Canadian Tire in Moose Jaw is owned by Ross and Audrey Leckie and they're excited to invite you to the grand opening of their new store, which will take place later this month. 
They met in 1992 while employed at Canadian Tire in Winkler, Manitoba, and have since moved all around the nation pursuing the work they love.
“We've been around a bit,” Ross explained. “Got into Canadian Tire and moved to Paris, Ontario ...from there we moved to Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta ...then we went to Regina ...from there we went to Whitby, Ontario and then from there we went to Okotoks Alberta and now we're here in Moose Jaw.”
The pair have called Moose Jaw home for about a year and a half, fell in love with the community, and took on quite a large project shortly after settling in.
“We’ve done re-merchandises and additions to other stores but have never built a completely new store of this size,” Ross said.
Having spent many years with Canadian Tire, Audrey and Ross bring plenty of experience walking into a centre on the hunt for a new facility.
Audrey said they were well aware Canadian Tire was looking for a new location when they moved to the Friendly City.
“I think we just lucked out by coming at the right time. We knew there was a possibility of a build when we took the store, and so it's always been on the radar since we've been here... January of last year we hit the ground running and haven't looked back since.”
“It's been extremely busy and a little terrifying at times. But yeah, we're getting there...we will open soon,” Audrey said with a smile.
The new Canadian Tire location is on the north end of the city at 400 Thatcher Dr. East and will be open to the public on May 12.
It'll be all hands on deck for change over. In advance of that, the current store will be closing on May 9 to pack up the remaining inventory and set up shop in their new home.
“It’s brand new. It’s a lot larger, our selection will be larger. More stuff on the floor we’ll be able to show (products) better than we have in the past with better displays,” Ross explained. “It’ll be a lot easier to maneuver around the store for customers.”
Many of the departments will expand, including the Party City section of the store. Customers can expect more hunting and fishing equipment and RV parts and equipment.
“Hardware will be a huge section as well ...we’ve never been able to display large toolboxes on the floor, we’ll be able to see those now ...it’s going to be a really nice shopping experience for customers,” Ross said.
The automotive portion of the store will also be larger than the previous location with more up-to-date equipment including the necessary tools that operate with lane-change assist features on newer vehicles. Ross believes Canadian Tire will be the first place in the city with this new alignment tool.
Ross went on to explain that tires will still be a big focus for the shop with a complete warehouse dedicated to just that.
“I think people are very excited. I talk to customers and clients and they're like ...‘we'll be the first ones at the door’,” Audrey laughed. “I'm not sure how many ‘firsts’ I can have, but there'll be a lot of people at the door. I think they're excited about it. They're looking forward to not having to drive to Regina and having the big selection here.”
The new building is just as large, if not larger, than Canadian Tire locations in bigger cities and will offer easier access and a more substantial selection of merchandise than their previous location.
Back by popular demand, the annual hanging basket sale is returning this year and will take place over the May long weekend with more stock on the way than ever before.
“Last year was extremely cold and we still had a line-up. It was snowing the first morning we opened with it and there were still lineups, people were still excited and went out with twenty baskets, or ten (baskets),” said Audrey.
Audrey is also excited to share that customers can expect a very large garden centre and grand opening specials will spill into that section of the store, just in time for planting season.
Taking contactless shopping to the next level, this Canadian Tire location will offer a major online presence and a new order pick-up method.
“On the west side of the building, there’s what we call a customer pick-up area,” Ross Explained. “There’s an area with lockers where we put your online orders. You come in with a code, you key in that code, the locker opens, you pick it up and you go ...a lot faster and a lot more efficient way of doing it.”
Audrey and Ross look forward to celebrating their grand opening this month and encourage you to come check out their new building from May 26 to June 2.
Mon, May 20, 1:00 PM
Casual, Administrative, Retail
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