551 replies to this topic

[Bernard]

I am curious at what is in Canadian Tire's contract with the mall.   Hillside is one of their biggest stores in the country and part of a move by the company to expand the non-car part of the business.   As an anchor tenant at Hillside I would be very surprised if their lease did not give them a veto over something like WalMart.  Canadian Tire had a number of options and did not need to move to Hillside, who were stiffed by Target for a lot of money.   When they were negotiating no one was expecting Sears to close so add a veto to clause to the lease would have been a no cost concession to Canadian Tire.

[Victoria Watcher]

they probably had a clause and so does thrifty foods.  but every company has a price and things got worked out.

[spanky123]

Walmart was a bit of an exception in this case. Lots of people knew of Walmart’s plans but there was sensitivity around negotiations with Canadian Tire and Thrifty’s who also have contracts with the mall owners. The story was kept under wraps in case a deal could not be reached.

[Mike K.]

Like watcher says, everyone has their price. CT and Walmart are across the street from each other in Langford, and SuperStore is across from both of them, Lowe’s as well. There’s also Fairways, The Brick, Winners and Marks/Sport Chek/Atmosphere meters away. Everyone’s a happy camper.

The irony is in the city centre you’ve got to drive between several malls situated miles apart to visit all of those stores. In suburban big-box Langford they’re all clustered together and it works.

[UDeMan]

The best place to put your store is close to your competitor. People come to one store to look for something and will check the other store too. The more traffic drives sales. The same reason why most stores have easy returns, as it makes the person come back in the store, and a chance for them to buy something else.

[LJ]

A multi-level parking structure where the old Sears garden centre was situated would make a lot of sense. 

Walmart has their own garden centers so they will probably use it for that.

[Nparker]

Possibly, unless this is something they sacrifice for the smaller footprint than the Uptown location and/or competition deal with Canadian Tire.

[aastra]

I've never seen that formerly dead corridor at Hillside (the one where BC Shaver is now, leading toward Shoppers/Sport Chek) as busy as it was this past December.

 

So are they planning some major alterations to the Sears space? I'd say the openness of the Uptown Walmart re: the mezzanine second level is part of the reason why people like it so much. I really didn't like the old Walmart/Woolco store. It felt dreary and enclosed, despite how big it was. But I actually don't mind going to the Uptown Walmart even if I'm just tagging along and not buying anything. Methinks the second level of Sears could be much improved if they punch out some windows here and there. Considering the orientation of the building (one face looks northeast and the other face looks northwest) you'd think it wouldn't have any negative impact on merchandise or whatever else.

[G-Man]

They are very different stores. I would likely never buy a vacuum or paint at Walmart and would never by a computer at Canadian Tire. Both will be fine there.

[aastra]

Dude, they have huge overlap with small appliances, household supplies, hardware, toys and sporting goods, Christmas stuff, garden stuff...

[sebberry]

They are very different stores. I would likely never buy a vacuum or paint at Walmart and would never by a computer at Canadian Tire. Both will be fine there.

 

If you'd buy a computer at Walmart, we need to talk... 

[aastra]

Also, hopefully the Hillside Walmart won't be so hard to find, as per this Google review:

 

 

Store could definitely use more signage outside, that's for sure! If we hadn't met someone to ask on the way there, we wouldn't have found it! Tucked away at the back of the mall with no signs visible on the outside of mall or approaching the area. Very unusual for such a big store chain!

[aastra]

Another one:

 

 

Awkward to find, park and then access

[aastra]

People today do know that they're allowed to rely on their eyes and their sense of direction to get around instead of staring down at their phones and shuffling around in slow motion, right?

 

 

Little tough to find believe it or not. If Google takes you to the parking upstairs, go past the elevator to find the escalators and stairs down which will lead you to it.

[aastra]

I really don't know what to make of it:

 

 

Too all others that are not from here, don’t worry, your not lost, your just on top of it,

[aastra]

Excuse me? I'm looking for a gigantic thing that's supposed to be around here? Can you tell me where it is and how to get to it?

 

You mean the gigantic thing that's right in front of you?

 

Yes. Can you tell me where it is and how to get to it?

 

You could maybe try... moving toward it?

[Victoria Watcher]

classic.

[Jackerbie]

To be fair, the "front door" of Hillside Centre is on Hillside Ave, and there's no tenant signage to speak of near the driveway entrances. You could see the Sears sign in the distance when driving down Shelbourne, but coming from North Dairy the boulevard trees obscure basically all of the building signage. 

[aastra]

Maybe I'm being unfair but it seems to me that any such confusion should only be relevant if you've never set foot in a city before and were completely unfamiliar with building complexes of any kind. I get it, Walmart at Uptown isn't just a singular large store sitting in the middle of a singular large surface parking lot. But I'm finding it hard to swallow that so many people would have no familiarity/experience whatsoever with shopping centres that don't follow the most basic suburban format.

 

Anyone who has difficulty finding Walmart at Uptown would surely be shaken trying to find a particular building on a large university campus. How about trying to find a particular small cafe in a historic district somewhere in the old world? That would be the stuff of nervous breakdowns.

[Jackerbie]

Maybe I'm being unfair but it seems to me that any such confusion should only be relevant if you've never set foot in a city before and were completely unfamiliar with building complexes of any kind. I get it, Walmart at Uptown isn't just a singular large store sitting in the middle of a singular large surface parking lot. But I'm finding it hard to swallow that so many people would have no familiarity/experience whatsoever with shopping centres that don't follow the most basic suburban format.

 

Anyone who has difficulty finding Walmart at Uptown would surely be shaken trying to find a particular building on a large university campus. How about trying to find a particular small cafe in a historic district somewhere in the old world? That would be the stuff of nervous breakdowns.

 

Oh, my bad! I thought you were talking about the old Sears, not the Uptown Walmart.