Brand Channel recently discussed The Bay’s rebranding in response to Target’s recent foray into Canada. The Bay will now be named Hudson’s Bay, with a new logo to accompany the new name:
Its new name and logo, through elements such as the coat-of-arms and date of incorporation, seems to more explicitly reference The Bay’s incredibly long history and strong Canadian heritage, both of which set it apart from Target. To me, the old logo felt aged, while the new logo looks classic and communicates a slightly more upscale brand that Target’s simple, brightly-coloured logo. This seems in keeping with The Bay’s current positioning in relation to Target, as it tends to generally stock higher-priced clothing and cosmetic brands than Target does. For example, Bay’s Topshop/Topman line overlaps with the price ranges of some of Target’s designer collaborations, but the Topshop line is a lower-priced line for The Bay while Target’s designer collaborations are premium in relation to Target’s other apparel.
Target aims to be “incredibly competitive with the lowest-priced leaders in Canada.” Given this difference in pricing strategy compared to The Bay, I wonder whether The Bay will decide to do as the Brand Channel blog post conjectures by “competing on virtually everything—possibly even price.” Currently, I see The Bay as having a profit orientation, so lowering prices to compete with Target seems like a fairly radical shift to more of a competitor orientation and has implications for The Bay’s brand and positioning as a whole. I’m curious to see how The Bay’s rebranding initiative plays out and whether it will successfully hold its ground against Target in the coming years.
2 replies on “#3 [External Blog] Keeping Target at Bay”
Great post, what are the different consumer segments you see with the introduction of Target into Canada, as well as those of the Bay? What do you think the future of the company is with the introduction of other American department stores, such as Nordstrom, in Canada?
Thanks for the comment Natalie. I think Target, with its lower prices and more household-oriented product mix, will attract more families as well as generally a younger demographic compared to The Bay. With the increasing number of American department stores in Canada, I think The Bay will inevitably lose market share but could still maintain a strong presence if it can position itself in a way that distinctly differentiates itself from its American competitors.