Swift Current’s Canadian Tire unveils refit project
The Swift Current Canadian Tire location was a hub of activity during their Grand Re-opening weekend, with a pair of special guests included during a four-day celebration to unveil the refit of their store.
Les Stroud from the hit show Survivorman, plus Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback Darian Durant both attracted long line-ups of autograph seekers over the weekend, but the re-opening also provided customers a chance to see the new story layout and expanded product lines.
“It was re-jigging our concept to a more modern look,” explained Michel Deguire, owner of the Swift Current Canadian Tire. Swift Current Canadian Tire dealer Michel Deguire assisted Swift Current Mayor Jerrod Schafer and Canadian Tire district manager Jeff Smith in cutting the ribbon to re-open the Swift Current Canadian Tire location following a four-month renovation project
“We physically moved every product in the store to get a better feel for customers.”
The refit towards a Smart Store concept began back on January 2, with department managers coordinating and implementing the new layout strategy.
“I gave to them the power to bring our store to life. I’m very proud of the work they’ve done. On paper it looks easy but over 12 weeks many things get in the way.”
Deguire calls the new layout “more logical”.
“We wanted to give our customers what they’re shopping for,” he explained. “You could buy a drill in one part of the store but you had to go two sections away to buy the screws to go with it.”
“We’ve also made a selection of the better lines in the store that are Canadian Tire products and give them more prominence, and gotten out of certain lines that weren’t performing very well. So we’ve been able to concentrate on what we do best.”
Deguire has operated the Swift Current location since Oct. 2007, and felt the time was right for the new look.
“I enjoy being in Swift Current. There’s great people out there. It’s a big family of people and I’ve come to know quite a few customers. That’s something I didn’t see when I was in the city down east. It’s always warm to see customers come in and repeat customers.”