By now we’ve all heard that Target in Canada was, essentially, a pipe-dream – one that sounded great for those with something to gain – and for those consumers looking for the same Target experience they received south of the border. But this was not meant to be, and, as Target formally announced in January, Canada will say goodbye.
When Target announced it would open stores in Canada, this was met with much fanfare – customer loyalty with this retail giant was strong – and Canadians couldn’t wait for the doors to open. So what happened?
Well, customer loyalty is a two-way street, and in this case, Target seemed to be slow on the uptake. After opening 133 stores across Canada, the reviews started to come out and they were less than stellar. One of the biggest problems – empty shelves. Supply chain issues may have been the problem, but when customers were entering the store but being greeted by empty aisles, many chose not to return.
Pricing was also an issue, and customers expecting competitive pricing were sorely disappointed, finding the Canadian version of the chic discount retailer far more expensive. Customer loyalty was also sorely tested last year with the data breach that saw 40 million customers’ information stolen.
But wait – it wasn’t just the regular operations that caused customer loyalty to be tested. Just a few weeks ago, during their “store closing” sales, customers were again treated to some less than expected results. Customers expecting big sales were sorely disappointed when they found the sales were not so much door-crashers as door-whispers: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/02/07/target-canada-liquidation-sale_n_6633616.html.
According to the Huffington Post, people turned up in droves, once again waiting in line for what was supposed to be the deal to end all – only to find that “sale” prices were actually no lower (or, in some cases, higher) than pre-sale, and again customer loyalty was severely strained as people flocked to social media to complain.
As a case study in customer loyalty, the example of the Canadian Target experiment says a great deal. Customers have expectations – based on previous experiences or thanks to standards set by the competition. In order to compete, these expectations need to be met or exceeded. Although Target Canada was a great idea on paper, when it came to implementation, customers’ needs just didn’t seem to be a core concern.
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