Target Symbol

Oh, Target. I had such big hopes for you. I’ve worshipped you from afar, spent countless hours drooling over your bounty and have occasionally, ravaged your stock and dragged it home by its hair. So when you came, guns blazing, into my territory, I was excited and nervous.

Would you live up to my high expectations? Would you be able to offer the same lovely, mass-produced goods at affordable prices? Most importantly, would I still be able to kit my kid out in cute outfits for under a twenty?

Baby blankets

I’m a sucker for pink. And packaging.

The answer is both yes and no. We’d been warned to not expect pricing parity by Target execs, but that doesn’t take the sting away. Walking into the store I was delighted to see The One Spot.

Target's One Spot

But $3 compared to $1 specials in the US!

But the excitement quickly faded when I noticed all items were $3. I understand the need to take currency fluctuations into account, but we know darn well One Spot items are only a buck a pop south of the border. Even adding in the shipping and taxes doesn’t justify this kind of a price increase in my books.

How Target Hit the Mark

Grey Throw Cushions

Cute details…

  • It’s always refreshing to find new lines and The Nate Berkus Collection was pretty cute. Love that studded pillow.
  • Target is tops at merchandizing. The store, is light, bright and clean. Shopping there doesn’t feel gross like it does at other discount department stores. Wandering through their aisles (the ones that are stocked) felt quite pleasant.
  • Packaged goods – the kind chock-full of high fructose corn syrup was attractively priced (go figure), as was cereal. If you need to stock up on trans-fat snacks, consider this your Mecca.

How Target missed the bull’s eye in Canada

Empty Store Aisle

So empty!

  • Lots of shelves were either cleaned out by zealous shoppers or perhaps the store hasn’t received all their stock yet.
  • The toy section wasn’t that large, which might disappoint some, however, I was pleased to see several educational toys dotting the shelves.
  • There’s far too many rubberneckers getting in the way of serious shoppers. But don’t worry, soon they’ll go back to Walmart.
  • I expected to see more product selection, especially in the food aisles. I was really hankering for some authentic Mexican and the Giada De Laurentiis line, but nada.

As much as I once longed for Target in Canada, I now wish it wasn’t here. What I really want is US Target in Canada – their products, their pricing. But the biggest bummer? Now everybody’s going to know exactly where I get Eve’s cute frocks and how much I pay for them.

Have you been to Target yet? What do you think of this new department store in Canada?