is also popular, I think the only one in Nanaimo is in Port Place, downtown. it's not a huge place but it's a little bit higher priced with a really nice bakery and more options for non-dairy milk, supplements, bulk items, etc. They also do a lot of "entertainment" items like food platters for guests.
• There’s also a Walmart and Costco in town, but are 🇺🇸 American-owned so many locals stay away from them, given the current threats by Trump to annex our country.

Online shopping and delivery

Save On Foods(🇨🇦 Canadian-owned) has the largest grocery order & delivery service. https://www.saveonfoods.com/sm/planning/rsid/947 delivery can cost between $6 and $10 if I recall.

Thrifty Foods (🇨🇦 Canadian-owned) https://shop.thriftyfoods.com/ (look for the Shop Online link in the top right corner)

For prepared meals -

• M&M meats (🇨🇦 Canadian-owned) and Nesvog Meats (🇨🇦 Canadian-owned) both have multiple locations and sell packaged, prepared meals like lasagne, cabbage rolls, butter chicken, meatloaf, etc. There's one near Woodgrove Centre, and Nesvog is a local butcher, deli and prepared meals store with two locations I know of, one on Bowen Road near Northfield and one in the Terminal Park strip mall on Island Highway: 1533 Estevan Road.
• Nesvog butcher - Meats and prepared meals.
• Quality Foods has prepared meals for sale at their deli for a reasonable price (and large servings)

Many Rexall drugstores (🇨🇦 Canadian-owned) also stock M&M prepared meals in their freezer section (including the one on Dufferin and Bowen Road).