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How Will the Retail Industry Handle the Incoming Wave of Returns?

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Retail Insider
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By Shash Anand, VP of Product Strategy at SOTI

The increased adoption of e-commerce by consumers was already well underway before the pandemic accelerated its impact on the retail industry. According to stats from Shopify, there has been a 32% increase in e-commerce sales in North America since the beginning of 2020, and these numbers appear to be rising every day.

But could this surge in online sales actually have a negative impact on retailers and their in-store experience as pandemic restrictions begin to ease?

If history holds true, online purchases tend to have a much higher rate of return – as online purchases have a return rate of 20%-30% versus just 8%-10% for in-store purchases. As customers return to physical store locations, it’s anticipated that they will be coming with their returns in hand.

Are retailers ready to handle this massive influx of returns? Can they support their strained operations with the right policies, backend technologies, and processes? If they can’t, will they risk damaging the customer experience, and by extension, customer loyalty, at this critical moment in time when they open their doors after a punishing series of lockdowns?

Increased returns will come with increased customer expectations

It is important to understand that this is not just a matter of handling increased levels of returns, but meeting expectations consumers have of the returns process and the experience as a whole.

SOTI’s State of Mobility in Retail 2021 Report, found that 63% of consumers are not satisfied with the returns processes by retailers and would like them to be made easier or even automated, while 57% stated they were not satisfied with the returns process for products bought online.

As retailers prepare for the coming waves of returns, they must keep these increased expectations in mind. Failing to do so may seriously damage customer loyalty.

Handling returns with alternative processes

Not all of these alternative methods will work for every organization of course, but if you take a close look at your operations and employ a little trial and error, you should be able to find a method that helps ease the burden on your staff and meet the heightened customer expectations. Some examples of alternative return methods being tested or considered include:

  • Scheduled curbside returns: As opposed to having every customer come into your physical location – which only adds to the congestion and further ties up your staff – many are considering the idea of allowing customers to schedule a curbside return. This not only frees up space in your store but also allows you to assign a single employee to handle returns, working off scheduled blocks of time and streamlining operations.
  • Scheduled returns pickup vehicle: Assigning a returns pickup vehicle to follow scheduled routes to collect customer’s returns from their own homes/curbsides allows customers to schedule a return pickup that works for them and their comfort levels.
  • Trackable, on-demand returns pickup vehicle: While similar to the method above, the major difference is having a trackable returns pickup vehicle so that customers can see when a vehicle is in their area and request a pickup. Such a method is exactly why developing an integrated mobile strategy – along with the technology that allows for a trackable vehicle – is so essential to operating a modern retail outlet that can incorporate the latest innovations in mobile technology.
  • No returns: This could come as a shock to some, but one of the more popular alternative returns method being considered is the concept of no returns at all. Some see the time and money spent to process a return as simply not worth it. Letting customers simply keep unwanted items is in fact more cost effective than processing a return.

Streamlining your returns process with technology

As it stands, a lack of adequate technology is a major issue in the industry. A staggering 98% of T&L professionals surveyed in SOTI’s State of Mobility in T&L 2021 Report said that inadequate technology was the cause of shipping delays in a normal week. Recognizing the issue, 99% of those surveyed stated that they already had plans in place to invest in the technology to improve the speed and efficiency of their operations. Some of the technologies available to retailers and T&L companies include:

  • Trackable RFID tags:The ability to track your products serves many purposes but is particularly useful for many of the alternative returns methods mentioned earlier, like curb-side drop-off. This will allow you pull a staff member onto returns duty when the item arrives, rather than waiting around for any potential delays or leaving the item unattended on the curb.
  • Real-time geolocation:The ability to locate any of your off-site employees or vehicles at any given time is the only way you will be able to utilize some of the alternative returns methods mentioned, such as allowing customers to track your returns pickup vehicle.
  • An integrated mobile strategy:Being able to manage your entire network of mobile devices boils down to two main factors: visibility and integration. Without both of these factors being managed and succeeding, you will cause far more problems than you can solve with the use of the many innovative technologies available on the market today.
Shash Anand

For the retailers looking ahead and preparing for the incoming waves of returns, this is a true opportunity to streamline and improve their operations now and over the long-term through a combination of policy changes and the implementation of technology. While a failure to do so could damage customer loyalty, success in this area will provide invaluable gains to retailers looking to drive innovation in the industry, and set them up to succeed far into the future.

Related Retail Insider Articles:




Canadian Retail News From Around The Web For August 18th, 2021

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Retail Insider
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Canadian Retail News From Around The Web

Top Stories: National

Central/Eastern Canada News

Western Canada News

Brief: Richemont Expanding Cartier in Canada, The Webster Chooses Facade Colour for 1st Canadian Store

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Retail Insider
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The Webster Chooses a Facade Colour for its First Canadian Store in Toronto’s Yorkville Area 

The Webster in Yorkville (August 2021) Photo by Craig Patterson

Miami-based multi-brand retailer to open this fall.

Read More about the new Yorkville addition

Richemont Making Substantial Investments in Canada with Cartier Renovations and a New Store

Cartier in The Colonnade – Image by Craig Patterson

French conglomerate invests in luxury jewellery brand for Canadian market.

Read More about Cartier’s plans

Melanie Auld Jewelry Expanding to Toronto’s Ossington Avenue

Melanie Auld in Ossington – Photo by Dustin Fuhs

Vancouver-based jewelry brand planning first store outside of BC.

Read More about the new Ossington location

H&M Canada Pilots Resell Program

Image: H&M Rewear

Swedish-based fast fashion retailer H&M will be debuting H&M Rewear, a first-to-market initiative from the Canadian division.

Read More about H&M Rewear

Sleep Fitness Concept ‘Eight Sleep’ Launches in Canada

The Miami-based company is introducing its Eight Sleep Pod, Pod Pro Cover and Pod Pro to the Canadian market. 

Read More about Eight Sleep

1Related Retail Insider Articles

H&M Canada Pilots Resell Program

By
Dustin Fuhs
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Image: H&M Rewear

Swedish-based fast fashion retailer H&M will be debuting H&M Rewear, a first-to-market initiative from the Canadian division.

Frédéric Tavoukdjian

Launching on September 7th, H&M Rewear will give consumers a location to buy and sell any piece of clothing from any brand.

“We felt it was important to be inclusive of all brands in Canada rather than just limiting this platform for H&M products. We want to provide a destination for Canadians to become active participants in circularity and find new homes for garments from any brand in their closet. As this is a Canadian initiative, H&M Canada will be the first market to launch Rewear,” said Frédéric Tavoukdjian, Country Manager of H&M Canada.

The platform will be a business model for creating a sustainable market, focusing on the re-circulation of garments. Upcycling and repurposing will continue to be a consumer trend coming out of a pandemic that halted many in-store experiences.

H&M Rewear
Géraldine Maunier-Rossi

“Although we offer garment collecting in our stores, we felt it was important to find a second way for our customers to recycle their clothing,” said Géraldine Maunier-Rossi, Head of Marketing for H&M Canada.

“With H&M Rewear, we are not only offering a place for Canadians to recycle and reuse products, but we are giving them a platform to become active participants in circularity and give a second life to their favourite styles.”

The company has shared details on the platform. H&M Canada will be providing its sellers two ways of receiving payment, including direct deposit or receiving an H&M Gift Card. This feature will add a 20% value, which can be redeemed online or in store.

The C2C platform is powered by London-based Reflaunt, a Resale-as-a-Service (RaaS) technology company.

Retail Insider will be following this initiative, as it has market potential for other retailers in the space.

J2 Retail Management Pivots to Full-Service Client Consultancy

By
Mario Toneguzzi
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J2 Retail Management
Image: J2 Retail Management

A unique retail venture has pivoted to become a one-stop shop to provide easy and efficient end-to-end solutions for the retail industry.

J2 Retail Management is a privately held comprehensive retail service organization that partners with brands to envision, create and execute brand strategies. It coordinates all elements in a business to create and strengthen the brand experience to maximize sales revenue and enrich the customer experience.

Image: Jodie Wolfe

The well-established company, which is based in Toronto, is headed by retail industry veterans Jodie Wolfe and Brian Le Saux. The company’s service offerings include logistics and supply chain management, merchandising, e-commerce, and visual media. It operates several warehouse spaces in the Toronto area with plans for further expansion.

Jodie Wolfe, CEO/President, says J2 Retail Management obsesses over the details so businesses don’t have to. She said that the company is helping service clients across North America.

“We are unique in terms of what we do for clients. Companies similar to ours do not typically offer the breadth of services that J2 offers it clients,” she says.

Image: J2 Retail Management
Image: Brian Le Saux

Brian Le Saux, Vice President, says, “essentially we take care of end-to-end retail solutions. Prior to COVID, we were known as a merchandising company only for upscale apparel goods. Now we’ve transitioned to transportation and distribution to wholesalers and retailers. Our warehouse facilities allow us to handle picking and packing prior to shipping the goods.”

“We also take care of marketing activities for our clients. That includes in-store displays and digital or regular print advertising. We take care of everything in terms of an end-to-end service. Clients appreciate that we are a singular point of contact which reduce some of their overhead costs and maximizes their profits.”

Le Saux says shortly prior to COVID, J2 clients were saying that they wanted a one-stop shop with everything under one roof.

“Organically we grew into all of the other divisions that we now have. We never set out to be in the warehousing business or in the print business. Today we can offer a wide range of services to our clients across the continent.”

Image: J2 Retail Management

Wolfe is an accomplished retail leader in the apparel industry with more than 20 years of experience in visual merchandising, window display, execution sets and brand product launches throughout North America.

Her experience includes being a Visual Merchandising Manager in Canada for Calvin Klein Retail; an executive position as Director of Visual Presentation where she led and executed visual standards for all CMT brands with general managers and store teams; led marketing teams with retailers Urban Behavior and Costa Blanca; and freelance merchandising expert working for several successful apparel brands.

Le Saux is a seasoned operator with over 15 years of experience in the retail industry, working with organizations to increase their brand consistency, customer experience and operational controls.

His experience includes being Retail Operations Director for Jaytex Group; Area Operations Manager/Training and Development Manager for PVH – Calvin Klein Canada; and Regional Sales Manager – Esprit Canada Retail.

Wolfe said, “We provided an elevated experience and have evolved to offer even more as the pandemic took hold. Now our full-service offerings are being sought out by brands looking to continue expanding as shoppers come back into stores and we see more consumer confidence. We expect the business to continue to grow as brands again target consumers in stores and online.”

*Partner content. To work with Retail Insider, contact craig@retail-insider.com

Pandemic to Cause Largest Increase in Grocery Prices in Canadian History: Sylvain Charlebois

By
Sylvain Charlebois
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St. Lawrence Market - Photo by Dustin Fuhs

The ballot booth question will likely differ depending on what you really care about. But since everyone eats and most try to manage a limited food budget, the most important electoral issue will likely be inflation. Or at least it should be. Everything is costing more, including food. And the worst is yet to come, especially if the Delta variant ruins it for many of us this fall. By December, the average household will have to pay 5% more for their groceries, or about $700 over the course of a year. In dollars, this is the largest increase in history. But it could be even higher in 2022.

With climate change as was evident this summer, the situation will be increasingly unpredictable and chaotic for agri-food businesses, from farm to fork. But COVID has had its say in the operability of the chains and the costs businesses must bear to make sure we have enough to buy at grocery stores and restaurants.

Due to COVID, global supply and demand for almost everything is completely distorted. Demand is very strong for several products, including food. There is even pent-up demand that puts enormous strain on supply chains. Every sector is fighting to get more cargo space. Some economies are recovering much faster than others, which makes predictability of logistics a nightmare right now. Sanitary measures everywhere are causing the chain to operate a little more slowly, while seeing its costs increase.

The maritime transport industry has been one of the sectors most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, and this will have long-term consequences. Freight rates have increased by over 200% on average over the past year. A world economy that is completely at odds between Asia and America means that there is a shortage of containers and ships. Since January, around 170 new high-capacity freighters have been ordered by various logistics companies. But these ships will be delivered starting in 2023, not before. In other words, most do not expect the problem to be resolved until then.

The food chain is trying to be kind to consumers by absorbing some of the costs caused by expensive transportation. But by fall or winter 2022, retailers and restaurateurs will have no choice but to adjust their prices — upwards, of course.

Woman grocery shops with face mask on during COVID-19 pandemic.
Woman grocery shops with face mask on during COVID-19 pandemic.

But many federal policies are not helping and will continue to contribute to the problem of food inflation. Subsidized unemployment benefits which contribute to a shortage of workers of all ages, not just young people, means that employers must pay much more for labour costs to get people back to work. Higher wages are certainly desirable, but there are hardly any incentives to encourage work or retraining, especially among those 55 and over, where the level of employment has fallen the most in a year. All of this will eventually catch up to consumers. If consumers have not noticed higher food prices yet, they will soon.

Since 2019, for the agri-food sector, the Trudeau government has shown extreme generosity and said yes to almost everything – the food waste program, compensation for our farmers, financial support for food processing, and food safety. And if we add the programs created to mitigate the effects of the pandemic such as the Canadian seafood stabilization fund, the emergency processing fund, the emergency food security fund, the recovery program food surpluses and the Nutrition North Canada program, the sums are simply colossal. All these programs exceed $2.5 billion. That’s $65 per Canadian. Our Canadian industry is in dire need of financial support, but by saying yes to everything, the Trudeau government is still offering us a policy without a vision, without clear priorities. Decisions often lead to inconsistencies among different sectors, different markets and especially among provinces. Tackling interprovincial trade barriers would be a good place to start.

Of course, the pandemic is not solely responsible for higher food inflation. There are also other multiple factors. The Western world is grappling with an inflationary situation that could hurt many of us. So, Canada is not alone. But the arch-generosity of Justin Trudeau’s Liberals has reached an extremely dangerous threshold. With these monies, the hyperstimulation of demand causes prices to inflate at an unsustainable rate, and food is not immune to this.

The Canadian reality is that the average individual pays more in taxes than for food, clothing, and housing or mortgage, combined. Taxation in our lives is of the utmost importance. While taxes may not go up for many of us, the cost of living will, and the future cost of food needs to be addressed in this campaign. Otherwise, even if our candidates running for office hammer home the message that taxes will not increase, food inflation or the hidden regressive “COVID tax” if you will, is an issue for people who are struggling financially.

Pandemic ‘Fourth Wave’ Would be Devastating to Retailers and Businesses in Canada Trying to Come Back from a Year and a Half of Restrictions: Experts

By
Mario Toneguzzi
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Rosedale BIA Supporting Local
Rosedale BIA Supporting Local - Photo by Dustin Fuhs

A potential ‘fourth wave’ of the COVID-19 pandemic would be devastating and lead to many business closures across the country, particularly for businesses that have been hanging by a thread through the economic turmoil of the past year and a half.

According to a recent survey by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, more than 80 per cent of small businesses have not fully recovered from the pandemic with that share rising above 90 per cent for hard hit sectors like arts and recreation (95 per cent) and hospitality (96 per cent). And businesses that have not recovered say it will take them an average of 23 months to get back to normal.

Corinne Pohlmann

Corinne Pohlmann, Senior Vice-President, National Affairs and Partnerships for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said another shutdown in the country would be “pretty devastating.”

“Many of them are finally feeling a bit more certainty with consumers walking through the door but they still have lots of debt to pay off. They’re still not back to normal sales. There’s only about 35 per cent that are back to normal revenue. So many of them are still struggling and are very much reliant on the wage subsidy and the rent subsidy that have been available through the course of the last six months but are now starting to go down and eventually will disappear,” she said.

“A fourth wave is not welcome at all. We’re trying to pressure governments to think about how do we stay open even if things start getting worse again. What can we do? We have more tools in our toolbox that we can work with whether it’s rapid testing, vaccinations, other tools, we know about mask wearing, and other things that can be done in order to sort of minimize the need to actually go into full lockdown because that would probably kill even more companies because of just not having been able to make revenues. They need to be able to be sustainable for more than just two or three months at a time. They need to be able to stay open a lot longer than that.”

Several months ago the CFIB asked business owners if they were actively considering shutting down their business. At the time, about one in six to one in seven said they were.

James Rilett, Restaurants Canada Vice President, Central Canada, said he doesn’t think we’ve seen the full impact of the third wave yet.

James Rilett (Photo Restaurants Canada)

“As people are getting reopened, they’re just trying to get their heads around whether to continue on in business. But I think a fourth wave would be the last push on many of them. But I don’t think the impact will be as stark because we’ve already seen that for a lot of businesses. There’s less people around to start with,” he said. “But hopefully governments will find ways of keeping people open to greater levels than before.

“With things like vaccine passports that some of the provinces are putting in, that seems to be a good concession to full closure.”

The economic impact of a fourth wave would be difficult for many businesses but Rilett said there’s also the emotional impact to consider.

“Do I want to go through this again? Do I have it in me to do this a fourth time? Ad infinitum. Will it ever end? That will come into play too. A lot of people have just had it with trying to stay open.”

A fourth wave would be bad for any business in Canada but those ventures in the hospitality industry would hurt the most.

“We estimate even when we get fully reopened it’s 12 to 18 months before we’re back to profitability. For many they just won’t want to continue on and restart that clock again. How many would be able to make it through that extended period before they can start to get some money in and start getting that debt down?,” he asked.

Michelle Wasylyshen, spokesperson for the Retail Council of Canada, said a possible fourth wave would be bad for retailers across the country.

Michelle Wasylyshen

“The most important thing to retailers is that they definitely not be shut down again if case counts continue to rise in the fall. That is what we’re saying is the most important thing. It’s difficult to fathom that one would be supportive of another round of lockdowns. We would certainly hope that any province would limit any future restrictions to places where transmission is occurring and that there would not be one set of rules for all environments,” she said.

“The reason why we say that is because we have tracked the governments’ own data and daily case counts have consistently shown that COVID transmissions arise primarily from social interactions, some workplace, but not from brief economic activities such as you find in retail settings. What we want is to ensure that there are no further shutdowns, no further blanket approaches, because in our opinion that would result in unnecessary economic damage, job loss and business closure, without the improvement of any health outcomes.

“It’s going to take a long time for Ontario’s businesses or Canadian businesses across the country to recover from these government mandated lockdowns . . . The sooner retailers have stability the sooner they can start seeing real progress in making up for those (lost) revenues.”

Bruce Winder, author of RETAIL Before, During & After COVID-19 and President of Bruce Winder Retail, said Canada faces a potential fourth wave as the Delta variant takes hold across the world. Will governments impose another shutdown or leverage a vaccine passport system to control the spread?

Bruce Winder

“The appetite for the economy to close is small as elections are on the horizon and voters are fed up with this way of living. The key will be whether the fourth wave can be managed within existing health care infrastructure and how many more Canadians will opt in for immunization,” said Winder. “Another lockdown would be devastating for many small to medium sized Canadian retailers and other businesses as they swim in debt and face changing consumer purchasing habits that challenge legacy business models and legacy profitability.

“Although government subsidies have been extended, there is only so much more that small to medium sized businesses can absorb before shutting down permanently. Many have enormously high debt to equity ratios and face a steep climb paying back loans in the future.

“Another issue that these companies face is changing shopping habits from customers. E-commerce has become a significant distribution channel as pandemic inspired online shopping has remained strong. This means that retailers don’t need as many stores and the stores that remain will change. Many small to medium sized retailers do not have the room on their balance sheet to borrow capital to change their operations – whether that be for renovations or other capex initiatives.”

Winder said  businesses of all sizes face enormous supply chain challenges and cost pressure due to a perfect storm of material cost increases and logistics congestion/cost increases across the board.

“One saving grace is the ease with which small to medium sized businesses can get online. With firms such as Shopify, Lightspeed Commerce and Amazon, it has never been easier for companies to take advantage of ecommerce’s growth. Small to medium sized retailers need to integrate bricks and clicks capabilities to try and weather the storm. E-commerce represents another lifeline to help business stave off bankruptcy,” he said.

“As we appear to enter a fourth wave, albeit smaller in magnitude, I hope that Canada can avoid another shutdown. I know it is controversial for me to say so, but I personally hope more people get vaccinated to protect not only themselves but others too and our fragile economy.  We may see vaccine passports utilized in more provinces as an alternative to another shutdown. I would prefer that option.”

Michael Kehoe

Michael Kehoe, broker/owner of Fairfield Commercial Real Estate, said a potential fourth wave of COVID 19 or its variants could lead to government mandated further restrictions on shopping and dining venues.

“It would be different for each province and region depending on the severity of the future infections if any. Many Canadians and especially small business owners are fearful that their freedoms can be taken away by various levels of government. This is affecting business confidence and stunting new business ventures that absorb vacant commercial space and drive employment,” he said.

“The threat of a resurgent lockdown will always be with us unfortunately, but will consumers and business owners put up with it given the high level of vaccination rates in Canada? I hope that we are open for good across the country without restrictions but as long as some provinces unnecessarily remain in the grips of fear that may not be the case. We need to accept that COVID is as endemic as influenza and let business look after business.”

The Webster Chooses a Facade Colour for its First Canadian Store in Toronto’s Yorkville Area 

By
Craig Patterson
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The Webster in Yorkville (August 2021) Photo by Craig Patterson

Miami-based multi-brand luxury retailer The Webster will open its first Canadian storefront this fall at 121 Scollard Street in Toronto. Many wondered what colour the store’s facade would become after an overhaul of the historic townhouses on the site which until recently were sandblasted back to its natural brick. 

For months, construction workers weren’t even sure what colour the store’s exterior would ultimately be and it’s now been revealed — the store’s facade will be pink, similar to several other locations for the retailer in the United States. The other contender for the exterior was the colour gold according to multiple sources. 

The pink facade at The Webster will complement another retailer nearby — fashion guru Nicholas Mellamphy operates his by-invitation showroom Cabine nearby on Hazeton Avenue which features a pink doorway. 

The Webster’s Toronto store will span about 6,500 square feet in a building that was built in 1884 by Leeds Sheppard and it will be preserved and designed by Stéphane Parmentier, a Parisian interior designer who is also the creative director of The Webster Home vertical. The Scollard Street store will be The Webster’s eighth retail store and the brand’s first outside of the United States.

Rendering of The Webster Facade in Yorkville. Rendering: The Webster
Rendering of The Webster Facade in Yorkville. Rendering: The Webster

First Capital REIT owns the 121 Scollard Street building which is currently undergoing a renovation to house The Webster.

The Webster boasts a unique assortment of luxury brands and products not found elsewhere. Founder Laure Heriard Dubreuil for years developed relationships with key brands and obtains some merchandise via consignment. Prior to founding The Webster, Ms. Heriard Dubreuil lived in Paris and worked as a top merchandiser for Balenciaga and Yves Saint Laurent.

The Webster was founded in 2009 by Heriard Dubreuil when she opened a 20,000-square-foot store in the former Webster Hotel at 1220 Collins Avenue in South Beach, Miami. The Art Deco building spanned three floors and became a draw for locals and tourists. Rather than organize the store according to brand, Heriard Dubreuil merchandised it as if it were a personal wardrobe by mixing big brands with the emerging, arranging everything intuitively by mood, which was revolutionary at the time.

A decade after opening the first location, The Webster opened stores in Bal Harbour (Bal Harbour Shops) near Miami, in Houston Texas (adjacent to Houston Galleria) , at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa California, in New York City’s SoHo area, in Los Angeles at the Beverly Center, and most recently in Montecito California. The Webster also has an outlet store at Sawgrass Mills in Florida. Each store has its own personality.

We’ll follow up this article when the store opens this fall. 

The Webster in Yorkville (August 2021) Photo by Dustin Fuhs
The Webster in Yorkville (August 2021) Photo by Dustin Fuhs
The Webster in Yorkville (August 2021) Photo by Dustin Fuhs
The Webster in Yorkville (August 2021) Photo by Dustin Fuhs

Canadian Retail News From Around The Web For August 17th, 2021

By
Retail Insider
-
Canadian Retail News From Around The Web

Top Stories: National

Central/Eastern Canada News

Western Canada News

25 Years Since the Closure of Consumers Distributing Stores [Retrospective]

By
Craig Patterson
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Photo: Richmond Hill/GTA - Then and Now via Facebook

This month marks the 25th anniversary of the bankruptcy of catalogue-based Canadian retail chain Consumers Distributing — the reminder was announced on the weekend in Halifax ReTales. Consumers Distributing had stores in all provinces in Canada and for years was a part of Canadian retail history. 

The main product focus of Consumers Distributing was jewellery, appliances, kitchenware, toys, personal care, discount furniture, electronics and seasonal goods. Stores were laid out in a series of glass cabinets that displayed merchandise. Customers would select their products from catalogues located throughout the store, filling out a request form for the item they desired. This form was given to a store clerk and processed for fulfilment, with the goods stored in non-public space in a warehouse system stock area behind the counters.

Two main catalogues launched yearly with seasonal mini-catalogues issued more frequently to highlight various items. The entire line changed twice a year and new items were introduced only with a new catalogue. Specialty lines such as batteries, film and some jewellery lines on counter racks were not found in the catalogue. Photo processing was a service available in many stores.

Those who remember the retailer may realize its potential today as a business model — if it had maintained operations and innovated, it could have been what Amazon is for retail today. The business model of Consumers Distributing has been described as “Internet shopping before the Internet”.

At the height of its success, Consumers Distributing had 243 stores in Canada and 217 in the United States. The chain was founded in 1957 by Jack Stupp and Sydney Druckman in Toronto and the company was taken public in 1969. In 1988, the chain’s revenues surpassed $1 billion annually. Despite its success, customers often complained of products being out of stock which led to a concept called the ‘Flashboard’ which was a steel bulletin board with magnetic catalogue numbers for out of stock items.

In the 1980s the retailer launched a chain of toy stores called Toy City (Toyville in Quebec) and in 1990 stores became Toy City/Consumers Distributing before being shuttered in the mid 90s. Quebec-based grocer Provigo bought Consumers Distributing in 1987 and it was sold in 1993 to a Belgian holding company. 

Stocking issues remained a problem for the retailer into the 1990s when it undertook several initiatives to dispel its out-of-stock perception. That included launching ‘super stores’ that had all of the in-stock products on display, as well as free home delivery or store to store transfer for items that were not in stock. Consumers Distributing also implemented a state-of-the-art inventory system that could check the availability of other stores in real time, and would suggest alternate products at the store which were in stock.

The retailer was one of the first in Canada to implement the real-time stock checking and prepayment for products available at other branches and the main warehouse. These initiatives, including the superstore expansion, free delivery, and costly new inventory management software led to the company being overextended financially.

High operating expenses along with increasing competition and changing retailing trends (such as warehouse format stores) contributed to the chains demise. Other issues contributing to this was deflation in several product categories including jewellery and electronics as well a lingering recession and the expansion of Walmart into Canada all contributed to the company’s bankruptcy in 1996. 

In 2006, former Consumers Distributing employee Marc King relaunched the company as an online retailer until 2013 when it was shuttered amid controversy — King was accused of owing back wages to employees. In May 2015, the company was issued a compliance order by Consumer Protection B.C. for deceptive acts and practices and for failing to issue refunds.

Interesting, retailer Argos, modelled on the Consumers Distributing format, continues to succeed in Ireland and the UK. And interestingly as well, there is still a Consumers Distributing website selling goods with a Canadian office in Montreal and a US office in Florida.

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