Chipotle
Chi-pot-le (as per Urban Dictionary’s first result):
Do you remember your first Chipotle experience, because I certainly do. 15 years old and at the Bellevue location- certainly analogous to a trip to Disney land. I assure you that this post is not solely dedicated to Chipotle, as enjoyable as that would be. It does however, pertain to the very recent and notably aggressive expansion of American based companies into the True North, strong and free.
With the recent grand opening of Western Canada’s first Marshall’s- a hoarders paradise- as well as the proposed opening(s) of Seattle based retailer Nordstrom, female fun-times clothing retailer Victoria Secret, and sneaky little 5 Guys Burgers, we are once again reminded of the influence that our southern brothers have on us, as well as our consumption patterns. And who can forget our forfeit (basically religious sacrifice) of the beloved Zeller’s Chain in return for Target (actually pronounced Tarjay).
I look forward to how these American retailers and restauranteurs will market themselves in Canada. We are familiar with their brands thanks to weekend trips to Seattle, but will they assume we patronize them for similar reasons? How will their marketing and product mix change in response to their new target markets and environment (or will it remain the same)? I know that often when I drive down to Seattle, my shopping mentality is a little bit questionable in that I tend towards the lunatic-deprived type. I may even be in the overnight line-up when the Oakridge Centre Target opens. Will the opening of say, Target in Canada allow for a new and very much different approach that consumers take onto shopping? Only time will tell!
As a side note, I visited Marshall’s on opening day and it went a little like this: 
I would like to be buried there one day.