Today Ellie and I said good-bye to Target.
Ellie was unusually solemn as she walked past empty shelves, carefully stepping over items carelessly tossed to the floor by crazed shoppers looking for a better deal. "Bye-bye Tahg!" she said, waving as we passed each empty row. "Bye-bye Tahg!"
I've read the articles, I've heard the complaints, and I know few people are surprised or saddened by the fact that Target is closing its stores in Canada, but my heart hurts.
As someone who spent at least an hour a week, every week, at Target since it opened just a few weeks after Ellie was born, the 17 000+ "walking unemployed" aren't faceless people.
They are Amy in the toy department and Shauna in returns and Elise who works the early shift so she can pick her kids up from school.
They are Miranda in fitting, Kelsey at the self check-out by the downstairs mall entrance, and Mark who makes sure the shopping carts are put away properly, who greets my kids by name.
Mona taught Topher how to ride down an escalator. We were running late for his skating lesson and I had my arms full of Ellie without a hand for him to hold and Mona stepped in and offered hers instead. Topher has spent so much time at Target over the past two years that I'm sure he considers anyone wearing a red shirt and a Target name tag as trustworthy as a police officer!
He cries when he overhears anyone talking about Target closing.
Real tears.
Your prices might not have been low and your selection might not have been great, but clearly you - your staff - still had an impact on our little family.
Good-bye, Target. You will be missed.