Posted on 01/15/2015 6:18:02 AM PST by golux
Target says it plans to discontinue all operations in Canada and seek protection from creditors, less than two years after opening to much fanfare.
In a release early Thursday, the U.S. retail chain said it will close all its locations in Canada. There are 133 stores across the country with about 17,600 employees.
The company launched in Canada in the spring of 2013.
But after high expectations, the chain failed to deliver as customers faced higher-than-expected prices, and empty shelves as the retailer had problems with its distribution chain.
Executives repeatedly promised they would get it right, but ultimately decided to pull the plug.
"After a thorough review of our Canadian performance and careful consideration of the implications of all options, we were unable to find a realistic scenario that would get Target Canada to profitability until at least 2021," CEO Brian Cornell said in a release Thursday, explaining the justification for the shutdown.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbc.ca ...
Huh? What makes you think The Bay is going under? Startling news indeed if it is, indeed having a very long and very storied history.
I got “laid off”, then our manager got caught giving customers his employee discount, they canned him right before his stock options kicked in.
They also finally noticed that he was abusing the commission system, he was stealing everyone’s commission.
[The system was such that you could split commission, he’d snake 100% of it off of everyone. Then pontificate at us about not meeting commission or sales numbers.]
I usually shop at Target. Went into a Walmart and had the misfortune of having to try something on. I’m not a germaphobe, but the dressing rooms were filthy - I didn’t want to take my clothes off to try on a pair of jeans.
Also couldn’t find anyone who habla Inglais in the store to help me. I have never gone back to a Walmart - I’d rather go to a third world country but Im being redundant.
My favorite store is Kohls, but occasionally have to go to Target for some things Kohls doesn’t carry.
I wonder what the real problem is.
133 stores in ~2 years?
Le fin pour Le Target.
Ironically that’s the kind of advertising that helped kill them; instead of prices in the ads & flyers everything was listed as “save xx%”, which conveyed no useful information. Combine that with the fact that nearly all sale items were out of stock (they once advertised a printer when they only had three in stock in all of Toronto) and you guarantee that shoppers will stay away in droves.
Apparently Target in Canada was an epic fail.
They failed to grasp many things unique to Canadian
consumers and the Canadian market. Plus their shoppers
had already set their price expectations based on shopping in their US stores, which were impossible to match in Canada.
Target was my go to store for quite a few years when I needed both groceries and some other household or clothing item. Now when I'm in that situation, I drive the extra 10 minutes to Walmart even though their clothes are crappier than Target's.
I'm sorry for all the Target employees - most of whom have seemed like nice people to me. But their employer should have minded its own business instead of foisting its vision of the world on its customers.
All I know is if Tim Horton’s invades the U.S., I surrender!
I still stop by RS to get nickel and dime electronic parts. I am typically delayed at checkout by morons complaining about the cell phones they acquired there.
Fry’s pretty much replaced RS.
What Canada ( Ontario ) needs is stores that sell sporting goods at reasonable prices.
Last time I was there on a fishing trip I couldn’t believe how expensive basic tackle was. Prices were 10-15X the cost of what they are in the US, and that wasn’t some remote area, it was about 50 miles from Toronto.
I gave some locals some plastic grubs that were working well on Walleye and they didn’t want to accept them without paying. I found out it would have cost them $50 for that bag of 100 plastic grubs that I had paid less than $3 for!
Been to Radio Shack once in the past 2-3 years. Purchased a specialized audio cable.
Walked into a Target once in the past year and that was only because I was walking along with someone else and they wanted to get something.
Tim Horton's has been in the U.S. for decades, mostly in the northeast.
I don,t have a local Fry,s. Internet vendors work when I can plan ahead.
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