Signs at the Medicine Hat Peavey Mart location show that the local outlet is among a large number of the store's locations closing for good.--NEWS PHOTO BRENDAN MILLER
@MedicineHatNews
A supposedly limited spate of closures of farm and rural goods supply store, Peavy Mart, has apparently spread across the country with outlets including one in Medicine Hat posting “closing down” signs.
The outlet on Carry Drive in the Hat advertised closing-out sales Monday after the Red Deer-based retailer of farm and acreage supplies said on Jan. 21 it was closing 22 stores in Ontario and Nova Scotia.
Peavey Industries LP said in a release the closures would help the company strengthen its operations and position itself for future sustainability.
Sources in Swift Current told Southern Alberta Newspapers that that city’s location would also be closed and signs there, the Hat and even the flagship store in Red Deer, according to media reports, suggest a much wider shutdown.
Peavy Mart has not responded to media requests aside from its weekend press release about the Eastern Canadian closures. It stated operations in those locations will cease by April.
“The Canadian retail environment has faced significant disruption over recent years, and Peavey has not been immune to these challenges,” said Doug Anderson, president and CEO, in the Jan. 21 release. “We recognize that difficult decisions like these are necessary to create a more stable foundation for the long-term success of our business. While this is a step forward, it’s part of an ongoing process to adapt and rebuild in response to changing market dynamics.”
Peavey Mart got its start in Dawson Creek, B.C., in 1967 under the National Farmway name, but changed to Peavey Mart in 1975 when it was a subsidiary of Peavey Company of Minneapolis. It returned to Canadian ownership in 1988.
Peavy Mart originally operated in Medicine Hat starting in 1980 with a location in the city’s Southwest Industrial area. It moved to a new location on Carry Drive in the late 1990s.
