The Canadian Retail Market Has A Complex And Multidimensional History

When fashion tastes started to change in the late 19th century, HBC adapted with its customer base, and shifted its focus ("Our History"). Over time, HBC started to carry a wider variety of products to help grow their company, and to meet consumer demands ("Our History"). Another example of when HBC adapted and innovated is when they opened six department stores in six of the major cities all over Canada ("Our History"). When there was a recession in the 1980s, HBC once again adapted to their new

Since the country’s conception in 1867, Canada has lived in the shadow of it’s southerly neighbour, the United States of America. Through the years, what started out as a country with very distinct culture has morphed and become Americanized. Historically speaking, American influence has had a great economical impact on Canada. Speaking about the Americanization of Canada, Pierre Trudeau, former Prime Minister of Canada, has said, “Americans should never underestimate the constant pressure on Canada which the mere presence of the United states has produced…” This pressure has changed the way Canadians live and conduct business. This pressure has Americanized the Canadian economy. American culture has a very far reaching effect on Canada with many trickle down effects. Americanization of the Canadian economy has lead to the American control of the Canada’s corporate structure, Canadian dependence on American capital, turned the Canadian economy into a mirror image of the American economy, and has led to loss of

Malcolm Gladwell’s piece, “The Science of Shopping”, causes his audience to fear retail anthropologists such as Paco Underhill. On the surface, Gladwell appears to write a short documentary of sorts about the manipulation of businesses and stores. Venturing deeper into the story provides the reader with vision of the importance businesses place on their layouts and strategies. Gladwell continues to assure his point that consumers are not mindlessly obeying what retailors want them to do. Store owners are required to accommodate to how their customers behave, and what their target market wants. Gladwell refers to significant moments with Underhill by directly quoting Paco. He also vividly describes different aspects of Paco’s practice.

In the past, JCP had, on average, one price campaign every day. The stores were full of sale signs and retail rise was getting out of control. JCP partnered with numerous exclusive collaborations which was hoped to bring about an expansion for the firm. However, due to the economic slump, the oversaturation of the market, and an expected lack of quality in the goods from the consumer perspective, JCPenney’s success was degrading in contrast to its competitors. (Sloan, 2010).

In today’s world, especially in Canada, consumers generally want to satisfy all of their needs in a way that saves them the most time and energy. In order to meet this need, Target offers their customers the chance to buy different products that they would normally have to go to two or three different stores

In the end, the changing role of Canada’s women during the War was the beginning of a chain reaction of events that have forever changed the Canadian workplace and also that of men’s archaic views on the capabilities of women in general. Many look back to the period during the war in which women were encouraged to get out of the kitchen and go to work, and wonder how a five year period could be so instrumental in forever changing the norms of society? Two authors, who

Shopping has become a daily activity which happens a billion times in America and around the world. We cannot imagine how our lives would be affected if shopping was suddenly stopped. Malcolm Gladwell and Anne Norton both write articles about two sides of modern day shopping: how consumers have impacted the retail industry and how the industry influences consumers. In the article " The Science of Shopping," Malcolm Gladwell, a well-known writer and journalist, analyzes the shopping behaviors of customers and how retailers can lure customers; while Anne Norton, a professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania, in

Historically, the department store affected every facet of social and economic life in America. The rise of the department store from the mid-1850s to the end of the 19th century was a major revolution for business and society. It revolutionized the shopping experience and created an entirely new view of ordinary retail stores. Endless categories of items from jewelry and accessories to home goods and furniture were available to all customers under one roof. Department stores found success in the early years, because they were selling more than just “products.” They were selling an entire experience to the American consumer. Known for their low prices, convenience, experience, and variety, department stores emerged as the iconic establishments of their time. These stores became mainstream institutions in downtown areas. Some department stores, such as Filene’s, even had restaurants and tearooms located inside the building. They had services like photo studios and special events like fashion shows and parades. Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is still a widely popular event today, originating in

Despite the stock market crashing, department stores begin to rise afterwards. John Wanamaker opened a palatial store in the Grand Depot railway station in 1876. Department stores transformed the way people used and related to the commercial district (Volume 2 From Reconstruction, 2015, p. 489). With department stores becoming popular, it allowed the women to feel like they had more control over buying household items. Many women would window show as a way to spend their leisure

Over the last few years, it has been predominantly evident that Sears Canada has been not performing relevant to the standards present within the competitive industry. The market of retail department stores has dramatically changed since the time the corporate entity first began. To stay relevant within today’s retail industry, Sears Canada has to change their current operations. In today's market, the power of value-driven consumer products has been dominating the industry due to their affordable prices and emphasized popularity. Sears Canada has failed to distinguish themselves within the industry as either an affordable or a high quality department store. With emerging high-end retailers like Nordstrom, Holt Renfrew, the Hudson's Bay Company, and the rise of online discount retailers like Amazon and eBay, Sears can not afford to flood both market segments. This has become a major issue that Sears Canada is facing, as the company will need to differentiate themselves from their competitors by focusing their resources in the home improvement industry.

American retailer Kohl’s has become a prevalent fixture for the purchase of discounted clothing and home goods in the mid-west for over twenty-five years. The history of the company however has roots much more modest than present day market dominance would suggest. Dating back to a Wisconsin supermarket in 1946, founder Max Kohl grew his small business to the most successful chain of supermarkets in the Milwaukee area (12). By 1962 Kohl opened his first department store in Brookfield, Wisconsin where an eclectic selection of merchandise, from sporting goods, motor oil and candy, was sold (11). In 1972, the Kohl’s Company which by then consisted of 50 grocery stores, six department stores, three drug

From an etic lenses, American society can be perceived as overly repetive and/or simplistic; with retails chains that seemingly defy state and even county boarders. From an emic lense; for the most part, these chains provide the American community with a sense of "comfort" ("In Praise of Chain Stores") but in turn can also act as catalyst for ill-advised hostility. Citizens in which hold misplaced sentiments towards the concept of retail chains believe that the store "really is all that matters", therefore, developing a sense of mistrust towards "what the chains sell". This widespread misconception can cause an upbringing of speciaility stores that shelves items that mimic "exactly what the chain sells" only without the brand name attached. It may also cause low-value stores to "stay empty" due to the chains placed conveniently on the other side of the street.

Retail is when business sells products and provide service to the customer to make a profit. An example of a retail business is TESCO. There are many different types of retail sectors in UK which have different organisation and structures. In order for business to operate they will need to find the appropriate location, products they will sell to customer in order to gain profit for the business.

Inditex ensures that its fashion is fast through its supply chain efforts. They have created new methods to enable store managers to order and display merchandise faster and added cargo routes for shipping goods. The company ships clothing straight from the factory to stores and makes two-thirds of its goods in Spain and nearby countries, compared to most competitors who manufacture most of their clothing in Asia. Inditex has their sales managers monitoring computers, which are reporting sales at every store around the world. When a garment does well or fails, they are able to quickly tell designers if they need to come up with new ideas. They also have generated

Country Road has been an iconic Australian brand for 36 years, building its success on its high quality and unique designs that look effortlessly casual yet stylish. Following the high financial performances of their Australian stores, Country Road decided to embark into the United States of America (US) in 1989, in hope of realising the financial gains they saw here. Unfortunately, their strategies didn’t work, and they found obstacles which hindered their success in the US. This essay examines the types of strategies Country Road has pursued and what led Country Road to follow an international expansion strategy. Further, we discuss the impediments to Country Road succeeding in the US retail market, before suggesting strategy options for