Target was a disappointment to Canadian consumers when it arrived less than two years ago — and again Thursday as the U.S. retailer began its hasty exit.
The first day of Target’s liquidation sale had shoppers howling that prices weren’t that low after all.
While some left Greater Victoria Target stores with red shopping carts piled high, plenty of others complained about the prices.
“It’s pretty useless,” Shoaib Nathani said at the Tillicum Target, adding the discounts were on par with Walmart’s regular prices.
Target launched its liquidation with knock-downs of up to 30 per cent. But some items were either not on sale, or were 10 per cent or 20 per cent off.
Jeannine Tremblay of Langford arrived ready for a shopping spree, but didn’t see the deep discounts. “I would have spent money because I was coming in for household goods like furniture. Home design stuff is what I’m looking for.”
She left with a small bag of dryer sheets and dish detergent.
Target announced last month that it was closing its Canada stores. Liquidation kicked off the day after it received approval from an Ontario court.
As with most liquidations, discounts are likely to grow as time goes by to clear unsold product. Target hopes to be out of Canada before the summer with the goal of closing all 133 stores by mid-May. Closings are putting about 17,000 people out of work.
Target has five stores on Vancouver Island — at Tillicum and Hillside malls as well as Nanaimo, Courtenay and Campbell River.
The Tillicum shopping centre’s parking lot was busy, with stalls in demand. Even so, it did not match the gridlock of Target’s opening day on May 6, 2013.
Close to 200 shoppers lined up in the rain Thursday morning to be the first inside the Hillside Target.
“Well, that was disappointing,” said Gordon Head resident Carol Smith, who left the store empty handed. She had hoped to buy a high-end blender, but said that even with a 10 per cent discount, the product was cheaper at other stores.
Justine Aichelberger bought a pair of shoes for 20 per cent off the regular price.
“It wasn’t a very good sale,” she said, adding she’s sorry to see Target close.
Kei and Justin Mui made a couple of small purchases. “I was surprised at how fast it closed,” said Kei, who bought a water bottle at 10 per cent off. She figures Walmart has better prices.
Justin said: “In my mind at least, if you are looking for good deals, Target wasn’t the place you look.”
Almajane Knoll and daughter-in-law Jeni Knoll were among satisfied customers at the Tillicum Target, rolling out a full cart.
A 20 per cent price cut on an ottoman was just fine with Almajane, who likes Target’s home decor lines. “I’ve been looking for one,” she said. “It’s well-made.”
Since its opening, Target has been criticized for not carrying enough products, but Almajane said there was a lot available on Thursday. “If only they had this amount of stuff before. That’s the unfortunate part. They are now just getting up to where they should have been initially.”
Jeni’s shopping included toys at 20 per cent off.
Tillicum’s Target store was filled with shoppers, who lined up for cashiers.
“It’s the busiest I’ve ever seen it,” Jeni said.
Sierra Kachan of Oak Bay arrived at 7 a.m. at Hillside to buy two grey-coloured bedside tables at a 30 per cent discount.
“It’s a shame that they are closing,” she said. “I think they still had better prices than most places.”
University of Victoria business professor Steve Tax believes Target missed the mark with sale prices of up to 30 per cent.
“When I hear the word liquidation, I’m thinking 50 per cent. I mean, liquidation is like a sale on steroids to me.”
Target never did a good job of managing consumer expectations in Canada, Tax said. “If people thought that the prices would be lower than they were, then that’s a problem with [Target’s] communication system.
“It’s another piece of evidence that they never really spent much time understanding or working their communication strategy so that when people showed up at the store that they got what they expected.”
With a file from The Canadian Press
