Target Canada
Target Canada Co. was the Canadian subsidiary of the Target Corporation, the eighth-largest retailer in the United States. Formerly headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, the subsidiary was formed with the acquisition of Zellers store leases from the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) in January 2011. Target Canada opened its first store in March 2013, and was operating 133 locations by January 2015. Its main competition included Walmart Canada, Loblaws, Shoppers Drug Mart, and Canadian Tire.
The mall entrance to the Target store at Shoppers World Brampton in Brampton, Ontario (store #3668), during its grand opening in 2013. Closed in 2015, and later expanded and became a Jysk, Staples, GoodLife Fitness, and a Giant Tiger in 2018. | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Predecessor | Zellers |
| Founded | January 2011 |
| Defunct | 12 April 2015 |
| Fate | Bankruptcy |
| Headquarters | Mississauga, Ontario |
Number of locations | 133 (2015) |
Area served | Canada |
Key people | Aaron Alt (CEO) |
| Products | Beauty and health products; bedding; clothing and accessories; electronics; food; furniture; housewares; jewelry; lawn and garden; pet supplies; shoes; small appliances; sporting goods; toys/games. |
Number of employees | 17,600 (2015) |
| Parent | Target Corporation |
| Website | Archived official website at the Wayback Machine (archive index) |
Target Canada was ultimately unsuccessful, with an overly-aggressive expansion initiative, in addition to higher prices and a limited selection of products compared to Target stores in the United States and its Canadian rivals, particularly Walmart. The retail chain racked up losses of $2.1 billion in its lifespan, and was widely viewed as a failure, termed a "spectacular failure" by Amanda Lang of CBC News, "an unmitigated disaster" by Maclean's magazine and "a gold standard case study in what retailers should not do when they enter a new market" by the Financial Post. Target Canada commenced Court-supervised restructuring proceedings in January 2015, and finally shut down all of their stores by April 12, 2015, amid the retail apocalypse.