My last trip to Walmart, I think

[PreTTy PeTe]

K-Mart hasn't been in Canada for many years. We used to have department stores all over the place, but they're all gone now since Walmart set up house. I can think of only 3 department stores in Peterborough now: Walmart, Sears, and Target. There are more hardware stores in town than department stores.

k-mart has good memories for me.

That's where I bought "The Front Runner" all those years ago when I was a teen

Patricia Nell Warren is one of my facebook friends today and she is still amazing.

 

[ronboy]

K-Mart hasn't been in Canada for many years. We used to have department stores all over the place, but they're all gone now since Walmart set up house. I can think of only 3 department stores in Peterborough now: Walmart, Sears, and Target. There are more hardware stores in town than department stores.

Peterborough doesn't have a Bay store? Hmmmmm.....Strange!

 

[gsdx]

Peterborough doesn't have a Bay store? Hmmmmm.....Strange!

Never did. The closest we had to The Bay was Zellers, which was owned by HBC.

We used to have Sears, Woolworths, Zellers, K-Mart, Eatons, and a few other lesser department stores like Bi-Way. Sears is the only one left.

 

[ronboy]

Never did. The closest we had to The Bay was Zellers, which was owned by HBC.

We used to have Sears, Woolworths, Zellers, K-Mart, Eatons, and a few other lesser department stores like Bi-Way. Sears is the only one left.

I never knew that. Well, at least Sears Canada has some amount of style and class to it. Or, at least it did when I was in both the Oakville and Toronto Eaton Centre (which used to by Eaton's flagship) stores. The US Sears stores are just barely a step above the discounters now.

 

[star-warrior]

Our Walmart equivalent is Asda, and its well stocked with the superstore branch open 24 hrs on week days. I only go if there's a pressing need to get something when all the nearby ones don't stock it, or are closed. Morrison's is 5 minutes away by car. Asda is a good 15 minutes from us. We have a local co-op branch for essentials, but can be quite pricey in comparison.

 

[sixthson]

Why not go there when you don't need anything and just walk around and familiarize yourself with the place? Just case the joint ahead of time.

 

[bankside]

I never did shop there. When I heard they fired someone who busted a dog out of some idiot's truck on a hot day, I decided I want them out of business.

 

[Yooper]

Okay, I won't rub it in too much...
I still have a ...Kmart! /edit/
And yes, they do have Martha Stewart, for those of you who care about her.

MSLO and SHLD (Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc., and Sears Holdings, Inc.) got divorced about 5 years ago.

Anything sold under the Martha label KameApart still has is at least 5 year old product.

 

[dereperez]

I can't even remember the last time I shopped at Walmart. I can get pretty much what I need at Target and the prices are always reasonable. I wouldn't go to Sears unless you're willing to dish out more $$$.

 

[CowboyBob]

I haven't been in a Wal*Mart in years. There's no way I'll support that company.

However, I shop at Target. The store is clean, shelves are full, the checkout lines short and you don't have the "people of walmart" there.

There's also a chain in my area called ShopKo that's even better. I like to patronize them. When I can I buy locally.

http://www.shopko.com/

 

[Yooper]

I hear Target is just as crappy as Walmart.

Is Sears any good?

FYI for those of you not familiar with Target (also pronounced Tar-Gaay as in French) is what's left of the old Dayton-Hudson Department Stores in the US. Short history...Dayton's (Minneapolis) merged with Hudson's (Detroit-no relation to Hudson's Bay Company) way back when, they started a discount division in the 60's named Target. In the merger-overbuilding-overhyped era of the 90's, D-H sold their 'traditional' department stores to May Department Stores--which by then already included a portfolio of other Upper Midwest Department Stores...kept their discount division...then renamed themselves Target Corporation. Their business model is a 'Discount Department Store' not a true Discounter, nor a traditional department store.

I've quit following Sears because I firmly believe the retail division will be declaring bankruptcy in the next year and will focus on its branding company and wholesale their main brands to other retailers (they have already started doing this, Craftsman is now being sold at Ace Hardware, etc.). Sears Canada is 51% owned by Sears Holdings (US), there was a failed attempt to take it private a while back, I'd bet this will come up again in 2014.

Hudson's Bay Co. is now part of a holding company (US) that also owns Saks Fifth Avenue and Lord and Taylor. They've announced Saks is heading to Canada in 2014. I think there might be other plans, though...they recently leased 3 floors of a downtown St. Louis, Missouri building for their global IT center...the former May Department Stores IT center...which was closed when Federated merged with May and became Macys.

You have to keep a scorecard with Retail these days...except for Walmart which is sucking wind big time these days.

 

[cgymike]

Peterborough doesn't have a Bay store? Hmmmmm.....Strange!

Does it have a London drug?

 

[Georgiadude]

I like Target. The store is clean and I can usually find exactly what I'm looking for. Unlike Wal Mart, Targets isles are clear of clutter and I can easily navigate around. Wal Mart likes to pack as much crap in the store as they can. If there's an ounce of empty space they have to put something there to sell. Same goes for Kroger. Target may be a little more expensive but it's not much and well worth every penny

Steven

 

[bankside]

FYI for those of you not familiar with Target (also pronounced Tar-Gaay as in French) is what's left of the old Dayton-Hudson Department Stores in the US. Short history...Dayton's (Minneapolis) merged with Hudson's (Detroit-no relation to Hudson's Bay Company) way back when, they started a discount division in the 60's named Target. In the merger-overbuilding-overhyped era of the 90's, D-H sold their 'traditional' department stores to May Department Stores--which by then already included a portfolio of other Upper Midwest Department Stores...kept their discount division...then renamed themselves Target Corporation. Their business model is a 'Discount Department Store' not a true Discounter, nor a traditional department store.

I've quit following Sears because I firmly believe the retail division will be declaring bankruptcy in the next year and will focus on its branding company and wholesale their main brands to other retailers (they have already started doing this, Craftsman is now being sold at Ace Hardware, etc.). Sears Canada is 51% owned by Sears Holdings (US), there was a failed attempt to take it private a while back, I'd bet this will come up again in 2014.

Hudson's Bay Co. is now part of a holding company (US) that also owns Saks Fifth Avenue and Lord and Taylor. They've announced Saks is heading to Canada in 2014. I think there might be other plans, though...they recently leased 3 floors of a downtown St. Louis, Missouri building for their global IT center...the former May Department Stores IT center...which was closed when Federated merged with May and became Macys.

You have to keep a scorecard with Retail these days...except for Walmart which is sucking wind big time these days.

The Bay is not far behind on the march to bankruptcy by my estimate. If you look at two leaders in retailing, they would be apple and ikea. And if you walk into either of those stores anywhere in the world, you know what to expect. The Bay thinks it knows better. So its business model is to "adapt to the local market." Which means in Ottawa, I've seen their stores stocked almost as a high-fashion retailer. In Edmonton, you have "the really good Bay" and "the ghetto Bay" and "the Bay downtown that was supposed to be their premium store but then they chickened out and gave up."

That's a fucking stupid way to run a business. Or rather, to run a business into the ground. They need to figure out what their business should be, and then make their stores like that, and close all the ones that can't be like that.

 

[cityboy-stl]

Target isn't as good as it used to be I think. Their merchandise quality has gone down. Since they decided their goal was to compete with Walmart, they have much the same Walmart junk. I do still think they're better than Walmart however...just not by much.

 

[Beachguyj]

I still shop at Walmart, but it's a do it yourself kind of place. If you need help in the paint department there is seldom anyone there. If you have any other questions in the plumbing or electrical department, not only is no one there, no one is qualified to answer your question so go to Home Depot to Lowes instead. The stores are poorly restocked. I went to one that wasn't a supercenter and they only had the aisle open where you buy stuff behind the counter like cigarettes. This was in the middle of the day. One other in the distance of the 20 other lanes may have been open, but the light was off. Two of the richest women in the world are the founder's daughter and his widow daughter in law. They don't give a shit about the company or employees or customers as long as they profit.

 

[Beachguyj]

Okay, I won't rub it in too much...
I still have a ...Kmart!

One local Kmart in a great location shut down this past year. No one shopped there. There is another one that I think is shutting down soon to become a Walmart Market (which I really like) Kmarts around here are just sad.

 

[jdcnow]

Anything sold under the Martha label KameApart still has is at least 5 year old product.

KameApart is right!

I remember when my mom worked for them back in the 90s/early 2000s before our store location closed down. The quality was terrible. Walmart had much better quality products than our Kmart, and that's saying something!

 

[jdcnow]

K-mart here is pure ghetto.

Target fills their shelves with psuedo-stylish crap that is overpriced and underwanted.

Sears is facing their apocalypse soon but serves customers as poorly as ever, and doesn't care. Their service department is misnamed.

Wal-Mart here is like a government office. Everyone is on break or hiding while complaining they are overworked. Few cashiers are fully literate in English. Their aisles are dotted with intentionally re-located items by vandals. I entered a store Sunday afternoon with a friend and his nephew. I told them we could play a game to see how many mis-located items we could spot. I counted over 23 items between the front door and the department we reached. It's likely an organized attempt by adults or could be young pre-teens. Hard to tell, but one gets tired of finding socks in the produce, motor oil in babywear, etc. It's not random, but intentional.

OMFG, you don't know how much I'm dying laughing, right now!

Retail has gone to Hell.

 

[gsdx]

The Bay is not far behind on the march to bankruptcy by my estimate.

The Hudson's Bay Company is the oldest company in North America. It was incorporated in 1670. It survived for over 300 years until it was bought out by an American businessman Jerry Zucker in 2006. It is now owned by "NRDC Equity Partners, the parent of upscale U.S. chain Lord & Taylor." http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/story/2008/07/16/hudsonbaynrdc.html

Both companies tried to manage it as if it were an American company, and that simply doesn't work here in Canada. In just a few years, the company has been brought to its knees. The lucrative Zellers stores were also driven into the ground and have been sold to Target, which is also trying to run their stores the 'American' way.

It's taken less than a decade to destroy 3 centuries of success.