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Target

Many retailers in the US have policies of carding everyone for booze and cigarettes. I noticed at Macs there are signs stating that everyone purchasing cigarettes must show ID and there's even a recorded announcement when the clerk scans cigarettes however they use common-sense and don't actually stand there expecting grandma to dig her driver's licence out of her purse before handing her the Peter Jacksons. I have never heard of a retailer asking for ID to purchase an 18+ movie unless it's pornographic. Is it illegal to sell a DVD of a non-pornographic 18+ movie to an underage person in Canada?

Obviously there are differences between the US and Canadian retail marketplace and consumer expectations that Target isn't aware of yet.
 
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To add to that story - a lady I know on Facebook posted a story today that she was asked for ID when she was buying Les Miserables on DVD yesterday and it's PG-13
 
ChesterCopperpot said:
To add to that story - a lady I know on Facebook posted a story today that she was asked for ID when she was buying Les Miserables on DVD yesterday and it's PG-13
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If HMV starts carding me the next time I buy a DVD, I can tell you there will be some 18+ content ...
 
nfitz said:
If HMV starts carding me the next time I buy a DVD, I can tell you there will be some 18+ content ...
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Would that DVD be "TFC:The Early Years 2007-2012" ?
 
The alternative to be "carded" all the time is to censor everything to the point of making everything PG-13 appropriate (which is done in China, notorious for all that censorship). Hate censorship? Get carded instead. I support neither censorship (goes against free expression) nor age restrictions (requires age discrimination), but both are often mutually exclusive. I feel disturbed about children gaining access to inappropriate material as well. It is a fact of life.

Life has its inconveniences. For me, I never get carded in retailers, simply because I do not purchase any age-restricted product or service (not even lottery tickets) (though I do get carded every time I need to update my finances at a post-secondary institution in regards to tuition and student loans and bursaries). I have the Ontario Photo Card for that purpose. Note that I am not a prude.
 
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poor cashier is just doing his/her job. what if the customer was a secret shopper testing the cashier?
 
I have bought DVDs at WalMart and every other big box store and i never had to show ID. I hope this isn't a trend.
 
I went to Target at Sq One today. It had a weird smell. Also, I was disappointed with their selection of Magic: The Gathering products. What little they did have was at a lower price than at Walmart, but still way overpriced compared to the mom and pop stores.
 
doady said:
I went to Target at Sq One today. It had a weird smell. Also, I was disappointed with their selection of Magic: The Gathering products. What little they did have was at a lower price than at Walmart, but still way overpriced compared to the mom and pop stores.
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The smell was the newest of the store.

Had my first look and as suspected, over price, lack of items, store still waiting stock for the shelves and will not be spend $$ or time in this place.

The layout is wear as men stuff wasn't close to any of the other clothing section. No shoes for men or lack of them.

I expect in time, Target will see a drop in shoppers after they start see the difference in price and section.

All I can say I been there now and it live up to my expectation and will not be my store to buy from and will bypass it just like I bypass them in the states.
 
I've been to different Target locations 3 or 4 times since their first Canadian openings and have yet to spend a dime. I felt underwhelmed by their selection and their price points. I was last in one of their stores on a Saturday afternoon and it was pretty quiet, I wonder if they'll be expanding as aggressively in Canada as first thought. I would love if it there was a place where I could buy stylish and inexpensive clothes for myself (mid 30's male) and from what I saw Target certainly doesn't fit the bill.
 
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I'm not surprised by this news. Canadians are getting tired of being over charged for items you can get at the Target's in the states for 20% to 30% less.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/story/2013/08/19/business-target-survey.html

Target failing to impress customers in Canada
Forum Research survey comes after U.S. retailer's launch to fanfare in Canada 5 months ago

U.S. retailer Target is failing to make a good first impression with shoppers in Canada, according to a new survey.

Just five months after launching to fanfare and high expectations, Target has fallen to last place among major retailers in customer satisfaction, according to a Forum Research survey.

Only 27 per cent of Target customers said they were "very satisfied" with their shopping experience, down from 32 per cent in the spring.

"It is interesting to see Target dropping the ball on customer satisfaction after the big entrance they made into the market," said Forum Research president Dr. Lorne Bozinoff.

Costco, a U.S.-based membership-only warehouse club, had the highest customer satisfaction, with 62 per cent of shoppers in the survey saying they were "very satisfied" with their shopping experience.

"Considering that nearly everyone who shops at Costco is satisfied with the store, they are the natural leaders," Bozinoff said.

Target reports its quarterly earnings on Wednesday, and the results from its new Canadian operations will be key to earnings, according to a note from JP Morgan analyst Christopher Horvers.

According to the survey, Target scored a 2.7 customer satisfaction ranking, below Costco's industry-leading 3.5, and an overall average of 3.2.
 
Johnny Au said:
The alternative to be "carded" all the time is to censor everything to the point of making everything PG-13 appropriate.
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I wouldn't go that far. The alternative would be to let people buy whatever they want and leave the policing to parents and not department stores. I don't want or need a department store telling me what is appropriate for me to purchase. This is a U.S. practice that is injecting itself into Canada because Target didn't bother to do any real research on cultural differences. And, it's 14A in Canada. ;o)
 
Yet another glaring example of a foreign elephant coming in only to be confused when the local mice don't take to the cheese as well as they hoped. This is *not* America, as the old David Bowie song goes. Let's hope they get a clue and get it together. I have heard from people that some stores in the GTA have pretty glaring problems with restocking and empty shelves.
 
Target was so overhyped that it couldn't help but fail to impress. At the end of the day, it's a discount department store with slightly more stylish stuff than Zellers used to have (although their menswear doesn't seem to be an improvement at all). Most people, in fact, do not drive religiously down to the States to shop there, but the ones that do will notice the price differential. No surprising it's a letdown for a lot of people. But overtime people will think less about their initial expectations, and more about how it performs for them each visit. For me, their clothing and groceries were dullsville, but their household linens and homewares were interesting (for that type of store). If I ever do buy something there, I might find myself eventually registering a positive opinion if ever asked by a pollster.
 
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