8289 replies to this topic

[Victoria Watcher]

Roscoe suggested that light started to dim in 2007, when Nova Scotia-based Sobey’s purchased Thrifty Foods for $260 million from the Campbell family.

He said it didn’t take long for the relationship between the grocer and Island Bakery to change.

Island Bakery had grown alongside Thrifty Foods (it had produced Thrifty Foods-branded hot dog and hamburger buns and other products) and when Thrifty Foods expanded so did Island Bakery.

“At our height we had more than 40 employees and were delivering as far as Campbell River five days a week,” said Roscoe. “And we did some deliveries in Vancouver for Thrifty Foods. As they grew, so did we and we reached to Vancouver and delivered to their stores there.”

The symbiotic relationship led to Island Bakery building the Cobble Hill facility in 1999 to handle the business as well as its expanding portfolio of restaurants, smaller retailers and institutions.

But the in-house deal with Sobeys dried up and Island Bakery saw its shelf space greatly reduced.

Roscoe said their shelf space was cut in half and then gradually reduced to just a few feet per store as Sobeys had to accommodate the agreements it had made with national brands that required a certain level of exclusivity.

“We’ve lost millions in sales since Sobeys took over,” he said.

 

https://www.timescol...vens-1.24066353

[mbjj]

That's too bad about Island Bakery. Their hot dog and hamburger buns were the ones we bought. Damn Sobeys....I still miss Safeways.

[Rob Randall]

I never explored the old Christmas Village store because I was frightened away by the Soup Nazi of holiday retailers but you should check it out now that Bois & Cuir is having their closing sale. It's a huge three-level space. 

[Victoria Watcher]

I never explored the old Christmas Village store because I was frightened away by the Soup Nazi of holiday retailers but you should check it out now that Bois & Cuir is having their closing sale. It's a huge three-level space. 

 

https://www.victoria...istmas-village/

 

A Tribute to the Rules and Regulations of the Christmas Village

 

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 01 February 2020 - 10:12 AM.

[Rob Randall]

It's easy to laugh but Victoria is plagued with bad customers. Some are on drugs or mentally unbalanced but they go through a store and have to compulsively manhandle every single item. 

[Brantastic]

Sign is now up, This or that Cafe

We’ve been duped! This or That Cafe is not a real business, but instead a set for an A&W ad being filmed Feb 2-3.

[Mike K.]

Wow!

[Rob Randall]

^Remember about ten years ago when a movie rented a storefront on Broad across from CTV and they had a neon sign in the window saying LIVE NUDE GIRLS?

 

I wonder what the current council would have said about that.

[Victoria Watcher]

^Remember about ten years ago when a movie rented a storefront on Broad across from CTV and they had a neon sign in the window saying LIVE NUDE GIRLS?

 

I wonder what the current council would have said about that.

 

Banning the Barenaked Ladies from performing

Yeah, that happened. Because of the band’s name, Toronto Mayor June Rowlands decided the name was too offensive to allow them to perform at the city’s 1991 New Year’s Eve Party. So they were barred. The band took it personally and, three years later, actually refused to accept the key to the city from that same mayor.

 

https://o.canada.com...ford-was-around

 

[mbjj]

Christmas Village had some lovely items and fabulous displays. A lot of it was very expensive so I'm not surprised they kept an eye on people. We have visited some lovely Christmas shops in Europe in the spring and fall and they're always full of tourists. Too bad we no longer have a Christmas shop downtown.

[Victoria Watcher]

we went from two on almost the same block to zero.

[Victoria Watcher]

Macy's plans to close 125 stores over the next three years and cut thousands of corporate jobs, the company said Tuesday.

 

The store closings represent about one fifth of the retailer's locations. The company will also cut 2,000 corporate jobs, representing about 9% of its corporate headcount, and close several offices. The changes are part of a three-year plan that Macy's said would generate gross savings of $600 million in 2020 and $1.5 billion annually by 2022.

 

https://www.business...ate-jobs-2020-2

[Nparker]

Meanwhile in Hong Kong...https://www.cnn.com/...alls/index.html

[Victoria Watcher]

Meanwhile in Hong Kong...https://www.cnn.com/...alls/index.html

 

 

Malls are so ubiquitous in Hong Kong, it's hard to keep track of where the malls end and public space begins. A typical commute might take you through two, three or even four malls, all of them linked by footbridges and connected to the MTR, Hong Kong's widely-used subway system. Some apartment buildings are even built without street-level lobbies; instead, residents are deposited by elevator directly into a mall.

How did this come to be? According to Stefan Al, a New York-based architect and the author of "Mall City: Hong Kong's Dreamworlds of Consumption," it comes down to two things: high urban density and good public transit. "The key aspect is really the creation of the MTR -- the transit authority that was also a real estate developer," he said in a phone interview. "That's what made Hong Kong a city of malls."

[Mike K.]

That’s what made Hong Kong a city of malls, lol.

[Love the rock]

 

 

A Tribute to the Rules and Regulations of the Christmas Village

A new sad reality in town today .If a store were to hold you until the police arrive for a theft of a baby Jesus today you better bring two sleeping bag  and groceries for the wait. That’s if they came at all .

[spanky123]

A Tribute to the Rules and Regulations of the Christmas Village

A new sad reality in town today .If a store were to hold you until the police arrive for a theft of a baby Jesus today you better bring two sleeping bag  and groceries for the wait. That’s if they came at all .

 

The police would eventually arrive and then question you for kidnapping!

[Kapten Kapsell]

Dig This will be closing its store at Broadmead Village later this month...

[gstc84]

The Patch's "pop-up shop" on Yates appears to have...uhh...popped down again. It opened maybe a year and a half ago a couple doors down from its main store.

Edited by gstc84, 10 February 2020 - 01:06 PM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Squeaky's Laundromat is for sale. -   $299,000

 

 

Currently owned and operated by a mostly absent owner this Shelbourne Street fixture is awaiting a new owner. For an owner who chooses to work at the store there are substantial profits to be made. There are definite areas where business can be significantly increased in a short time. The current owner has made significant dollar investments in this business from the day he bought it. You can take advantage of his investment with the remaining amount of amortization left to be depreciated. 7 Employees. Buyer will have to be approved by the Landlord for lease assignment. Do NOT approach staff as they have no information.

 

https://www.realtor....oria-cedar-hill

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 11 February 2020 - 04:05 PM.