Less than a year after arriving in North Battleford, Giant Tiger is pulling out of the city.
The North West Company Inc. confirmed in an email to the News-Optimist that they are closing. The company’s vice-president for sales and operations Scott McKay stated they will be closing their North Battleford Giant Tiger location by no later than Nov. 1 of this year.
The reasons have to do with the recent announcement that the North West Company Inc. had entered an agreement to sell 34 of its Giant Tiger stores to Giant Tiger Stores Limited. The North West Company expects a pre-tax gain of $20 to $24 million from the sale.
Of the remaining 12 Giant Tiger locations, the North West Company will retain five northern locations, convert one Giant Tiger in Prince Albert to a Valu-Lots clearance centre, and close the remaining six stores, including North Battleford.
McKay said in a statement that the new agreement with Giant Tiger Stores Ltd. “creates the conditions for mutual success going forward.” He also stated Giant Tiger Stores Ltd.’s “proven capability as a leading Canadian-owned discount retailer, including their ability to successfully franchise stores, will enable these locations to reach their full performance potential.”
The news deals a major setback to the downtown revitalization efforts of North Battleford City Hall. Giant Tiger opened its doors in May of 2019 at the corner of 11th Avenue and 102nd Street and had been touted as a potential anchor tenant to draw customers to the downtown core.
The location was developed at a value of $2.5 million by CR Developments Inc., who received the downtown tax incentive for 100 per cent of municipal taxes for the first three years, 75 per cent in year four and 50 per cent in year five. CR Developments had then leased the 20,000-square-foot property to Giant Tiger.
The Giant Tiger closure is not the only bad news for downtown. It was announced earlier this week that another downtown anchor, the Capitol Theatre, was also closing its doors temporarily due to the COVID-19 virus.
