I found this blog post to be very relatable because similar to Kimberly Lin, I was also quite excited about the opening of Target stores in Canada. I had previously travelled and purchased goods at several Targets stores in America. I was immediately infatuated with the low prices and wide variety of products that Target was offering, and questioned, “Why on earth isn’t Target in Canada yet?” However, when Target actually opened a store in my hometown of Calgary, I found myself continuing to shop at stores that had been around for much longer than Target. This is due to the fact that these stores, such as Walmart and Canadian Tire, were established in Canada long before Target, allowing consumers to build a strong sense of loyalty and trust with the companies. It can be difficult to get consumers to stray from what they have become accustomed to and begin shopping at an entirely new establishment, as proven by Target’s lack of success in the Canadian Market. Therefore, I agree with the ideas given by the article on Kimberly Lin’s blog about how Target can increase their success in Canada. For example, Target is still seen as an American powerhouse that has just expanded onto Canadian soil, steering people towards other stores. As stated in the article, creating a new and Canadian marketing scheme should help increase their sales.
One other problem that I have found and is quite difficult to fix, is location. In Calgary, Target stores are either a part of malls or only in the newly developed communities. This makes the stores difficult to access and forces consumers, like myself, to travel to a much closer Walmart or Canadian Tire. I think that Target should try to establish itself in a wider variety of areas within the city, becoming more accessible to every consumer and hopefully increasing sales.
I am curious to see what Target has in store for it’s Canadian consumers.