"Meeting specific needs of the community 'Kim Finney, owner of What Every (man Wants, an exclusive women's clothing store, says her customers shop in her store because of the friendly lp’eople she employs. Aakvuie Beaver Staff l Because this information has indi- tWed there is a decidedly British M1uence in Oakville, Sears has tiusted its merchandise accordingly. Jt instance, it sells more custom fur- niture than many of its other stores hecause people are willing to pay for puches and chairs upholstered to Ln taste. I . "lt might also have something to R? with the affluence of the commu- tit" Loewen observed. ehrer the past two years, Sears has Has found a satisfyingly profitable rich: in Oakville. l "We're quite pleased with the Its so far," said Chuck Loewen, Eager of the mall's 120,000 square store. "We feel we've been suc- MM." {Jan of that success was the direct ttttuit of acting on studies of the Quographics and lifestyles of the tter: community as outlined by Sam regional and national omces, put more directly by customers' mput, said Loewen. runners. but in the last three years, more young families have been taking [advantage of the 35 service and spe- cialty stores found here. '"Becauseofthespecialtyrtatumof thestaeshere,thisisnotthekindof (in!) where people come and browse," siys Marie Backstrrxn, mall manager for the past three years. "Nople come the for something specific whether it's to go grocery shopping at the Food gun to pick up something from the 'r-Way, or from any of the other 1t I“Some of my customers come in twotothmetimesaweekjusttotalk," she says. "But ifl were to bring in sqiirtPerrwteworkhemrnysales “puld go down." By BARB Joh By Shelly Sanders Greer Special to the Beaver bem are no coffee shops in this busy mall, they can be found standing in the mall corridor. outside of the Food City where there are tall round tables per- !étt a leaning on. "t Ten years ago, when this 90,000 s.quare foot mall first opened, these theh would have teflected typical mall i"This is a very well-kept mall," + Mary Rachel], owner of Concept ery, a store featuring custom fram- "and limited edition prints. Most of It; merchants are independents which very morning, like clockwork, f a group of senior men meets i casually at the Bronte Village Mall to chat, smoke a few cigarettes iand Just generally pass the ume. Since Sears store changes to suit their customers opedale Mall answers needs far beyond its fine balance C of retail shops and services. ' A friendly, cozy, and relaxing imosphere combined with commu- . events add up to a mature pres- tite at the Rebecca and Third Line option. Its history spans three decades. he Loftus family have been the wners through the years. The mall ow holds 51 stores and services. y of the patrons are mature citi- Its. Understandably so. :"We have an attractive central area which serves as a favorite a; LINDA GUTRI Pcial to the Beaver Iopedale Mall Manager Ann Madronic rests on one of the mall's Inches. (Photo try Pele! McCusKer) erving Oakville for 33 years fter buying out the old Simpsons store in Oakville Place in July, 1991, Sears Id a satisfyingly profitable Hopedale Mall Recognizing at the start that no hardware stores existed in the imme- diate vicinity, Sears set about expand- ing its hardware department to include plumbing and heating sup- plies as well as tools and other items. So successful has this innovation become that the store was not in the least affected by the recent arrival of a large hardware store on Hwy. 5. In response to customers' input, it "re:worked" its bedding and linen departments and expanded household areas while at the same time "tailor- ing down" other departments. As well, it made new services available to its shoppers, adding a travel bureau, portrait studio and hair salon. The space taken up by a restaurant in the old store became a catalogue area. And it isn't finished yet. Loewen said Sears plans to add more services. perhaps in the form of a health store mumues "Sears isn't necessarily known for fashion but we established Sears/Oakville in the last two years as the place to shop for fashion," he said. meanswetryhardertoserveour toms." In tenns of the services offered at theBmneW1ageMall.thereisatrav- el agent, a post office, and a dentist's office. Specialty stores include a book- store with a Victorian flavora choco. httestDmwiththecMcnlatematieon site, and a store that makes custom- designed window coverings. Although the summer months bring increased business due to tourists, most of the business comes from local par ple in Bronte. And, to promote the mall as a community-oriented centre, there are activities throughout the year including Canada Day celebrations. the Charity groups, sports teams, Scouts, and others, even Earth Day, draw continuous crowds to make a trip to Hopedale more than a shop- ping dry. "Once a year we have the Annual Charity Bazaar. We supply all of the tables and it's like a big garage sale. MR Bronte Village Mall manager Mark Backstrom outside the mall's main entrance spot for our senior citizen shoppers who enjoy sitting in the relaxing atmosphere and chatting under the Skylights," says Ann Madronic, gen- eral manager of Hopedale Mall. For many reasons in a given year, the mall attracts all ages from all walks of life and for a variety of interests and occasions, says Madronic. mimue1 d children's clothing that is cause Oakville is considem ashion-forward" than some (See Serving' page 8) bring in me Bronte Village Mall Jitter stvli mort' om cus munity activities. Loewen said Sears is represented at the Chamber of Commerce, at Rotary and on the Shop Oakville Committee, the latter being one of the main reasons why the store is focussed on keeping Oakville shop- pers at home. In addition. many of the individual stats plan their own activities. For example. Cancun! Gallery periodically features artists. and What Every Woman Wants is planning a fashion show in the fall. hosting of a basketball tournament in the parking lot during the WM! festival. I hunted house which drew over $00 kids at Halloween. photos with Santa Claus. Ind candies for kids hum the Easter Bunny. so REASONS TO SHOP BKONTL VILLAGE MALL (?lltil'li), VI llMiE , (i,',/,r,i,.1,ili)i'ii',l,ii",) F-h'"O., (iit/ii'iii; . ll) LLyillli 9 1hermessionhastirecterius,but Jtt ape 82 7-444 t shop Oakville because my pension cheque comes to me from Canada I don't believe in going across the border to shop. I am 69 and handicapped and the clerks are very kind and thoughtful. )[l .ll M4 864 in n ' Indoor Shopping Free Parking 2% I LAKESHORE RD. W. 825-07 1 9 Fireside B Flippance a ersified Investments Srouo - 847-0029 L.L.S. Jewellery Dollar Little 84 7-8620 847-1349 )OKS Barge: things seem to be picking up," says Marie Badman. 'Ntunately, there an only two vacancies right now." ExpattsiatisooCtathehmreplatis tfhistnall,especially sittcetheteis nowhcxe for it to expand. his sur- mutttiedottthenathandeastbyltous- es,onthesouthbytheukeshae,and ortthesestbyBmnteRmd. “Expansion is not planned." says Backsuom. "but we do intend on maintaining the high standards we have always had." sa rs Photo b arr Chuck Loewen, Sears manager at Oakville place, at the store's expanded hardware department hs Mrs. Glorea Terrell 30,' Ma McCutcheon's C 827-8034 not: by Pam wank-c What Eve Wants - Melissa Shoe Outlet Tra The Phar otx Mndow Fashions 8470204 -ry Woman aol Shed 4887 len Abbe Pl amera 'New stores & Services for your shopping convenience. Astral Photo............, 'Coles Books........... Hallmark................. japan Camera.......... Paperchase.............. Shoppers Drug Mart Smithbooks............., United Cigar............ Calderone....... Clark............... Kiddie Kobbler Klnne Naturaliz A & A Records Bata Shoes Club Monaco Opu Footlocker rrenz Northern Refle Booth Denier Aldo Shoes One + One Braemar, Petites City Smarts......., Cotton Ginny.... Dalmy's............ Fairweather....... Jacob................, Karuba.............. Savannah. Suzy Shier Tristan...... Stet Harry Rosen Ja< Randy River Antels.............. Bianca Nygard Bonnie Togs.... Braemar.......... Lady Footlocker Thrift Alfred Top in 110 Fine Stores and Services just north of the Q.E.W, and Trafalgar Road, 842-2140 Open: Mon. - Fri. 9:30 a.m. - 9:00 pm. Saturdays 9:30 a.m. - 6:00 pm. Sundays 12 Noon - 5:00 pm. 'orts antoram SHOES AND HANDBAGS M apiati DRUGS, STATIONERY! LADIES & CHILDRENS WEAR CAKVILLE DLACE -"""'Efe,ht,solcf,,!l'f" BOOKS & RECORDS ter MEN'S WEAR a ather UNISEX ctions 845-81 5 I 844-8134 8454540 844-9384 844-6590 842-5597 842-3730 844-5393 844-3497 338-9637 844-8092 842-4095 338-0531 844-0758 844-61 85 842-4497 Wednesday. Apr 84 84 849-447 844-952 844-781 849-560 338-036 338-017 842-1930 842-0697 842-8101 842-3426 844-8539 844 845-2224 844-8093 845-5933 844-9873 845-71 34 338-5070 845-8257 842-4740 842-471 1 844-9910 844-4297 845-6982 842-4418 844-0588 849-6341 845-8597 844-565 842 84 963 809 409 053 4470 I 809 6686 7817 5604 3310 26 0 9 The Bay Sears..... Bank of Montreal........842-421 2 Bell Phonecentre........ 845-3308 Canada Trust..............842-4691 Food City....................842-3154 Hair Salon...................844-5113 Halton Trafalgar Travel 842-31 11 Moneysworth & Best.. 849-6825 Suds Cleaners............. 844-7486 Total Image......-...")) 'Kochi lapan.............. Manchu Wok............., New York Fries........... Sandwich Tree........... Second Cup.-..-.. Tim Horton................. Chicago Franks 'Better Pets........... Body Shop............. Collacutt................ Compucentre......... ‘la Florist.............. Radio Shack.........., Sox Clinic.............. Visage Treats Al Delizioso Arlies..........................842-1025 Lewiscraft................... 842-0569 Majestic......................338-6576 Mighty Dollars............849-7164 'Oakville Art..............844-7777 Pot Pourri................... 844-7728 Radio Shack............... 844-8346 Ntob McIntosh........... 338-5393 ’SchiIlings.................. 338-0328 Sue's Bathroom Boutique........... Birks........,......... "It" Store............ Mappins............ Peoples-......., Reflexions.......... Things Engraved Times Square..... Vivah................. Eastside Mario's aura AND SPORTING DEPARTMENT STORES W FdQMRFt_.jRNlSHlNGS FQQL9Nf_STA_U RANT HELLERY & GIFTS Secord SPECIALTY STORES PICNIC GARDEN 393 - Shun Gamma - 7 SERVICES 842-481 1 842-9410 842-4212 845-3308 842-4691 842-3154 844-5113 842-0396 844-7457 842-481 1 338-8658 842-1098 842-8583 842-4701 842-0689 842-4566 845-5874 849-5822 849-7353 844-8565 844-3921 842-9944 844-8346 338-8938 845-5688 GOODS 338-6330 844-7382 844-5685 842-2960 849-6408 845-5302 845-1435 844-5983 844-7337 842-3607 338-1992