With its weight of over $26 billion, the retail sector accounts for 5.9 % of Quebec’s GDP—the same rate as in 2023. In 2024, retail sales totaled $180.3 billion, compared to $177.1 billion in 2023.

There are over 32,000 retail establishments across all regions of Quebec. Among them, 80 % have fewer than 20 employees.

By the end of 2024, the sector was slowly emerging from a labour shortage that had persisted since the 2020 pandemic. In the fourth quarter, there were 10,820 vacant positions (2.6 %), compared to 16,115 (3.9 %) during the same period the previous year.

The sector accounts for 453,000 jobs, representing 11.1 % of total employment in Quebec. The food and automotive sectors (dealerships and parts) alone employ 181,200 workers.

The average wage in the retail sector is 73.1 % of that in other industries, while the average weekly earnings represent 59.1 % of the overall average, as many positions are part-time.

The unemployment rate in retail stands at 4.7 % compared to 5.3 % across all industries.

in 2024, e-commerce accounted for 6.0 % of total sales in Canada, compared to 5.7 % in 2023.