Canadian Tire has been in Yorkton for a number of years, but the chain has gone through a major change this year. The store has moved into the Parkland Mall, and celebrated the recent move with a grand opening event.
The most obvious change is in size. David Dungey, owner of the new location, says that it is three times the size of the previous store. The previous location was seriously undersized, Dungey admits, and the increased size of the new location is something that Yorkton needed.
"It's actually the third biggest store in Saskatchewan now," Dungey says.
The store has been open for a couple weeks, and Dungey says that it has been busy ever since the doors opened on the first day. According to the numbers there have been record-breaking sales, and customers have been impressed by the new location and how much easier it is to shop now that there is so much more space.
"The other thing they say is that they never thought that Yorkton would have a store like this, that it's like being in a big city," Dungey adds.
The space began its transformation from the old Zellers location into the new Canadian Tire in August of last year, and the owner says it was a major project to get the location ready.
"It's such a project from a construction standpoint and a retail sales standpoint. We actually took it from a bare shell to the finished product in eight weeks."
One point of pride is the new outdoor hunting and fishing pro shop, which now includes firearms. Dungey says that with hunting being a major activity in the area the new section is in response to what people enjoy. He also says that even compared to other Canadian Tire locations in the province, Yorkton's outdoor area was given greater space, because outdoor activities are key to the market. To demonstrate how much extra room there was to work with in the new location, Dungey notes that the outdoor area is half the size of the entire old store.
He concludes by saying he hopes people in the area enjoy shopping at the new location and browsing the multitude of new products that can now be offered in the city.
