Home reno retailer Lowe’s picks up several Target Canada locations

Home improvement chain Lowe’s has reached a deal to buy 13 former Target Canada locations and a distribution centre in southern Ontario.

Lowe’s Canada said Monday the stores are across Canada and the distribution centre is in Milton, Ont., southwest of Toronto. It said about 2,000 jobs will be created by the transaction but didn’t disclose details.

Lowe’s is the latest major retailer to acquire pieces of Target’s former 134-store Canadian retail network through a court-supervised auction, following Canadian Tire and Walmart Canada. The auction took place last week.

Canadian Tire will take over 12 locations, while Walmart has announced a deal for 13.

Experts estimate that around 74 Target leases were put up for auction, the rest being returned to landlords directly.

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“Based on early indications, it appears that no single retailer is taking a substantial number of Target store locations,” Keith Howlett, a retail stock expert at Desjardins Securities, said.

MORE: 5 reasons why retailers are gun shy about former Target locations

“Lowe’s carefully evaluated the available sites and bid on locations that we believe best complement our existing store base,” spokesperson Connie Bryant said in an email. The North Carolina-based retailer operates 38 locations spread throughout Ontario, Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia.

Bryant said the deal, which must be approved by an Ontario court, is expected to be completed by June 30, after which the company will disclose locations. “As each site will vary, it is too soon now to say when the new stores will open,” Bryant said.

Minneapolis-based Target Corp. stunned observers in January when it announced it was pulling out of Canada completely just  two years after entering the market to substantial fanfare.

The retailer struggled out of the gate with inventory and stocking issues, as well as perceptions that its Canadian chain wasn’t delivering the same experience — and pricing — that Canadian shoppers grew accustomed to at Target’s U.S. locations.

The U.S. retailer said in mid-January it didn’t expect Canadian stores to become profitable for several years, and that it would cut its losses. Target began closing stores in March, with the remainder shut down last month.

Lowe’s said it would pay $151 million for the leases and real estate.