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Target

I've yet to go to a Canadian Target, but I get the sense they thought this would be a cake-walk as the demand for Target here was so high. Perhaps they put less money into stock logistics, marketing and pricing strategy than they otherwise would have if Canadians weren't demanding Target. Basically, they based it on how Canadians behaved in their US stores and figured they could do the same here, without much bother. I'm sure they will figure it out eventually, but basically the Canadian consumer is a bit more savvy than they gave them credit for.
 
Johnny Au said:
I must agree. However, that would require Target to have another large warehouse.
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Then they didn't do their homework and don't understand how Canadians shop. There are a lot of large stores that half ass online shopping in Canada and I have no idea why.
 
TheKingEast said:
Then they didn't do their homework and don't understand how Canadians shop. There are a lot of large stores that half ass online shopping in Canada and I have no idea why.
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The economics of online shopping in Canada are much different than the U.S. and the U.K., which explains the half-assed approach. But a lot of retailers *are* figuring out how to do it, and I think it is increasingly going to be more and more difficult for major retailers to have piece-of-sh*t websites (I'm looking at you Holt Renfrew) with no online commerce.
 
Holt Renfrew should be launching ecommerce in Canada. It's a really difficult proposition.

What's interesting though is that unless you do offer ecommerce you can't utilize certain google advertising products, ie Product Listing Ads. Search has become a huge part of the shopping eco-system whether in-store or online. I would argue that this has been one of Target's big issues in Canada - if a consumer is searching google for Tide, for example, Well.ca, Wal-Mart, Staples all have PLA for their product. Target, is NOWHERE to be seen - because they can't. I know the Canada expansion cost them a bundle, but they shat the bed with digital IMO.
 
pw20 said:
Holt Renfrew should be launching ecommerce in Canada. It's a really difficult proposition.

What's interesting though is that unless you do offer ecommerce you can't utilize certain google advertising products, ie Product Listing Ads. Search has become a huge part of the shopping eco-system whether in-store or online. I would argue that this has been one of Target's big issues in Canada - if a consumer is searching google for Tide, for example, Well.ca, Wal-Mart, Staples all have PLA for their product. Target, is NOWHERE to be seen - because they can't. I know the Canada expansion cost them a bundle, but they shat the bed with digital IMO.
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Holt Renfrew is launching e-commerce - it was only announced recently, so you might have missed it. At least five years too late. My "I'm looking at you Holt Renfrew" comment was referring to the fact that they have relied on a terrible website for an embarrasingly long time. I hope that they rely on the expertise of their corporate cousins at Selfridges, which have quite an amazing website, when they launch their online store.

Agree with you about Target. They launch a large retail chain in 2013 and don't have e-commerce? The mind boggles.
 
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Online shopping can be hard to set up in Canada. The company I work for only recently set it up in the US, and there's all sorts of hurdles to doing it in Canada. It's not that companies don't want to do it, but I think it's a lot easier in bigger markets than in a relatively small one like Canada, especially considering the geography of Canada.
 
So, I returned to the same Target (Thorncliffe) I went to in January in search of the same item I went looking for last time.

Same empty shelves.

I am so done.

BRING BACK ZELLERS!
 
Target still is having stocking problems :rolleyes: Nothing will change at Target until they lower their damn prices and bring better selection. If Walmart can do it, so can Target.

Target Canada's Near-Comical Blunders May Send It Packing: Analysts http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/05/08/target-leave-canada_n_5289626.html?utm_hp_ref=canada

Retailer Target may have to back out of Canada entirely if it doesn’t turn around its struggling operations soon, some analysts say.

According to estimates from Tiburon Research cited in the Wall Street Journal, Target is on track to lose $2 billion on its Canadian operations in the first two years of operations.

It already lost $941 million in its first year of operations, a genuinely poor outcome given the company had been predicting Canada would be profitable for it by the end of 2013.

“It is conceivable that they will close Canada,” Cowen and Co. retail analyst Faye Landes told the Globe and Mail. “I assume with a new CEO, everything will be on the table.”

Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel resigned abruptly this week. Most observers attributed the move to the retailer’s disastrous security breach in January, which exposed the credit and debit information of millions of customers.

But many analysts pointed to Target’s problem-plagued entry into Canada as “one giant reason” for Steinhafel’s departure. Belus Capital’s Brian Sozzi warned in January that the chain’s emtpy-shelves problem in Canada could mean the chain risks becoming “extinct” in Canada.

As Forbes reports, Canadian customers’ complaints about empty shelves and a lack of selection stem from investment decisions, and those are made by the CEO.
 
gabe said:
Target still is having stocking problems :rolleyes: Nothing will change at Target until they lower their damn prices and bring better selection. If Walmart can do it, so can Target.

Target Canada's Near-Comical Blunders May Send It Packing: Analysts http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/05/08/target-leave-canada_n_5289626.html?utm_hp_ref=canada

Retailer Target may have to back out of Canada entirely if it doesn’t turn around its struggling operations soon, some analysts say.

According to estimates from Tiburon Research cited in the Wall Street Journal, Target is on track to lose $2 billion on its Canadian operations in the first two years of operations.

It already lost $941 million in its first year of operations, a genuinely poor outcome given the company had been predicting Canada would be profitable for it by the end of 2013.

“It is conceivable that they will close Canada,†Cowen and Co. retail analyst Faye Landes told the Globe and Mail. “I assume with a new CEO, everything will be on the table.â€

Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel resigned abruptly this week. Most observers attributed the move to the retailer’s disastrous security breach in January, which exposed the credit and debit information of millions of customers.

But many analysts pointed to Target’s problem-plagued entry into Canada as “one giant reason†for Steinhafel’s departure. Belus Capital’s Brian Sozzi warned in January that the chain’s emtpy-shelves problem in Canada could mean the chain risks becoming “extinct†in Canada.

As Forbes reports, Canadian customers’ complaints about empty shelves and a lack of selection stem from investment decisions, and those are made by the CEO.
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Reports that Target may give up and leave the market are overblown. They have invested way too much money here to just pack up and leave. I bolded invested because that is the key word. Not all investments provide immediate returns. They will take years to find their groove, but are working hard to find it. Packing up and leaving would mean billions of dollars tossed in the garbage.
 
Tuscani01 said:
Reports that Target may give up and leave the market are overblown. They have invested way too much money here to just pack up and leave. I bolded invested because that is the key word. Not all investments provide immediate returns. They will take years to find their groove, but are working hard to find it. Packing up and leaving would mean billions of dollars tossed in the garbage.
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Many companies have tossed away billions to leave markets they don't forsee as profitable, or profitable enough. It actually happens a lot, like RIM recently abandoning the consumer market and writing off billions of dollars of inventory, and equipment. Or how about when Olive Garden abandoned Canada, even though they were makomg a small profit. Taking time to find a groove while losing billions a year with capital tied up in investments that are inevitably depreciating is not a situation many businesses would find tolerable. And this is ignoring that they they could be sold, just like HBC unloaded 2/3 of Zellers on to Target, or some leases could be bought out by another retailer.

Their investments to date in Canada are a sunk cost. They have no part in the evaluation of staying or leaving. They will look at future revenue vs. expenses and net exit revenues only.
 
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Jonny5 said:
Many companies have tossed away billions to leave markets they don't forsee as profitable, or profitable enough. It actually happens a lot, like RIM recently abandoning the consumer market and writing off billions of dollars of inventory, and equipment. Or how about when Olive Garden abandoned Canada, even though they were makomg a small profit. Taking time to find a groove while losing billions a year with capital tied up in investments that are inevitably depreciating is not a situation many businesses would find tolerable. And this is ignoring that they they could be sold, just like HBC unloaded 2/3 of Zellers on to Target, or some leases could be bought out by another retailer.

Their investments to date in Canada are a sunk cost. They have no part in the evaluation of staying or leaving. They will look at future revenue vs. expenses and net exit revenues only.
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It's only been a year. Relax. They aren't going anywhere. They have a good team that can turn things around, and a great real estate portfolio that positions them well in the Canadian market.

A note sent to their employees today pretty much restated what I originally said.
 
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