“They couldn’t compete
on breadth and depth
and price of product.
Instead, they’re competing
on customer service,
something Olde Towne
Okotoks is known for.”
“The Costco store, which has been passed and
approved by the municipal planning commission
should be open for back to school 2010,” says Olson.
The company, however, has been uncharacteristically
quiet on their plans for the store.
“We know that with the Costco store, through their
market research, they indicate south Calgary will be
a big part of their marketplace, all the way to Fort
Macleod to the south, British Columbia to the west. A
lot of that will be from south Calgary, to alleviate the
pressure on their south Deerfoot store.”
Of course, where successful retailers like Wal-Mart
and Costco go, other smart retailers are sure to follow.
“As soon as you get a store like Costco, it brings in all
kinds of other businesses,” says Olson.
The Town doesn’t have an official position on what
business goes where, beyond having commercial areas
set aside within town boundaries. “Once a piece of
land becomes known,” says Olson, “The Town has a
legal duty under the Municipal Government Act to
allow what wants to go in there, within the definition,
to go in.”
It’s definitely a bit of a balancing act between smaller
owner-operated boutique stores, mid-size franchises
and big box stores. Each caters to the same market,
but in its own unique way. It can even be a bit of a
symbiotic relationship as, for example, the business
license fees paid by the big box stores help fund events
like the annual Spirit of Okotoks parade, which in turn
helps out the boutiques in Olde Towne Okotoks.
As well, some of the big box stores are reaching
out the community. At the one-year-old Home Depot,
manager Rick Nelson says giving back to Okotoks is
important to his store. The store has an agreement
with the children’s book library to build a shed for
them to store books over the winter.
Home Depot has also recently donated $2,500 to the
Open Spaces team, which takes care of the parks and
pathways throughout Okotoks, to work on a project of
their choice.
“We love doing that,” Nelson says. “It’s part of being a
team. It’s part of who we are. Being the new store in the
community, we’re going to grow with the community.”
