467 replies to this topic

[aastra]

I see. So presumably the situation at Tillicum is also perfectly fine. It's all in the eyes of the beholder.

Here's a comment about Guelph from September:

Went to the Guelph Target on the weekend. I was shocked to see so many empty shelves. Almost as bad as it looked during it's "soft" opening in March. Guelph Target seems worse than other Targets for lack of merchandise. It does seem Target has some serious supply issues.

And a reply that seems to contradict my notion that the inventory issues will inevitably get sorted out:

Agree - shelf after shelf were empty. Very much like it was during the first few weeks.

Also found the store very sloppy, messy, and the store was very much not up to Target standards you would fund in the US.

They had seemed much better in recent months.

I've seen the same empty shelves in the Aurora Target. It's disappointing. No wonder sales have reportedly been weak.

http://forums.redfla...helves-1383597/


***

Comment to a reply about bare shelves in Toronto in August:

It's so frustrating! I wish they would at least put out a statement of some sort explaining why the shelves are so empty. Although the home stuff is usually not so bad, it's mainly the grocery and beauty section that is empty...

I remember when Target came to Hawaii (maybe a year or two ago) and the shelves were empty- mostly because people are so excited to have a new store they buy more (my opinion). And they don't get shipments in that fast and/or can't stock the shelves fast enough.

http://wafflingdesig...rget-finds.html

[spanky123]

The issue is that people are comparing Target in Canada to the US stores. Having been to both I can tell you that there is NO comparison.

If you are comparing Target to the Zellers it replaced then Target ia a small improvement.

[bluefox]

That last quote pretty much sums up what I'd argue — Target needs to do a better job anticipating demand in new stores.

[Jill]

Target just opened in the city where I live. I made a point of checking out the men's socks and was amused to see that the rack looks very much like the one described earlier in this thread. I think this particular location will do well, however, because it is definitely a better shopping experience than its competition, and unlike the Zellers it replaced it doesn't stink.

[Bingo]

The Minneapolis-based retailer said the unauthorized access — which occurred between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15 — may mean that criminals now have shoppers’ names, payment card numbers, expiration dates and three-digit security codes at their disposal.

 

The breach affects Target patrons who made purchases at U.S. stores, the company said.

http://www.latimes.c...y#ixzz2o2C0kC3X
 

 

 

The new and as yet unfinished store at Hillside Mall

 

[D.L.]

In Toronto, Target is putting a store in at the bottom of two 60 storey residential towers - http://urbantoronto....aza-development

[jonny]

I have been to the Hillside Target three times now. It's close to my house and one reason or another I have needed a lot of stuff lately.

 

Thoughts:

- The store is fully stocked unlike Tillicum. I don't know what is up with Tillicum.

- It is miles better than Zellers

- Parking is a breeze. There's no parkade like at Wal-Mart and no battling for parking spots like going to London Drugs.

- Prices seem to be good. Dog stuff is reasonably priced, but they don't have anything in the way of decent dog food. A printer cartridge was about $1 cheaper than Staples. Prices on cosmetic stuff like toothbrushes and deodorant was as good if not better than London Drugs.

- The grocery store is limited but it did have some good prices on the few items I needed. I find it strange that the grocery store is on the second floor rather than the first. 

- Wal-Mart seems to have down sized their automotive section, but Target's is even smaller. I'm left with Napa, Lordco and Crappy Tire.

 

Overall it's a good store. Nothing really special but it's a competent, low-priced retailer which is really all it needs to be.

[Mike K.]

- Wal-Mart seems to have down sized their automotive section, but Target's is even smaller. I'm left with Napa, Lordco and Crappy Tire.

 

 

Oh how I wish we had O'reilly's, PepBoys or Advance Auto in Canada. Lordco and Napa are excruciatingly expensive unless you have an account with them or are a member of an auto club and Canadian Tire, well, they're great if you need a new wiper blade and some car wash buckets but their parts are terrible.

[sebberry]

Departure of Target CEO puts Canadian retreat on table

 

The abrupt resignation of Target Corp. chief executive officer Gregg Steinhafel raises questions about the fate of the U.S. discounter’s troubled Canadian operation.

 

Industry observers suggest that the Minneapolis-based company, which suffered a massive data breach five months ago, needs to look at major changes to its fledgling Canadian stores and possibly close some of them. Some company watchers say Target will have to consider shutting its operations here entirely within the next year or two if their performance doesn’t improve significantly.

 

[...]

 

 

http://www.theglobea...rticle18459163/

 

 

 

I'll be honest, I think I've been to Target twice since they opened and it was mostly just to check it out. 

 

Then again, I rarely went to Zellers or Walmart. 

[Mike K.]

The one time I did pop in was to attempt to buy something that was "almost" in stock according to the sales person. A week later it was still "almost" in stock. I never went back.

[sebberry]

I'm sure it will be in stock any day now. 

[VicHockeyFan]

Wow, if they retreat entirely that would be quite the thing.

[jonny]

The Hillside Target is pretty good if you ask me.

 

I couldn't imaging them pulling back now. It would be much cheaper to manage all of their stores well.

[sebberry]

It surprises me that pulling out is a consideration.  Seems more like media sensationalism.

[jonny]

It surprises me that pulling out is a consideration.  Seems more like media sensationalism.

 

I agree.

 

Target has invested billions into Canada. Pulling out now would be beyond insane. The write down would be massive.

 

They have clearly had supply chain issues. Expanding into a new country has been a challenge, but there's nothing fundamentally wrong with their stores that they can't be successful.

[Holden West]

Maybe another chain could buy them and rebrand them as a bargain outlet of the main brand. Say, I hear "Zellers" is available...

[Bingo]

The Hillside Target is pretty good if you ask me.

 

I couldn't imaging them pulling back now. It would be much cheaper to manage all of their stores well.

 

I went in the other day to check it out and found nobody in the grocery section. I checked the date on the milk and the best before date was about one week away.

 

I just can't see anyone going there for milk when Thrify Foods is right next door.

[sdwright.vic]

Maybe another chain could buy them and rebrand them as a bargain outlet of the main brand. Say, I hear "Zellers" is available...

No... The Hudson Bay still owns and operates 3 Zellers stores.

[goke]

I wandered through the dairy section of Hillside Target a few weeks back and they had an unadvertised sale in the dairy section. A whole bunch of cheeses at half to a third of the usual cost. (eg 99 cents for feta, $1.50 500gr old cheddar, $2.50 750 gram medium cheddar etc) I bought $35 worth of stuff with the reg. price being $85. Of course the wife and her friends were talking about it on social media so I thought this might be some attempt at a viral marketing scheme.

Haven't been back to see if they are still doing this.

 

I surprised as hell to hear a business commentator on CKNW say that a complete Canadian pullout by Target is actually a possibility.

[Bingo]

I wandered through the dairy section of Hillside Target a few weeks back and they had an unadvertised sale in the dairy section. A whole bunch of cheeses at half to a third of the usual cost. (eg 99 cents for feta, $1.50 500gr old cheddar, $2.50 750 gram medium cheddar etc) I bought $35 worth of stuff with the reg. price being $85. Of course the wife and her friends were talking about it on social media so I thought this might be some attempt at a viral marketing scheme.

Haven't been back to see if they are still doing this.

 

I surprised as hell to hear a business commentator on CKNW say that a complete Canadian pullout by Target is actually a possibility.

 

The other thing that is unusual, is the dairy section is at the furthest point from the entrance to the store... on the second floor.