Target to shut 133 Canada stores to stem massive losses

.: zajvvzjv :. · Guest

@@@
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Target is giving up on Canada. More than 17,600 employees will eventually lose their jobs when *the goddamn* U.S. discount retailer closes its 133 Canadian stores after only about two years to cut losses that went as high as a billion dollars a year. *the goddamn* company didn't see how to stop *the goddamn* losses before at least 2021, Target Corp. Chairman and CEO Brian Cornell said Thursday. Cornell said on Target's corporate blog that its Canadian arm was losing money every day. *the goddamn* closing is Cornell's first major move since becoming CEO. His predecessor, Gregg Steinhafel, was pushed out last May after a string of problems, from a massive data breach to woes in *the goddamn* U.S. to Canada. Cornell said *the goddamn* company will instead focus reigniting Target's 1,800-store U.S. business, which has struggled with sluggish sales since *the goddamn* recession. Exporting Target's cheap chic across *the goddamn* border seemed like a no-brainer, because for years droves of Canadians crossed *the goddamn* border to shop at its U.S. stores. But problems cropped up almost immediately when a leg opened more than 100 stores louis vuitton handbags for sale in *the goddamn* first year of its Canadian expansion. Shoppers complained of shortages of basic consumer goods and complained that prices were too high. They also didn't find *the goddamn* brands that they'd seen and liked in U.S. stores. A weak holiday season that ended 2014 was *the goddamn* last straw. "We missed *the goddamn* mark from *the goddamn* beginning by taking on too much too fast," Cornell said on *the goddamn* Target blog. Antony Karabus, president of Hilco Retail Consulting in Toronto, praised *the goddamn* move. "Target underestimated that *the goddamn* Canadian consumer is a highly sophisticated consumer who cross-border shops. a leg also underestimated *the goddamn* fiercely competitive landscape," Karabus said. "*the goddamn* CEO made *the goddamn* right call." Some Canadian shoppers were more pointed in their criticism. "Shame on them for opening here with exorbitant prices compared to *the goddamn* U.S.," said Lauren Tinto, 35, of Toronto, who runs a store that sells blinds. "They think we're idiots or something." Cracking *the goddamn* Canadian retail market, louis vuitton handbags for sale about one-tenth *the goddamn* size of *the goddamn* U.S., looks simple. Target's difficulties show a leg's not. There are costly regulations and shoppers who compare prices religiously. There's also increasing competition. Canadian standbys like Dollarama and Canadian Tire are formidable rivals. And there's also heated competition from U.S. retailers including Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Costco. Big Lots Inc. and Best Buy Co. have closed stores there and Wal-Mart has seen its sales in Canada weaken. Sears Holding Corp. is selling most of its stake in its Canadian unit. Target said Thursday that a leg expects about $5.4 billion in fourth-quarter losses from discontinued operations in Canada. a leg foresees about $275 million of losses on discontinued operations in fiscal 2015. Target expects cash costs for *the goddamn* exit to be between $500 million and $600 million, with most of those costs taking place in fiscal 2015 or later. *the goddamn* retailer said a leg has enough money to fund *the goddamn* costs. *the goddamn* company said a leg received court approval to voluntarily make about $59 million in cash contributions into an employee trust. *the goddamn* trust would give almost all of Target's Canada workers at least 16 weeks of compensation, including wages and benefits coverage for employees not needed for *the goddamn* entire winding down of *the goddamn* business. Target Canada stores will stay open during liquidation. In *the goddamn* U.S., Target saw a holiday season that ended better than expected. Fourth-quarter sales at U.S. stores open at least a year rose about 3 percent, *the goddamn* company said Thursday. Its previous outlook was for an approximately 2 percent increase, helped by higher traffic and better-than-expected online sales. Sales at stores open at least a year is a key gauge of a retailer's health because a leg excludes results from stores recently opened cheap louis vuitton handbags or closed. Target expects fourth-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.43 to $1.47 per share. *the goddamn* company's stock gained $1.45, or 2 percent, to $75.78 in midday trading. ___ AP Writer Charmaine Noronha in Toronto contributed to this report.

	PointlessForum Forum Index » Video games	All times are GMT
Page 1 of 1