The Pine Centre Mall Zellers is closing down, and nine months and $10 million later, reopening as a Target, according to the chain's spokesperson.
In the meantime, Zellers's employees will lose their jobs.
A Zellers spokesperson would not disclose the exact number of workers, but no matter the number, they'll get a chance to apply for employment in the new store, said a Target representative.
All of this won't happen immediately, but it was announced on Thursday that Prince George was one of 105 locations across Canada confirmed for this shift.
Target, a U.S.-based variety store chain, purchased the leases for 220 Zellers locations across Canada in January. Most will eventually be converted to Target, said Freda Colbourne, spokesperson for Hudson's Bay Company which owns Canada's Zellers stores.
"Pine Centre is on the list of the first 105," she said. "They said previously that nothing would happen until 2013, and in the meantime they will continue to operate as Zellers stores for the foreseeable future. Business as usual."
Sarah Van Nevel, spokesperson for Target based in the Minneapolis headquarters, confirmed Target isn't opening stores in Canada until 2013.
She said Target did not buy the Zellers company, they bought the leasing rights to the real estate. They bought the right to occupy the floor space now occupied by all those Zellers stores.
"Using this model has allowed us to enter the Canadian market very quickly, very efficiently, and in places we feel will be best suited to a Target store," said Van Nevel.
The transition will begin in 2012.
"Six to nine months before the stores open as a Target location, they will close for remodelling," she said. "It takes, on average, $10 million to remodel each store, so we expect that will result in many construction jobs for your local economy."
The employees working at Zellers at the time will lose their jobs, but, said Van Nevel, they would be given a helping hand through the hiring process for Target's enterprise.
Target said each Canadian location is expected to between 150 and 200 people.
"We will begin the store hiring process in 2012, and we will make sure the current Zellers staff has plenty of information going into that process so they can, if they wish, apply for jobs at the Target," said Van Nevel.
A Hudson's Bay Company Store also exists in Prince George, coexisting for years with the Zellers Store.
