General Retail News

[Norman Bates]

Well, I guess this will be the end of the Hobby House.

[Dado]

Dang... they don't do model railways.

I guess that rules out an in-store display of what Train Yards used to look like.

[YOWflier]

Is this a 'famous' hobby store or something?

I checked their web site and, sadly, they don't carry the items I collect (Herpa Wings or Gemini Jets die-cast model aircraft).

[m3i6]

I think Hobby House will be safe. Great Hobbies specializes in Radio Controlled planes, boats, trucks and cars.

[Norman Bates]

I went to Hobby House tonight. It was the usual fare.

Then I drove to the Train Yards to find this place. Very low visibility location adjacent to the Scores.

Their stock is something I haven't seen in Ottawa in 30 years. Huge focus on R/C craft and gear. I last remember seeing a selection like this in the old Hobbyland in the Beacon Hill North shopping mall.

Meanwhile I think the Hobby House will soldier on.

[reidjr]

Originally Posted by Norman Bates

I went to Hobby House tonight. It was the usual fare.

Then I drove to the Train Yards to find this place. Very low visibility location adjacent to the Scores.

Their stock is something I haven't seen in Ottawa in 30 years. Huge focus on R/C craft and gear. I last remember seeing a selection like this in the old Hobbyland in the Beacon Hill North shopping mall.

Meanwhile I think the Hobby House will soldier on.

What are the prices like?

[Norman Bates]

Originally Posted by reidjr

What are the prices like?

No prices were displayed. There were many bar code scanners to check prices with. It's an idea I like because it allows quick price changes to reflect competitive conditions and fluctuating exchange rates.

On reflection, I don't think I saw one product in common with the Hobby House.

[rakerman]

Ottawa Miele Gallery is going in the old Vistek location at Bank & Gladstone, across from Central Phase 1. Nice to see a high-end store on the street.


DSC03062 by rakerman, on Flickr

The site just has placeholder images for now

http://mieleonbank.ca/

I had thought it was only the 2nd floor that was leased but now I'm thinking the "lower level" that the leasing sign says is still left must be the basement level, not the ground floor.

(Crossposted to General Updates.)

[rakerman]

DSC03258 by rakerman, on Flickr

http://www.sunflowersottawa.com/

[reidjr]

Sail which is a outdoor gear store will open at the train yards dec 1st.


www.sail.ca

[m3i6]

On the note of outdoor stores... MEC on Richmond is set to expand. They will be taking down the building that houses the Pita place and AutoRacks as well as a building in behind.

Looks like they will move the parking lot West and expand along Richmond.

[reidjr]

Has anyone heard of T.Hopper if so what is it a store or restaurant.

[Cre47]

Also, ads are already placed on buses for the upcoming opening of the Lowe's store on Hazeldean Road. Been awhile since there was an update about that store and didn't though it would be that imminent.

[Cre47]

Originally Posted by Cre47

Also, ads are already placed on buses for the upcoming opening of the Lowe's store on Hazeldean Road. Been awhile since there was an update about that store and didn't though it would be that imminent.

Now ads are saying that it is open.

[MichelKazan]

So WalMart is supposed to be open at Baseline and Clyde tomorrow the 28th.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/busines...872/story.html

Exciting stuff, I guess. Still kind of sad how we closed and tore down a a school to build a Wal-Mart.

However, reading the article, here's a little something that struck me:


The company said it has three stores in Ottawa that will be open in the coming weeks. One on the corner of Merivale Road and Baseline Road, is due to open its doors any day, while one on Iber Road near Stittsville and another on Innes Road near Orléans will be opening in the coming months.

Anybody find anything wrong with this picture or know anything about this?
1) Isn't a Stittsville location on Iber Road a little too close to the store at Kanata Centrum?
2) There already is a Wal-Mart Supercentre on Innes Road in Orléans, which not to long ago was renovated and converted to a Supercentre and even that location only opened around 2005.

Any thoughts or something the rest of us should know?

[AuxTown]

Originally Posted by MichelKazan

1) Isn't a Stittsville location on Iber Road a little too close to the store at Kanata Centrum?

It's definately too close and apparently the Centrum Walmart is moving to the Bridlewood area off of Eagleson. That would make it even closer to Iber Road. That being said, there is no Walmart on Iber Road. I assume they were referring to the opening of Lowes this week.

[reidjr]

Originally Posted by O-Town Hockey

It's definately too close and apparently the Centrum Walmart is moving to the Bridlewood area off of Eagleson. That would make it even closer to Iber Road. That being said, there is no Walmart on Iber Road. I assume they were referring to the opening of Lowes this week.

Do you know is it 100% there moving to bridlewood.

[Cre47]

Originally Posted by O-Town Hockey

It's definately too close and apparently the Centrum Walmart is moving to the Bridlewood area off of Eagleson. That would make it even closer to Iber Road. That being said, there is no Walmart on Iber Road. I assume they were referring to the opening of Lowes this week.

There is an article on this week's Kanata Kourier that might suggest a Wal-Mart at Terry Fox and Fernbank with additionnal retail space planned at 700 Eagleson (page 4)

[harls]

Actually, there are 3 Wal-marts in Gatineau - two in the old city of Gatineau, one in the Plateau area.

[c_speed3108]

More on Target...they are considering some of the small stores in Urban areas

U.S. retailer tips its plans — but not its Target locations


By Vito Pilieci, Ottawa Citizen February 4, 2011 6:07 PM


OTTAWA — A senior Target Corp. executive was in Ottawa this week to talk about what residents can expect when the first Target store opens in Canada.

What Michael Francis, Target’s chief marketing officer, wouldn’t discuss, however, was Target’s preferred locations among the leaseholds it is taking over from 220 Zellers store locations across Canada. The $1.8 billion deal announced in January will see Target open between 100 and 150 stores across the country.

Francis would simply say that all Zellers locations are being considered — but then added that too much speculation is being heaped on Target by critics trying to guess its next move. He said Target was well aware of Zellers’s smaller average store size when it bought the locations. The average Zellers is around 100,000 square feet; the average Target in the U.S. covers 130,000 square feet.

Target, however, has been experimenting with different layouts south of the border, including smaller locations, multi-level outlets and downtown stores with no parking, designed for urban dwellers.

“Part of performing a site-by-site evaluation is understanding the nuances that each site presents,” said Francis, who inspected a number of the Ottawa area’s 11 Zellers outlets.

“We operate a variety of unique formats all across the United States. We have a major store in New York City that has no parking. We have smaller stores over two floors. We have a variety of different configurations that allow us to take advantage of both urban opportunities as well as suburban opportunities.”

At least until he finishes his cross-Canada tour, it’s premature to rule out any location of becoming a Target store, he said.

The company hopes to have its preferred locations picked within six months. After that it will launch massive remodelling projects to turn them into the type of Target stores consumers have become accustomed to seeing in the U.S.

Given the high brand awareness of Target in Canada, the company can’t come into the country in name only, Francis noted. Thus, Target will bring to Canada all of the brands and products consumers would find on its American store shelves. And in keeping with the chain’s reputation for hip, chic clothing, Target will look to partner with Canadian designers eager to get their clothes on to store shelves.

“We expect that there will be opportunities to customize our product assortment. But the intention is the full brand experience,” he said. “We would not be well served by having a different version of our brand.”

The Target executive reiterated that the agreement to take over Zellers’s store locations was a real estate deal. Target has not acquired Zellers, its assets or any of its employees. As a result, when those 220 Zellers stores are closed to either be sold or turned into Targets, the employees will need to submit their resumes and compete for jobs at Target. Zellers now operates 276 stores in Canada with around 22,000 employees, including as many as 2,300 in Ottawa.

“Zellers remains a stand-alone operation. They will remain Zellers employees. Our goal is to capitalize on the vast amount of talent in the Canadian workplace and of course that includes the Zellers team members,” he said. “But we believe through this we will create tens of thousands of jobs throughout Canada.”

Francis said the giant American discount retailer has been eyeing an expansion into Canada for some time. He said, the strength of the Canadian economy and the deal the company was able to make with Zellers provided the push it needed.
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