New Cambie Street location customized for neighbourhood’s condo dwellers
Wendy McLellan
Province
CREDIT: Gerry Kahrmann, The Province Ross Saito’s new Canadian Tire store is designed for downtown urban shoppers.
Take just a few steps into the brand-new Canadian Tire store on Cambie Street in Vancouver and it’s clear that something is different.
The place is huge, bright and bursting with merchandise.
But instead of shelves full of automotive parts and perplexing fix-it gadgets, there’s high-end kitchen equipment and hardwood floors.
There are leather sofas in the paint department, upscale bathroom displays and, in the automotive-service department, the waiting room has slate floors, plasma TVs and a wireless Internet connection, not to mention the complimentary shuttle service and free (alcohol-free) wet bar.
“You can still get all the tools and stuff, but it’s not front and centre,” said Ross Saito, owner of the new store which officially opens today.
“Here, you walk in the doors and see home decor — the tools are the last thing you see.”
The store is designed for a different market than the typical Canadian Tire, said Saito, who has eight Canadian Tire franchises in the Lower Mainland. Surrounded by False Creek condominiums and just across the bridge from Yaletown, it was designed with urban dwellers in mind — especially those with a taste for some of the finer brands.
The 63,000-square-foot store still sells the usual range of camping supplies, motor oil and drill bits, but it also has new home decor “boutiques” with items for every room in the house, including the patio.
“This is very unique for a Canadian Tire — it’s the only one in the country,” Saito said. “With our city location, we tried to change the design to cater to our customers in the area. It’s really more like a department store.”
The new store was a $10-million investment for Saito, who owned the traditional style store that was bulldozed nearly two years ago to make way for the new model.
“It’s a gamble, but I don’t think it’s a big one,” he said. “I know the demand from the old store — and there’s no Home Depot or Wal-Mart next door.”
Canadian Tire has been replacing or renovating its older-style stores across the country with a more modern look as part of its five-year strategic plan, said Mark Foote, president of company’s retail division.
The new design, called Concept 20/20, includes a different layout, more products in several categories and an expanded assortment of items, including home-office supplies and greeting cards.
Skylights, wood finishes on interior fixtures, and big-screen displays are aimed at giving the customer a warmer, department-store shopping experience.
Saito’s Cambie Street store takes the new style a step further by customizing the design for people who live in the heart of the city.
“This flagship store in Vancouver is unlike any other Canadian Tire store and is a great example of how we used a strategic and innovative design to offer our customers in the urban market an outstanding and completely unique shopping experience,” Foote said.
© The Vancouver Province 2005
