On Feb 2nd - HBC (who owns stores such as Zellers and Home Outfitters) announced earlier that it is closing all of its 141 Fields stores including the one here in Williams Lake by the end of this year. Read a story from the PG Citizen here
Meanwhile this past Tuesday - CBC: Daybreak North interviews a local resident of the Village of Masset as to what the Field stores shutdown means to people like them - listen to the interview here
Some questions to ponder:
1) What will a closed Fields mean to the businesses that surround Fields including Ming's Palace & Barking Spiders' Mountain Bikes? And will this spur action by the local BIA/WL Council to look at the revitalization of the downtown core in Williams Lake much sooner than it planned to?
2) With other stores shutting down as well like Willies and Rainbow's End in Boitanio Mall - Will WL Council be looking at its' entire cost structure to businesses (small/large) to ensure that they can remain competitive in our own community and not force residents' (both Williams Lake and the CRD Rural Fringe) to shop elsewhere?
SBF
1 comment:
So sad to here this news. I had my first 'real' job at Fields, although we still called it McKenzies back then. That was when they still had the lower level with furniture and hardware. Can you imagine a kid in his mid-teens selling furniture and appliances to adults :)
So many old family businesses have closed over the years --- sad to see Willies closing --- and Joe closing Rainbows End as well.
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