Dive Summary:

• Retail sales remain below par in the twelve months prior to March 2012. Volumes of retail sales rose 1.1%, according to a report.
• “Overall, the song remains the same. The only thing that’s really growing in Canadian retail is the level of competition,” says retail consultant Ed Strapagiel.
• Other retail stores like Target Inc “experienced an unexpectedly strong surge in sales as guests [customers] were eager to see their newly opened Target stores,” stated Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel.

From the article:

“The Canadian marketplace is competitive – it’s very aggressive,” said Calvin McDonald, chief executive officer at Sears Canada Inc. It reported on Wednesday that its first-quarter sales at stores open a year or more dropped 2.6 per cent, although its transformation efforts showed positive results in some categories including apparel.