Canadian Retail Thread

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by WhipperSnapper

Hasn't the cosmetic department always been on the main floor in front of the main entrance with well dressed pretty people?

You may indeed be right.

I just may not have noticed until recently.

[WhipperSnapper]

Originally Posted by Acajack

As someone who has spent time in Louisiana and was born of two Acadian parents with family scattered across the Maritimes (and exposed to different Acadian dishes) there is virtually nothing in common between traditional Acadian and Cajun cuisine.

Cajun cuisine is now somewhat popular in Acadian regions of the Maritimes, either through the Louisiana dishes themselves or Cajun-style flourishes added to Acadian stuff.

But this is a fairly recent thing as relations between them and us have been somewhat rekindled in the past couple of decades.

First thoughts are deep fried for Cajun and oven baked like pot pies for Acadian

[esquire]

Originally Posted by WhipperSnapper

Hasn't the cosmetic department always been on the main floor in front of the main entrance with well dressed pretty people?

I remember reading an article in a US newspaper or magazine quite a while back talking about how Canadian drug stores were a model for American chains like CVS/Walgreens to follow in that regard. Apparently they liked the idea of having high-markup cosmetics and fragrances occupying a prime location in the store and they've moved to that model as well.

I don't recall it always being that way, I think it was sometime in the 90s that Shoppers Drug Mart really started to push that stuff with their store-in-store format.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by WhipperSnapper

First thoughts are deep fried for Cajun and oven baked like pot pies for Acadian

The Louisiana terroir also offers way more spicy possibilities than Atlantic Canada does.

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by Acajack

The Louisiana terroir also offers way more spicy possibilities than Atlantic Canada does.

That and the mixing of the cultures: you have the creoles, African-Americans, etc., from which Cajuns adapted food practices.
New Orleans is a food oasis: cajun food, creole food, and (perhaps best of all) soul food. So good.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

That and the mixing of the cultures: you have the creoles, African-Americans, etc., from which Cajuns adapted food practices.
New Orleans is a food oasis: cajun food, creole food, and (perhaps best of all) soul food. So good.

All true. It's a fascinating place for the food, the music, etc.

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by Acajack

All true. It's a fascinating place for the food, the music, etc.

Indeed. I really enjoyed my trip to New Orleans and environs (which included forays up a few bayous to meet with Cajun descendants). I put on 10 pounds in a week.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Indeed. I really enjoyed my trip to New Orleans and environs (which included forays up a few bayous to meet with Cajun descendants). I put on 10 pounds in a week.

This reminds me of how long overdue I am to go back there.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by casper

Second store to take pressure off the Halifax location. At a 2 1/2 hour drive, it may be faster going to Moncton than staying in line at the Halifax location.

I predict that the Popeyes thing will die down quickly once the portion of the population that is desperate to try it has a chance. The store in Bedford will be frequented mostly by suburbanites around there, not people driving in from 2 hours away or urbanites who have much better food options.

I think people generally massively overrate how much people coming in from outlying areas drive local businesses, particularly in Halifax. Maybe it's fading now but it seemed anytime something was discussed there people would talk as if it will be supported by folks coming in from Yarmouth or New Glasgow. But those places have a small population and you need to discount it heavily to account for travel time. The person living a 5 min drive away is orders of magnitude more likely to visit the fast food drive-in than somebody an hour or two away, and in the Maritimes there aren't orders of magnitude more people living outside of the Halifax metro area. It is not even 2x within a 2 hour drive.

[esquire]

Winnipeg went through the same thing with Popeyes, the first couple that opened a few years ago had huge lineups. I live near one that opened more recently and there has never been a lineup that I can ever recall. It never even looks all that busy.

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Shoppers Dog Fart? Ugliest signage in Canada, save for Jean-Coutu (where you will find it all; even a friend!!).



I also hate the obligatory detour through the cosmetics department.

I call that detour the Shoppers Drug Mart Loop. While most locations have that setup, the one closest to me does not - they have the grocery department up front and the cosmetics is off to the side. You have to go through the grocery area to get to the pharmacy counter or the Canada Post counter.

About the cosmetics department. A neighbour of mine back in London worked for Big V, which was a pharmacy chain in Southwestern Ontario that operated for many years and was bought by Shoppers Drug Mart in 1997 (long before Loblaws got their hands on it). Big V was a pharmacy first and foremost, but they also had substantial gift departments. The stores were independently run and had much local management control, and were responsive to the neighbourhoods they were located in. When Shoppers moved in, their central management wanted to control what the local stores were selling, without any regard to the needs of neighbourhoods. My neighbour had to push hard to keep the gift department, but they kept reducing it to make room for more and more cosmetics. This store was located in an area with a large senior population, and the gift department was popular with the regulars who shopped there, but cosmetics weren't what they were looking for. Eventually my neighbour retired and the gift department was eliminated entirely - and a year later, Pharma Plus opened a pharmacy next door, substantially expanding only a couple years later.

I've always resented the Shoppers Drug Mart Loop because of how it was used to force my neighbour out of the company after they bought Big V.

Also, I don't understand why they added the blue oval thingy behind the logo. It seems so pointless.

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by esquire

Harvey's and Swiss Chalet keep constantly appearing and disappearing in Winnipeg on a 15 year cycle. Every so often they pop up again, struggle, close down and then a few years later it starts over. The last Harvey's and Swiss Chalets on the most recent cycle closed early in the pandemic... I'm sure in a few years they will try yet again... for a while there was a period where the only Harvey's in town were in Home Depot as well, which was weird. I have never had the inclination to eat while at Home Depot.

Something I've noticed is how much Harvey's advertises on TV in BC, including on Sportsnet Pacific or CBC. Why are they wasting their money advertising in a province that doesn't have a single location? It's not like they can't split the feed, Sportsnet Pacific airs BC-specific ads all the time, and CBC has regional stations that also air local ads. (I work in advertising, and putting ads in a geographic market that isn't relevant is a big no-no. I do wonder if anyone at Harvey's realizes their commercials air in BC.)

This would be like White Spot advertising in Texas. Neither Harvey's or White Spot are national chains.

[JHikka]

The Popeyes near my place is always empty. Folks from Moncton are free to skip the 2.5 hour drive to Halifax and hop on a plane to Pearson instead if they're so inclined.

Like, I get the appeal, but I don't want to hear people lament about how 'American' Toronto is if people out east are lining up down the street for days on end for a subpar American fast food chain. All Canadians have this same attraction to something shiny and new.

[SpongeG]

There is a Popeye's that opened in at least 2019, about two weeks ago around dinner time, 6:30 pm there was a lineup outside the door and every time I have passed it has quite a lot of people inside, they are still very popular years later.

Mary Brown's is now extending further west into the lower mainland outside of Surrey and the Fraser Valley where they had locations for a few years and only this year have opened within the city of Vancouver, compared to the numerous Popeye's locations the
Mary Browns are never that busy. I don't mind them I would pick them over Popeye's.

Korean Fried Chicken places are opening up all over the place here, a number of former Sushi places, owned or run by Koreans have been switching to Korean Fried Chicken. Chicko Chicken seems to open a new location monthly. Plus there are a lot of independent ones popping up or adding the chicken to their existing menus.

Has Korean Fried Chicken caught on in other parts of Canada?

In Vancouver we Have Nene chicken, Pelicana, BB.Q. are all chains from Korea. Chicko Chicken is one that was started by Koreans who came here I think, and they claim to fly ingredients to Canada.


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[JHikka]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

Has Korean Fried Chicken caught on in other parts of Canada?

I was under the impression that Korean fried chicken peaked in Toronto/Ottawa like five-seven years ago. I recall places like The Fry expanding in both years and years ago. Last year's hot commodity in Koreatown was Korean corn dogs, with a number of places being lined up out the door. Chungchun was the main location in Toronto's Koreatown but they have them all over.

[casper]

Originally Posted by JHikka

I was under the impression that Korean fried chicken peaked in Toronto/Ottawa like five-seven years ago. I recall places like The Fry expanding in both years and years ago. Last year's hot commodity in Koreatown was Korean corn dogs, with a number of places being lined up out the door. Chungchun was the main location in Toronto's Koreatown but they have them all over.

Korean BBQ should be more popular. The ones with gas lines under all the tables are not as enjoyable as the ones where it is more authentic hot coals. There are very few of these around. I can't think of one I have been to in Canada that was not natural gas.

[MonctonRad]

LL Bean has just announced opening of five new stores in Canada in 2022.

The new stores will be in Edmonton, Niagara Falls, Kitchener, Kingston and Moncton.

[Denscity]

Originally Posted by manny_santos

Something I've noticed is how much Harvey's advertises on TV in BC, including on Sportsnet Pacific or CBC. Why are they wasting their money advertising in a province that doesn't have a single location? It's not like they can't split the feed, Sportsnet Pacific airs BC-specific ads all the time, and CBC has regional stations that also air local ads. (I work in advertising, and putting ads in a geographic market that isn't relevant is a big no-no. I do wonder if anyone at Harvey's realizes their commercials air in BC.)

This would be like White Spot advertising in Texas. Neither Harvey's or White Spot are national chains.

Sportsnet also thinks BC wants nonstop Leafs and Blue Jay's games. They're completely unconscious of what we want and just feed us nonstop Toronto content.

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by Denscity

Sportsnet also thinks BC wants nonstop Leafs and Blue Jay's games. They're completely unconscious of what we want and just feed us nonstop Toronto content.

The Blue Jays I can understand, as they're Canada's only MLB team and they have a fan base across Canada, but the Leafs are definitely a bizarre one for regularly airing nationally.

[casper]

Originally Posted by manny_santos

The Blue Jays I can understand, as they're Canada's only MLB team and they have a fan base across Canada, but the Leafs are definitely a bizarre one for regularly airing nationally.

There are some Leafs fans in BC. They are a rare, patient and forgiving bunch. Some would also call them dreamers. They try to keep a low profile around all these Canucks fans. But a very small minority.