Retail: Why Target Canada Failed

Lessons learned for any retailer. Insights and Execution matter most.

[@mikesrandomvideos]

canadian content laws killed them. THey could not purchase the same stuff and for the same prices they can every where else they can. In the US you can buy and mark up every product you want from anywhere in the world. That is not the case in canada You need to buy Canadian first then if nothing is available you can outsource. This make Canada not need to compete globally so the suppliers get rich on their own people and not sell outside of their country.

[@keiichi902]

Where do you get your facts? Canadian retailers can buy merchandise from anywhere in the world, there is no law that a chain has to have Canadian content. What killed Target Canada was VERY bad supply management caused by a fault in their untested inventory system which wouldn't call for more inventory to be sent to stores that needed it, even though Targets distribution centers were plugged with stock. I have worked in big retail for 20 years, and many of the Target store managers have come to Giant Tiger and they all tell the same story.

[@Cherrypi393]

If what you’re saying is true, this would have been a known fact when they went into Canada. Unless you’re saying there was a sudden change in the laws, this is all info they had beforehand and should have planned for.

[@naethanbest3225]

It is not Canadian Content Laws, its the Hudsons Bay Company laws. Target bought Zellars (which is owned by HBC) leases on some conditions, you can change the name of the store but you have to buy the products from the HBC's suppliers making the prices higher than usual. Plus the store shelves were EMPTY! The supply management from HBC didnt keep up with supply and demand, the supply was behind of the massive demand. I suggest they come try it again in canada, buy NEW leases or leases with little to no existing rules, expand slower and only open 10 or so stores across major canadian cities and expand from there in maybe 3 or 5 years from now. They could succeed and become a power in canada!

[@rosasparks9978]

and the canadian FDA as well is a lot stricter. so, to get a lot of the things they had in the american targets they were things that still had to pass through the FDA.