Last day for Zellers coming soon (updated)
Tuesday, March 19, 2013 by: Darren Taylor
Saturday, March 30 will mark the last day of business for Zellers at the retailer’s Northern Avenue location.
SooToday.com reported earlier March 31 would be the store's final day of operations.
March 31 is in fact Easter Sunday, and all retail outlets, businesses, banks and government offices will be closed for that statutory holiday.
Shoppers shared their feelings with SooToday.com outside the Northern Avenue store Sunday.
While taking advantage of liquidation prices, many expressed dismay at the loss of another business (and jobs) from the Sault Ste. Marie economic landscape.
“It’s sad. First it was Kmart, now Zellers. How many more stores are they going to close?” one man remarked.
A Thessalon woman told us “I feel sorry for all the people losing their jobs.”
Shopper Leslie Carabello said “I feel sad about the store closing. Zellers offered an opportunity for alternative merchandise that Walmart doesn’t carry. It’s a sad thing.”
Shopper Heidi McLeod said “I’m not impressed with the store closing. We have a lack of shopping here in Sault Ste. Marie. To get anything worthwhile you have to travel to Sudbury. That’s not convenient for a lot of people.”
She added “where are all these employees going to go? They have families to feed.”
Another shopper, Scott Hall, stated “we have to have competition here. We can’t live without it. There’s no competition if we have two Walmarts, that leaves Walmart free to charge whatever they want.”
Hudson’s Bay Company spokesperson Tiffany Bourre told us Monday HBC still has no intention to re-brand that store space after the doors close at the end of the month.
Any future use of that space, Bourre said, “is up to the landlord.”
That landlord is Fengate Property Management.
Fengate officials were not available for comment when we called their Burlington, Ontario office Monday.
The closure of the Zellers Northern Avenue location will mean the loss of approximately 100 full-time and part-time jobs.
The store has offered merchandise at liquidation sale prices for several weeks, as have other Zellers outlets nationwide.
It was announced in July 2012 that 64 Zellers locations would close after retailer Target bought 189 Zellers locations across Canada in 2011.
Some Zellers stores, in larger cities, may be re-branded.
JustAGuy2 3/18/2013 3:22:08 PM ReportKeep shopping across the river people. This is what happens. Cheap or not, is it worth this? Taxes including import taxes make it impossible for Canadian retailers to compete. Do your homework
before you call Canadian retailers greedy.
Who's next????
Grandz 3/18/2013 3:34:32 PM Report"JustAGuy" could not agree more... cross border shopping is killing our economy. its amazing what people will do to save a few bucks. u would figure after all these years people of the Sault would realize this.....
girlykate 3/18/2013 3:40:33 PM ReportThey are putting in a Big Lot's there after they close, do we really need another useless store? I never really shopped at Zellers so it's not a loss to me, however, I do feel that the Sault should bring a different approach to newer stores!! This city has nothing when it comes to shopping!
zzeke 3/18/2013 3:47:01 PM ReportYou 2 either got lots of jingle in your jeans or you`re business owners . In this tax the crap out of John Q Public age you cannot blame people for doing what they have to do .
Beej 3/18/2013 3:49:03 PM Report"Grandz 3/18/2013 3:34:32 PM"
"JustAGuy" could not agree more... cross border shopping is killing our economy. its amazing what people will do to save a few bucks. u would figure after all these years people of the Sault would realize this...."
The government is killing our economy, the greedy bastards!!
They could start with abolishing the HST and go back to one sales tax like they promised they would to start with, then cut the taxes on gasoline and make it competitive.
If this happened, things would turn around in a hurry.
Will we ever see this happen??
Not bloody likely!!!!
JustAGuy2 3/18/2013 3:54:10 PM Reportit runs deeper than that. It's the high wages Canadians earn compared to the Americans.
Unions are always screaming for more. It's the social programs we have come to enjoy. As long as we keep feeding the Americans, this is whats going to happen.
T-pot 3/18/2013 4:00:27 PM ReportI doubt the 2 Zeller's we had here was the direct result of Zeller's selling assets to Target.
I also doubt, the 2 Walmarts had any impact on this at all.
RichyRich 3/18/2013 4:10:33 PM ReportI wonder how Sarnia's job market is? You have to be either rich or dumb not to take advantage of what we have across the border. I feel for people who work at Zellers also but you cannot expect lifelong job security in retail. On the other hand, I don't necessarily think it fully has to do with prices rather than options. If it were pricing, we wouldn't have two Walmarts. Clothing is outrageous in this town and I laugh when I see those lime green bags coming out of the Station Mall knowing how badly these people just got duped. We in SSM have become one of the rare city's out there where people simply don't bother coming here to shop unless they are looking for an Italian grocer.
JustAGuy2 3/18/2013 4:20:16 PM ReportOn the other hand, if we had shoppers we would have stores. Not sure what the answer is but this community sucks.
crashed13 3/18/2013 4:21:40 PM ReportNot sure about that Zellers but the stations mall one was a good move. The only differance I notice is Zellers wore red and Walmart wears blue and sell much more food.
They shut down that bootlegger Kellys quick.
mememe 3/18/2013 4:26:31 PM ReportThere are very few options here when it comes to shopping for clothes and shoes. We need more variety with competitive prices. I will gladly take my hard earned cash to where I feel I will get the best bang for my buck.
streaker 3/18/2013 4:29:15 PM ReportThe way government is taxing us and the high rate of electricity and gasoline the seniors on fixed income have no choice but to cross border shop to survive.I do feel for the employees losing their employment ,but then again the government is allowing foreign
bussiness to take away canadian jobs
(EG) target is french owned and would not allow the salvation army to solicit with their kettles in the us at christmas. maybe a boycott???
canadiens_8 3/18/2013 4:38:55 PM Report“girlykate 3/18/2013 3:40:33 PM Report
They are putting in a Big Lot's there after they close”
Umm hate to burst your bubble but as of right now NOTHING is going in there. And I know this because I work there. Nice rumour starting tho.
canadiens_8 3/18/2013 4:40:58 PM ReportIts nice to see people that feel bad for us (and I am one) losing our jobs.....but some customers that complain about not getting $2 off an item thats already 60% off and dont seem to care that we are losing our jobs.....those are the people I will not miss.
crashed13 3/18/2013 4:44:55 PM ReportSure Target maybe French owned but do you think there bringing French non Canadian Citizens over from France with no Social Insurance number to Canada to staff the place?
It does not work like that.
Canada does not own General motors or Ford in Oshawa either.
ThinkAgain 3/18/2013 4:49:40 PM ReportWhen your on a fixed income you have to do whats needed to survive. I will miss the store.
Its sad but funny more than 50% of cross boarder shoppers in this town make the big bucks and dont support there own community.
I'm In 3/18/2013 5:33:29 PM ReportBut the CEO's of these big Corps still get their salary and bonuses while the store closes, so I will continue to shop across the river cause like the one poster says we get the crap taxed out of us and I refuse to pay, besides they paid their employees peanuts while they rake in the profits.
Sam C 3/18/2013 6:00:07 PM ReportNot sure where some of you people are getting your information -- or, more accurately, misinformation.
Target is NOT a French company. It is an American company, based in Minneapolis.
Canadian jobs are not being lost. While the head office might be in the US, the stores are here, and they are employing Canadians.
As for shopping in the US, it DOES affect our local economy, but that is NOT the reason that Zellers closed. Hudson's Bay Company -- Canada's oldest business -- is no longer Canadian-owned, and is struggling to keep its flagship "premium" brand afloat. It certainly was not putting sufficient resources into Zellers.
Personally I won't miss Zellers. Although there were some items there that weren't to be found at Walmart, overall it was not a pleasant shopping experience.
Zing 3/18/2013 6:07:24 PM ReportThey are liquidators. They come to town, mark all the prices UP 10 or 15%, then tell you the prices are 10% OFF! Suddenly new/old merchandise arrives, they mark it up high, then give you a discount,
I have been to these liquidation sales before and it's the same story again and again. I know the prices before the liquidation, and after it starts. Specifically, I buy a lot of candy....I know my prices.
I wouldn't go to another liquidation sale unless the owners were running the show.
Go if you want, I ain't goin'.
Tom_Bom 3/18/2013 6:08:28 PM ReportHold the phone... Zellers is still open? :P
All joking aside, Walmart does seem to crush all businesses in it's path. It's the biggest chain store that i'm aware of... and it offers a wider variety at the lowest price possible. Who can compete with that?
I estimate that there will be a few local business's that get run over by the walmart chain. Kelly's grocer closed almost on the day it opened. Kelly's Grocer was far more expensive however so that may have been an improvement.
The benefit? People living downtown have a great place to shop for grocerys, shoes, clothes, household items, and etc, on the cheap. There's just no way anyone can compete with Walmart right now.
Competition between business's does tend to benefit the consumer, as the business's are always trying to 1 up each other. Walmart on the other hand instead of 1 uping business's, tends to just steam roll over them. lol.
But if the fears come to light that Walmart ends up raising their prices, there will be another business with lower prices that will try and 1 up them. So you see, the process continues. That's one of the benefits of capitalism.
PuppyGirl 3/18/2013 6:22:53 PM ReportDidn't Zellers do the same thing to K-mart that Walmart is doing to Zellers now???
Grandz 3/18/2013 6:31:47 PM Report"Zeke" it has nothing to do with jingle in our pockets. the way i look at it is, i work in Canada, my pay cheque is local, my health care is free. All the great things we have in this city\country are provided for through our tax dollars. This being the case i will supporteverything local that i can. From the small local entrepeneur to whatever big box stores that are local. I get it that everyone wants to save a lil money here and there but when Saultites are going there everyday for milk, bread, eggs etc you cant say that, that doesnt hurt the local economy, thus causing job loss, cutbacks, higher taxes... Anyways these are just my thoughts and am sure there are alot of ppl that will disagree. but we are all entitled to our opinions.
ladybug32 3/18/2013 6:32:35 PM ReportZing.....they do not mark the prices up 10 - 15 % you were just getting sales in the sale flyer before liquidation started and there for the prices were lower before hand... There is no way anyone had time to "MARK UP THE PRICES" as our liquidation sale started on the 27th of Dec. and no one was even at the store for 2 days before. Maybe you should get your facts stright before you speak!!!!!!
Stugatzu 3/18/2013 6:58:50 PM ReportKelly's -- that place was ridiculous. Probably the only store in town that gouged customers with $6.00 for 4L milk bags. Heck, even Mac's doesn't charge that much... and we all expect to pay a bit more at a Mac's.
I think they drove themselves out of business with their pricing. People were shopping there out of necessity (it being close to home.. etc), not because they had a choice. The moment a large chain store moved in and offered the same product at a real world price... it became evident that as a business Kelly's was committing suicide.
Working Man 3/18/2013 7:55:00 PM Reportjust a guy, grandz
Yeah, shop at Walmart across the river. That'll solve things.... Lol
I guess it's ok for retailers to be greedy, but how dare the consumers get greedy. Shame on them!! lol... You're funny...
girlykate,
We dont have much for shopping here because nobody buys anything. We have supplies here to the majority of people's demand. That's why we dont' have much of anything here. We have searchmont, which is cool. Club cabana is cool. Oh, and we have wingnuts for all the fat guys who listen to crappy music. lol...
KMF61MCF 3/18/2013 8:02:12 PM ReportAnother Business down. More people out of jobs. As Mr Manzo spoke tonight at the Council Meeting at one time Algoma Steel had over 13,000 employees contributing to paying taxes & the Economy. Today 2,600 Employees. Northern Breweries, St Mary's Paper, Numerous businesses closing.No new Industry HOW are we tax payers going to pay Tax increase? A question was asked why do Police Fire etc always get pay increases. It was answered because the Province controls the increases and the Province will not accept them receiving a 0% increase. Why do City Employees always get a raise was not asked. It was said contracts they are in negotiations with right now will also receive an increase to follow suit with the rest.And there non Union staff will receive the same pay increase as Unionized did. We are all asked to take 0% yet the ones dishing them out will not take a 0% increase in wages and benefits. I think the City needs to get out of owning some business and services that drain tax payers and Privatize them eg Pools, Rinks. As a kid we swam in Creeks, ponds, beaches. Now people need fancy Pools. Now City Hall is going to need money to upgrade there "PA" system AND Asbestos removal. Now if the Asbestos is not disturbed it is no harm. Asbestos is in thousands of older homes. Schools etc if left alone or contained its no danger. I say no to a tax increase find money else where.
BlackHelix 3/18/2013 8:30:50 PM ReportThe fact is that the majority of the places you shop are American owned (YES: Tim Hortons, HBC, !!Zellers!!). Unbeknownst to you because you would rather get on your soap box than learn about what you are actually discussing...it's called Google!
For all of you complaining about people shopping across the river, and how you will buy local and Canadian and stay true to your country, your missing one major fact, most of what your buying is MADE IN CHINA!!!
95% of what Canadian retailers are selling and is in your household is made in China and elsewhere. So if you're going to be high and mighty about 'shopping Canadian' think about all the stuff you buy (even if it is bought at a truly Canadian owned store) made everywhere else but North America.
Walmart - Buys over 10 Billion Dollars a year in good from China.
Roots - Is not entirely made in Canada. It is has production facilities in the USA, South Asia, Asia and South America.
And the list could go on....
I do however feel bad for the Zellers employees who will be out of a job, but it is not a result of whether or not people shop in Canada or the US.
Tom_Bom 3/18/2013 8:33:42 PM ReportI think we have to consider we're approaching living in a post industrial society. Machines do most of the jobs people used to do in many instances.
I think that renewable and green energy is where the next big job boom will be. Or at least, that's where it should be. Put windmills everywhere. As far as the eye can see. Put solar paneling everywhere including on houses. (I know someone who runs his house completely off the grid using solar energy).
My point is we're quickly approaching an almost completely post industrial society so we should be thinking well, what's next? What's the next big innovation that will provide a bunch of jobs?
JustAGuy2 3/18/2013 8:36:14 PM ReportIts not about shopping Canadian , it's about shopping in the community that supports you. GET IT!!!!
This community is going down the tubes and no one seems to give a shit.
FirstChairLastCall 3/18/2013 8:42:50 PM ReportIt's scary that all of these people claiming to save money shopping in the states don't realize the long term impact that is going to bite them in the ass soon...and hard. You are saving money today to pay for it later. Wake up!
Businesses pay taxes including but not limited to property tax. When those businesses close the city loses money. Where do you think the money will come from when that happens?
When you eliminate all competition what does the remaining retailer do? Cash in and raise the prices. It's coming. If you don't realize that that is the end goal of all big box stores you are blind.
When all you have left is big box, nothing is made locally let alone in our country. You think we are losing jobs now, just wait.
Our government is boxing us all in and nobody seems to care or notice.
FirstChairLastCall 3/18/2013 8:46:23 PM ReportTom - there is no next big thing. There is no saviour industry that is going to employ everyone. Don't you get it? You will have ultra rich and ultra poor and nothing more. The government will have ultimate control over everything when we are all broke and have no choices left.
JustAGuy2 3/18/2013 8:51:01 PM ReportFirstChairLastCall
You hit the nail on the head buddy.
Jacknmioff 3/18/2013 9:06:33 PM ReportFirstChairLastCall
You are right! I am all for shopping locally but when all levels of government increase my utilities, gas prices, property tax, car insurance and cost of living etc. I am going to shop where prices are cheaper because all those extra expenses are never going to decrease. With wage freezes and no wage increases how are we going to make ends meet. One has to do what they have to do today not tomorrow becasue tomorrow isn't going to come. Sad to think that way but its true. Everyone wants more money and i have to find away to make more money to survive.
just my 2 cents.
Zing 3/18/2013 9:46:17 PM Reportladybug32
Tell me why I normally pay no more than 0.01 per kilogram, or 4.54.00 per lb. every day of they year until the have a liquidation sale where the price goes up to nearly double the original, then these nice people from Toronto offer me 10% off.
A good friend of mine had his eye on a guitar at the downtown Zeller's, price 115.oo, sale started and the price was suddenly 145.00, with a 10% discount.
I call B.S.
Like I said before, I know my prices, buy a lot, and often.
Shoeless 3/18/2013 10:22:49 PM ReportI will miss Zellers. I have no opinion on where to shop here or across the border, but I do know that a company operating in Canada has to pay Canadian taxes and employs Canadian people regardless of where they import their merchandise from. Liquidation is something new for all of us as in previous store closings the stock and employees where taken over by the new owners (as was the case with the Kmart/Zellers buy out) so the difference in prices are bound to cause some confusion. I hope that a new banner will eventually open in the Sault offering a choice of different merchandise but until then I wish my co workers luck in finding employment and hope I will have the opportunity to serve my many favorite customers in the near future.
irishfey 3/18/2013 10:52:47 PM ReportTo the staff at Zellers, you all will be missed and we are so very sorry for your loss of jobs. Thank you for your friendly service and great prices over the many years.Praying that you all will find employment elsewhere. I have always shopped at Zellers... compared their prices to Wallmart, Shoppers Drug mart etc. I found things so much more reasonable at Zellers. Try buying a gift bag at Wallmart lately?? Like 6.99 for a large bag and 1.25 for the same bag at Dollar Ramma! Same thing for shampoos, vitimans at Shoppers.. half the price at Zellers! Being Candian or not... people will shop where they can afford to,, and if that means going to the States, then so be it! Maby it"s time that Canadian Stores lowered their prices and put higher taxes on imports coming in from China etc. Times are tough for lots of people and i for one will not break my bank account just to be a Canadian shopper! You just gotta do what ya gotta do to take care of your families needs. Things will be getting a whole lot worse in years to come... look at the price of groceries these days... Zellers and Dollar Ramma fed a lot of people that would starve if these stores were not available to them... The problem here is just out and out greed!!!!!
vic-star 3/18/2013 11:48:49 PM Report@ girlykate they are not putting a Big Lots in that location. I know the story says their isnt a definite renter, but I work for a company that renovates stores for Target, and I was told that we are getting a Target.
sledman321 3/19/2013 12:11:19 AM Reportcanadiens_8 3/18/2013 4:38:55 PMReport
Umm hate to burst your bubble but as of right now NOTHING is going in there. And I know this because I work there. Nice rumour starting tho.
not saying the big lots is going to be going to the old zellers location but its definitely not a rumour. before you open your mouth "YOU" should get your facts straight :)
http://www.indeed.ca/viewjob?jk=d1d2a4aa61c9196b&l=Sault+Sainte+Marie,+ON&tk=17m0d9pg2185g4pd&from=web
SM-G 3/19/2013 1:34:48 AM ReportI never was a big Zellers shopper, so personally I will not be affected by it closing. I am sad to her that local people will lose their jobs; I feel their pain and wish them the best. I do often shop across the river. I am a very thrifty person, and refuse to be “taken” by any store choosing to charge me more for any product or service. I work very hard for my money, and do not have the luxury of spending more in the name of supporting local stores that over-charge me! If I have the option of buying the same product or service locally for a competitive price, I am happy to do so; however, that has generally not been my experience. I often find myself choosing to spend my shopping dollars, as well as my dining out and entertainment, in MI, as I am able to get so much more for my hard-earned money. I pay plenty of taxes (of every variety they can come up with) here.
Working Man 3/19/2013 2:50:53 AM Reportfirstchairlastcall,
You're in retail aren't you? I'm sorry to hear that. But, i'm not about to make your store owners rich and lose valuable money in compound interest savings just to increase theirs. That sad story won't work on me. I feel sorry that those big stores pay taxes. That's too bad.. I rarely shop in them anyway. I already purchased lots of towels and pots and pans and i'm not planning on it in a while....
I work in whatever is in demand. Whoever doesn't, tough luck. When the city loses money, people move. When they raise prices too high to live on, people move. Easy... Then those stores will bite themselves in the ass, won't they?
pmcd 3/19/2013 8:07:55 AM Reportsledman321.. maybe you need to get YOUR facts straight.
Liquidation World is Big Lots Canada.
They were bought out a few years ago.
"Big Lots Canada
On July 19, 2011, Big Lots announced that it had purchased Liquidation World Inc., a Canadian closeout retailer with 89 locations. The cost of the acquisition was $20 million in cash and the assumption of certain liabilities. This represents Big Lots first retail venture outside of the US."
And to the dummy who thought Target is French owned.. really? Are you thinking that because it's nickname is TarJay?? LOL
leeant 3/19/2013 8:37:30 AM ReportKelly's in the Mall was owned by RJ's Market in Steelton to the know it all's!!
Moonshiner 3/19/2013 10:20:11 AM ReportJust curious...I wonder how much a Michigan retailer pays per kwh for electricity,and what there taxes are?I can tell everyone first hand ,running any buisness in Ontario has become a brutal nightmare!
kamen 3/19/2013 12:32:26 PM ReportI am really sad to see Zellers go, I hate shoe shopping at Walmart, they don't have anything really good for shoes there, mine always die in a few weeks when I buy from Walmart, I wish we could get a costco, target or giant tiger here. It's true everytime you go across the river you are helping close these stores that we desperatley need. Now Walmart will go on and probably raise their prices, because there is no competition to keep them lower....it just sucks that Kmart and Zellers is gone, I enjoyed both stores and would go into them over Walmart anyday.
Beej 3/19/2013 12:39:58 PM ReportMoonshiner..
There are only two things you can count on in this life.. Death, and being taxed to death by the Canadian government.
canadiens_8 3/19/2013 12:41:09 PM ReportZing....they did NOT jack up their prices. They just went to regular prices and you were used to seeing small sale prices BEFORE it went to liquidation. You say you know your prices but I know them better because I work there.
canadiens_8 3/19/2013 12:46:47 PM ReportBlackHelix...Tim Hortons American owned? Frim wiki "Paul D. House is the Executive Chairman of TDL Group Corporation (Tim Hortons). He was born in Stoney Creek, Ontario.Last time I looked, Stoney Creek Ontario was in Canada.
canadiens_8 3/19/2013 12:51:01 PM Reportirishfey 3/18/2013 10:52:47 PM...thanks for the kind words. I work there and there will be a lot of people we miss too. Its nice to see that some people care about us losing our jobs instead of complaining about stupid things. When people complain that 50% off isnt enough while 100 peopel are losing their jobs....that makes my blood boil. Thanks again for the kind words
canadiens_8 3/19/2013 12:52:34 PM Reportvic-star 3/18/2013 11:48:49 PM Report
Target is NOT coming to the Soo...it was announced in the Sault Star.
canadiens_8 3/19/2013 12:53:54 PM Reportsledman321 3/19/2013 12:11:19 AM Report
I never said that Big lots was NOT coming to the Soo...just not in that location. Dont twist things around
missing33years 3/19/2013 1:54:39 PM ReportI ALSO SHOP ACROSS THE RIVER,MY NEW FJ CRUISER WAS $6889.00 LESS THAN HERE ..SCREW THE GREEDY BUISNESSES ON THIS SIDE OF THE RIVER
mrmarc 3/19/2013 2:21:04 PM ReportI agree with supporting some of the local businesses. I would buy my meat at a local butcher before going and buying it in the states any day.
HOWEVER, some things have gotten out of hand when it comes to mark up. I wanted a picture canvas done last year. Walmart Canada was $150.00 and walmart U.S.A was $70.00. How on earth do you justify an $80.00 markup for a photo canvas?? Exact same one!! I too work damn hard for my money and to save $80.00 I’ll go to Walmart U.S.A any day.
My Father bought a brand new boat in Michigan a few years back and after taxes saved $10,000. $10,000 is a lot of money, enough money to help pay for my kids education fund. I rather that money be in my child’s pocket when in university, than in a local dealers slick pockets. Sorry..
JeffDAMCSSM 3/19/2013 2:45:48 PM ReportWe used to go to Zellers to buy the cases of juices for our sons lunch.(Apple/Fruitpunch).We used to pay 4.99 for the case. Since mid December the price went up to 7.99 !! and now with the so called liquidation. Price is 6.99....How the heck is that a liquidation sale, Canadian retailers at their best trying to screw customers out of their hard earned cash !!. They want to blame it on cross border shopping, well if they offered competitive prices people would not be going across the border !!!
irishfey 3/19/2013 3:17:12 PM Reportcanadiens-8 3/19/2013 12:51:01pm No thanks needed! I worked retail for many years and one thing i have learned that is people care more about the almighty $$$ than they do about the people working at these stores... the aching back, the sore feet, yet all said with a smile and a "" thank you for shopping at Zellers"" [ or whatever store,, i worked at C.T.C.and have had four foot surgerys since i retired]... Yes ..Zellers will be missed, but i wish people would just give a little more thought to the people that have waited on them all these years and now will be out of a job! You can"t fight the big greedy guys, but you can say "" thank you " for the people that stood there at the store for hours on end trying to make your shopping enjoyable and getting paid like " feck all" [ lol.. the Irish word for the one that people like to say so often ,lol]... so if 50% off isn"t good enough for them.. then go to Wallmart!! Keep your chin up ... something else good will come your way!!.. Irish saying.. "a coin in yor sack, nar compare as a friend at yor back"!!
woole44 3/19/2013 3:46:49 PM ReportSo to the people who think big lots is coming to the sault they are the one whom obviously do not not shop around our community or they would know that big lots is already here and has been for almost a year it is our liquidation world if you have ever looked at the price tags in liquidation world you would know that. It is big lots with the same old liquidation world name.
GotRotties 3/19/2013 3:55:01 PM ReportI find it interesting that people are blaming cross border shopping for Zellers closing..I really dont think we lose a lot to that, I have occasionally shopped over there but certainly not enough to warrant store closures...if people really want to change things maybe you should start looking toward the big companies that outsource their jobs to China or India or the Phillipines. Those are some of the companies that are making this city "suck" as one commenter so "eloquently" put it. They raise their prices and spend less for employees...maybe if the companies realized that IF they hired in Canada there would be more people able to shop and buy their products HERE..take Bell Canada for example..one of the biggest offenders...they seem surprised that people want to shop around for alternatives for their cable phone and internet service and when you call them you cannot get anyone that knows what youre talking about and even if they say they do..your problem will not be solved. In a nutshell..maybe the government should start rewarding tax breaks to Canadian companies that hire Canadian EMPLOYEES!! just a thought.
dad 3/19/2013 4:04:19 PM ReportBOTTOM LINE IS POEPLE WILL GO WHERE THE BARGAIN'S ARE,PLUS YOU CAN'T SHOP HERE YOU MIGHT GET ROBBED ON YOUR WAY OUT IT'S NOT SAFE HERE
FirstChairLastCall 3/19/2013 5:51:45 PM ReportWorking Man...
No, not in retail. If I was, why be sorry? If retail ceased to exist how would you buy anything? Who would occupy the majority of buildings in this city? So would hire people? Etc,etc,etc.
A "rich" independent store owner is not the majority. The majority are actually middle class, working hard, supporting their family and giving back to their community. Not sure how or why you think you are lining anyone's pockets by shopping local.
Compound interest savings aren't going to help you when your taxes double and triple as a result of big box and cross border shopping.
People just up and move when things are rough? Not quite. They work more, spend less, downgrade their vehicles and houses, spend the college fund and the kids have to take out loans if they want an education and so on. It's already happening all around you. Open your eyes. So no, not easy and not at all true. Not to mention you can't move away from the big box takeover. It is everywhere.
Add up your savings. Is it worth it when you look at the big picture and domino effect of your decisions? If you say yes, you still don't get it.
Tom_Bom 3/19/2013 8:33:07 PM ReportFirstChairLastCall,
I'm intrigued by what you said about there only being the ultra rich and the ultra poor. Ultimately I think that's what big business is going for, and I whole heartily agree with that statement.
ladybug32 3/19/2013 10:25:14 PM ReportSwagger69
Amost all the employees at the Zellers on northern Ave. have worked there for more then 5 years....some for more then 35 we are proud to work there.... YOU MUST BE ONE OF THOSE CUSTOMERS THAT COMPLAIN ABOUT EVERYTHING, THERE FOR YOU GET RUDE ANSWERS, employees of any place can only take so much from PEOPLE LIKE YOU!!!!!!! and we are working and that does not make us WALFARE BUMS
canadiens_8 3/21/2013 5:28:34 PM ReportTo the person that call Zellers workers Welfare bums or whatever the comment was....you are probably one of those customers that thinks 60% of isnt enough.....do you want the store to PAY YOU to take it? People like you need to keep your lips shut.
canadiens_8 3/21/2013 5:32:14 PM Reportirishfey 3/19/2013 3:17:12
You are right....people care about saving 5 cents and dont seem to realize/care that 100 are going to be jobless. I have been lookingh for fulltime work since LAST MAY and cant find anything and when I see people complain about stupid things? That ticks me off to a level that most dont understand. I try to save when I can too....who doesn't? But I do not drive all around town, wasting gas, just to save $1.00. If what I want I know is at Zellers, and it may be $2.00 more then elsewhere? Then I will take it from there. Sure saving money is nice but when its a matter of "pennies" does it really matter that much? I have always tried to support the smaller business around here.
