sorry Canadians- Target is leaving you

[catbus]

Clothes at the grocery store doesn't sound that weird to me, but I'm in the land of Fred Meyer, where you can buy clothes, fine jewelry, all groceries, auto and garden supplies, etc. Alas, I rarely get to FM anymore.

The Bay is definitely Macy's-like. Not Nordstrom.

[heygrey]

Jan 15, 2015 12:00:03 GMT -5 deo said:

Jan 15, 2015 11:31:15 GMT -5 @vicmo said:

Joe fresh for lyfe.

Shopping at Superstore makes me stabby.   I like Joe Fresh clothes,  but I hate the shopping experience at my local store.  Huge lines for the checkout,  poor produce and meat quality and I hate that they won't even help you bag your stuff. 

i'm currently boycotting superstore (this will last until i need toilet paper, lol) because of their shady ass sales. this isn't the first time i've seen stuff like this. but i always come crawling back because it's the only decent option i have within 40 minutes for household items. i can get food elsewhere in town, but no reasonably priced tp or dishsoap.

Attachment Deleted

[havarti]

Based on the ads I've seen I'd assumed that you get all your needs met at London Drug or Canadian Tire. Also, all Canadian food comes from Tim Horton's. Is that not correct?

[rugbywife]

Jan 15, 2015 12:22:13 GMT -5 deej said:

This seems like an appropriate place to put this story.

For our second anniversary, we went to the Niagara Falls region and stayed in St. Catharine's, ON. While there, I realized I had forgotten to pack a couple things and I got a little sick so wanted some medicine. So we found a Walmart and went. That afternoon, when we got together with friends, they were horrified. Because we went to Walmart instead of Target. AND we went to the "bad" Walmart instead of the "good" Walmart.

So in Canada, you even have levels of fanciness at Walmart apparently.

Or not. The friend ended up being loony in the not Canadian money sense of the word, so she could have been wrong.

OH! And on the way home we somehow got lost by where rugbywife lives and I was like "If I had wifi I could FB her and maybe she could help me find my way home!

Storytime is over now. Please resume Target discussions.

Lol!  You should have FBed me! Also…there are different quality Walmarts FORSHURE. 

[rugbywife]

Jan 15, 2015 12:15:44 GMT -5 @mrswindycity said:

Maybe Giant Tiger is like Big Lots? Do those still exist?

They lasted less than a year here…so even worse than Target, lol.

[heygrey]

Jan 15, 2015 12:09:55 GMT -5 page said:

Jan 15, 2015 12:05:48 GMT -5 rugbywife said:

Do not judge this.  People here LOVE Joe Fresh. 

No no no! I am not judging! They are adorable--some of my favorite items. I just had no idea they were sold in the grocery store! Somehow the thought of my dear friend's mother going to the store to pick up milk, eggs, bananas, and a tshirt for DD1 is hilarious to me.

you can buy them yourself at JC Penny. the selection isn't as good and the prices are insane (like double what i've paid for some of R's clothes here for the exact same thing), but the clearance is good!

[Deleted]

Jan 15, 2015 12:25:50 GMT -5 heygrey said:

Jan 15, 2015 12:00:03 GMT -5 deo said:

Shopping at Superstore makes me stabby.   I like Joe Fresh clothes,  but I hate the shopping experience at my local store.  Huge lines for the checkout,  poor produce and meat quality and I hate that they won't even help you bag your stuff. 

i'm currently boycotting superstore (this will last until i need toilet paper, lol) because of their shady ass sales. this isn't the first time i've seen stuff like this. but i always come crawling back because it's the only decent option i have within 40 minutes for household items. i can get food elsewhere in town, but no reasonably priced tp or dishsoap.

I hate the shopping experience, the checkout, the produce quality, and the "sales", but ultimately my need for President's Choice random stuff gets me back. Toilet paper, chocolate chips, mac n cheese - we have all these random items we like best from Superstore.

[heygrey]

Jan 15, 2015 12:22:13 GMT -5 deej said:

This seems like an appropriate place to put this story.

For our second anniversary, we went to the Niagara Falls region and stayed in St. Catharine's, ON. While there, I realized I had forgotten to pack a couple things and I got a little sick so wanted some medicine. So we found a Walmart and went. That afternoon, when we got together with friends, they were horrified. Because we went to Walmart instead of Target. AND we went to the "bad" Walmart instead of the "good" Walmart.

So in Canada, you even have levels of fanciness at Walmart apparently.

Or not. The friend ended up being loony in the not Canadian money sense of the word, so she could have been wrong.

OH! And on the way home we somehow got lost by where rugbywife lives and I was like "If I had wifi I could FB her and maybe she could help me find my way home!

Storytime is over now. Please resume Target discussions.

i find this to be no different than the states. my parents' city in new york state has two walmarts, one is decidely nicer than the other and has a better selection of nicer products.

[heygrey]

Jan 15, 2015 12:30:20 GMT -5 @this said:

Peaches and cream corn?! What???

it's a variety of corn. one of the sweetest sweet corns. and it is damn good.

we're not mixing fruit and dairy and corn, lol.

[mainelyfoolish]

Why is everyone so amazed that they can buy clothes at some grocery stores? Has no one else in the US ever been to a Walmart with a full grocery section? What about Meijer? Do those still sell clothes and groceries, too? They did when I last lived near one (kind of a long time ago).

[niq]

Jan 15, 2015 12:38:43 GMT -5 mainelyfoolish said:

Why is everyone so amazed that they can buy clothes at some grocery stores? Has no one else in the US ever been to a Walmart with a full grocery section? What about Meijer? Do those still sell clothes and groceries, too? They did when I last lived near one (kind of a long time ago).

Yup, walmart is now a grocery store that happens to sell some stuff (56% of their US revenue is from groceries).

In the Northwest we have Fred Meyer, which is sort of a City Target in reverse. It's a full grocery store, and then a handful of other things -- electronics, clothes, home furnishings, etc -- with very limited selection. But it's 3 blocks away, which is awesome!!

[deo]

Jan 15, 2015 12:32:04 GMT -5 @tokenhoser said:

Jan 15, 2015 12:25:50 GMT -5 heygrey said:

i'm currently boycotting superstore (this will last until i need toilet paper, lol) because of their shady ass sales. this isn't the first time i've seen stuff like this. but i always come crawling back because it's the only decent option i have within 40 minutes for household items. i can get food elsewhere in town, but no reasonably priced tp or dishsoap.

I hate the shopping experience, the checkout, the produce quality, and the "sales", but ultimately my need for President's Choice random stuff gets me back. Toilet paper, chocolate chips, mac n cheese - we have all these random items we like best from Superstore.

I like the PC Blue menu items, I stock up on the Blue Menu frozen meatballs. I also like the fact that all the PC items are free of artificial colors and artificial flavours.

Last time I was at superstore, there was a friendly old man who was hanging out in the meat section. He came over to me to tell me about this great sale on hams, apparently it was his 3rd trip back to Superstore that day to stock up because they had a limit of 4 per person. It was a good deal, they were like $3 each (they were the fully cooked deli hams). I bought 4. I also got a free turkey that day because I spent $250.

[heygrey]

Jan 15, 2015 12:25:53 GMT -5 havarti said:

Based on the ads I've seen I'd assumed that you get all your needs met at London Drug or Canadian Tire. Also, all Canadian food comes from Tim Horton's. Is that not correct?

tim horton's is now owned by burger king. i'm feeling betrayed by that sale.

[awick14]

deo- I mainly shop at superstore. The lines are no longer then any other grocery store here. And I don't mind bagging my own groceries.

I have only been into the local target here twice. Once when it first opened, I browsed then left as most things were 1.5-2x the price of other places. The second time was to get something from Starbucks and it was the closest one.

I have been into target a few times in California, and I loved it. Target Canada isn't anything like the US stores.

[awick14]

Jan 15, 2015 12:47:16 GMT -5 heygrey said:

Jan 15, 2015 12:25:53 GMT -5 havarti said:

Based on the ads I've seen I'd assumed that you get all your needs met at London Drug or Canadian Tire. Also, all Canadian food comes from Tim Horton's. Is that not correct?

tim horton's is now owned by burger king. i'm feeling betrayed by that sale.

I feel very betrayed by that sale. Why does everything have to be bought out by an American company?!?

[Deleted]

Jan 15, 2015 11:15:21 GMT -5 @mrswindycity said:

Jan 15, 2015 10:53:10 GMT -5 page said:

Am I super culturally ignorant for not realizing that Canada didn't always have Target?

Target feels universal to me. Target should always be there, wherever you go. A part of me has died learning that it is not.

Given your old SN, I am disappointed in you for not knowing many things about many countries.

My theme song says nothing about Canada. Berlin? Yes. Zimbabwe? Of course. Kiev? Sure. CANADA? NO.

[heygrey]

i've had no less than 5 text conversations with friends this morning and am participating 2 threads on facebook. all about target.

maybe i need to evaluate my life.

[heygrey]

Jan 15, 2015 12:47:41 GMT -5 awick14 said:

deo- I mainly shop at superstore. The lines are no longer then any other grocery store here. And I don't mind bagging my own groceries.

I have only been into the local target here twice. Once when it first opened, I browsed then left as most things were 1.5-2x the price of other places. The second time was to get something from Starbucks and it was the closest one.

I have been into target a few times in California, and I loved it. Target Canada isn't anything like the US stores.

but we have the same target and i love it i've never thought they were expensive. maybe when they opened? i didn't shop a lot right away because i wanted the first round of clearance to hit the racks. i haven't been disappointed yet.

[Velar Fricative]

Is Joe Fresh really sold in grocery stores in Canada? Because there is a Joe Fresh that opened up in Midtown Manhattan a while back and everyone treats it like it's H&M.

It's weird because it would be like, I don't know, Kirkland opening up their own stores next to H&M and Zara just for the clothes they sell at Costco (Kirkland makes Costco clothes, yes?).

As for Target, it's okay Canada, at least you have Tim Hortons and poutine and Celine Dion.

[halfpint]

Is there still a store called Loblaw's? I grew up in northern Ontario, I feel like we had that, and A&P for groceries. The mall had Zeller's, complete with a cafeteria. It was a treat to get French onion soup there! I also remember Cotton On and Cotton Ginny and Northern Reflections at the mall...but that's about it. Maybe some overpriced shoe stores where I bought Sorels for winter carnivals and such. And probably a specialty shop for figure skaters.

Otherwise we had Canadian Tire and Shopper's Drug (was Bea Arthur in 1980s Shopper's ads, or am I on crack?). My mom got arrested for shoplifting at a Shopper's once. She absentmindedly pocketed some aspirin or similar while looking at something else, and an overzealous security guard was having none of this "I meant to pay for it". My dad had to testify in court that she could be absentminded at times, and has never let her forget it.

[rugbywife]

Jan 15, 2015 13:17:27 GMT -5 @vicmo said:

In my expert opinion (worked at a grocery store in high school, lol), Superstore is the best grocery store in my city. Way cheaper than Sobeys, not as dirty and scary as Price Chopper / No Frills / Food Basics / Freshco.

We don't have Metro here.

This is how I know my problems are all FWPs…I only shop president's choice…we have a Fortinos, which is essentially the same as Superstore but without all the really fun stuff, lol.  The Superstore is out of our way unfortunately, or I would shop there. 

[cjeanette]

Jan 15, 2015 12:38:43 GMT -5 mainelyfoolish said:

Why is everyone so amazed that they can buy clothes at some grocery stores? Has no one else in the US ever been to a Walmart with a full grocery section? What about Meijer? Do those still sell clothes and groceries, too? They did when I last lived near one (kind of a long time ago).

Our local grocery stores all sell clothing branded for the local high school and the Royals/Chiefs.   I have a totally unattractive yet comfy pair of sweat pants from there.

[Willis Jackson]

Jan 15, 2015 10:53:10 GMT -5 page said:

Am I super culturally ignorant for not realizing that Canada didn't always have Target?

Target feels universal to me. Target should always be there, wherever you go. A part of me has died learning that it is not.

Don't ever move to Vermont.

[Deleted]

Jan 15, 2015 15:50:41 GMT -5 Willis Jackson said:

Jan 15, 2015 10:53:10 GMT -5 page said:

Am I super culturally ignorant for not realizing that Canada didn't always have Target?

Target feels universal to me. Target should always be there, wherever you go. A part of me has died learning that it is not.

Don't ever move to Vermont.

I have a firm "no living north of the Mason-Dixon line" rule so no worries. But what kind of ass-backwards state is Vermont that they don't have Target? They produced my favorite band and I hear the ice cream is good but lack of Target is a shocking misstep.

[jackpackage]

Jan 15, 2015 12:38:43 GMT -5 mainelyfoolish said:

Why is everyone so amazed that they can buy clothes at some grocery stores? Has no one else in the US ever been to a Walmart with a full grocery section? What about Meijer? Do those still sell clothes and groceries, too? They did when I last lived near one (kind of a long time ago).

I really wish every Walmart would be replaced by Meijer, but I think they're still only in a few states. 

[deo]

Jan 15, 2015 13:44:41 GMT -5 Jennyanydots said:

I live in a city with two big Loblaws and two Superstores and I would say that Loblaws is slightly "upscale" - better produce, big deli/bakery section, big Joe Fresh sections, lots of specialty foods (natural, gluten-free, Asian foods, etc).

Hey Americans - if you want to hear a funny grocery store name, in BC there is (was?) a grocery chain called Overwaitea's. Say that out loud..

We shopped at Overwaitea growing up,  the one in my hometown turned into a Save On Foods but Overwaitea is still around in small town BC.  I remember Overwaitea had a fountain pop station where you could fill up your own 2 litre pop bottles with all kinds of pop flavors. 

I like that Loblaw's generic food brand is actually called "No Name" brand.

[gibbinator]

Jan 15, 2015 13:17:27 GMT -5 @vicmo said:

In my expert opinion (worked at a grocery store in high school, lol), Superstore is the best grocery store in my city. Way cheaper than Sobeys, not as dirty and scary as Price Chopper / No Frills / Food Basics / Freshco.

We don't have Metro here.

Funny, in my town it's sobeys that is cheaper, except where bread is concerned.

[egishere]

Jan 15, 2015 12:42:59 GMT -5 niq said:

Jan 15, 2015 12:38:43 GMT -5 mainelyfoolish said:

Why is everyone so amazed that they can buy clothes at some grocery stores? Has no one else in the US ever been to a Walmart with a full grocery section? What about Meijer? Do those still sell clothes and groceries, too? They did when I last lived near one (kind of a long time ago).

Yup, walmart is now a grocery store that happens to sell some stuff (56% of their US revenue is from groceries).

In the Northwest we have Fred Meyer, which is sort of a City Target in reverse. It's a full grocery store, and then a handful of other things -- electronics, clothes, home furnishings, etc -- with very limited selection. But it's 3 blocks away, which is awesome!!

We just got one of these by my house but it is called King Soopers Marketplace but its the same thing as FM.  It literally just opened yesterday but the parking situation was OOC when I drove by.  I'm excited to check it out!

[pugz]

I love it when we talk Canadian.

[Deleted]

Jan 15, 2015 17:19:06 GMT -5 pugz said:

I love it when we talk Canadian.

Our dollar is shit right now, which means you should all be planning vacations to come visit.