I’ve noticed that one of the ‘nicer’ patio’s in downtown is all but deserted virtually all day long.  The patio in question is located at College Park in a beautiful, isolated part of square - removed from street traffic.  The patio also gets late afternoon summer sun, a rarity in Toronto.   But there’s something […]

This is a great, yet minor example of greed getting in the way of a good customer experience.
In Brookfield Place (formally BCE Place) stands the Great Canadian Newstand.  A magazine shop with one of the largerst selections of magazines I’ve ever seen for a retailer.  One of the wonderful things about this store was the […]

As posted in the National Post:
“Bleary-eyed Canadian Starbucks addicts are being greeted with new breakfast products this week - bagels and four new breakfast sandwiches. It’s part of a new initiative to introduce high-quality ovens in selected Starbucks locations. According to one Canadian representative for the company, the sandwiches are on offer for a limited […]

As reported here first Starbucks is now officially serving breakfast in Canada. I think the introduction to the Canadian market is to iron out the cracks in service before relaunching in the US market. Makes sense as rarely does news flow south of the border, but a limited local story in one […]

Well now that Starbucks is officially serving breakfast in Canada (as reported here first) it might be interesting to see if this is a change in strategy from Seattle based company.  I wonder if this isn’t the beginning of a Starbucks Cafe, a step away from emphasis on the coffee and beverage lineup.  In our […]

I saw this video display in the window of an real estate agent in Melbourne and what a clever but simple way of presenting homes for sale.  What was most appealing was the use of pictographs to represent the core features of the suit.  They managed to very quickly convey the details of the unit […]

Look at this wonderful display of Ice Cream. Instead of being buried deep in a freezer it out on display easily viable from the street. It look fresh, tasty and visibly appealing from a great distance. This is an example of an enhanced experience. We all can go to our fridge […]

The Tim Horton’s card just doesn’t work. Why? There’s no convenience. I’ve tried and I’m not that impressed. I was hoping that having a card would prevent the pain of rummaging through all your coins as your in a rush. The idea is good, but the execution is poor.
The only reason […]

The number 3 pizza retailer in the United States is looking to enter the Canadian market. Starting this year we’ll see the first of 57 locations begin to open in the already crowded Ontario market. Currently Pizza Pizza sells 1 out of ever 3 pizzas sold in the province, and it’s questionable how […]

I noticed a new toaster oven behind the counter at my local Starbucks recently.  Slapped on it was a hand written note stating “Don’t touch until launch”.
With electronic, pre-programmable controls it makes me wonder what is the purpose of this device.
My hunch is that Starbucks who’s seen decreased profits, is looking for anything to boost […]