MEC as we know it will be no more.... | GTAMotorcycle.com

MEC as we know it will be no more....

B

backmarkerducati

Well-known member
Site Supporter
www.mec.ca

Shop Camping, Hiking, Climbing, Cycling, Water Sports & More | MEC

From kayaking to skiing and running to storage, MEC are here to help with any and every adventure, backed by our Rocksolid Gaurantee with easy returns.
www.mec.ca www.mec.ca

Sold to a private equity firm. Not entirely COVID related as they were bleeding money in 2019 before COVID. The shipping for their online store was a bit of a shyteshow. I use them a lot and my order (with free shipping) commonly gets split into three or four orders shipping from all over the country with some $2 item being shipped by itself from some far off place.

It does make me sad. Always loved MEC.

BTW, if you want your $5 from your "share" you need to get inline with the creditors. In the new year they will not be doing the membership thing anymore.
 
Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

I have always loved MEC, in part because of how it was setup, that's a shame.
 
:confused:
 
I didn't ship there much.
But I know it was a great store. Too bad.

Sadly there wi be many more like this.
 
regder said:
Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

I have always loved MEC, in part because of how it was setup, that's a shame.
Click to expand...
They've been lost for a very long time. IMO, this was inevitable.

MEC branded stuff used to be good quality and great prices. Over time it all seemed to slide up and up in price and they only made sales when it was on clearance.

They were so into image and pretending to be environmentally conscious that they forgot that they were a business that needed to compete and make a profit. It's like the millionaires in 20,000 sq ft houses saying they are environmentally friendly because they buy power from bullfrog. Do you know what is actually environmentally responsible? Having a space that is reasonably sized.
 
GreyGhost said:
They've been lost for a very long time. IMO, this was inevitable.

MEC branded stuff used to be good quality and great prices. Over time it all seemed to slide up and up in price and they only made sales when it was on clearance.

They were so into image and pretending to be environmentally conscious that they forgot that they were a business that needed to compete and make a profit. It's like the millionaires in 20,000 sq ft houses saying they are environmentally friendly because they buy power from bullfrog. Do you know what is actually environmentally responsible? Having a space that is reasonably sized.
Click to expand...
I agree. I shopped there periodically, the store near me seemed like a little lost in North York. I think they lost their way when they moved out of the city cores to open big stores in places like North York, Laval, Kelowna, London, Barrie -- good sized markets by population, but not the places where boutique spending happens to the same degree as downtown stores.

I'll bet the new owners go back 15 years, capitalize on core downtown locations where there is big money and fewer Canadian Tires and Sportchecks competing for it.
 
Yep its been at least 5-7 year slide for MEC. I think they lost focus on the core principles and started trying to compete with Sporting Life for the "lifestyle" crowd. Why was the King st. location packed full of Patagonia + Fjallraven product when they have their own stores on the same block? Why are they selling $5K Intense mountain bikes and Cannondale road bikes when the city is jammed full of high end bicycle specific stores?

Their core "MEC" branded stuff also used to be bulletproof. Bike parts, camping equipment, jackets, etc. Now it is extremely hit or miss. My guess is they took on so many premium brands they needed a low price point option and cannibalized the reputation of their in house stuff. I have a daypack I got in the 3rd grade and used it until I graduated college, all zippers work, no tears, etc. Purchased a jacket from them last year and its already full of pulled threads, flaking waterproofing, had to have the zipper repaired. Many reviews will show the same slide in quality. Especially if you are comparing products from 5-10 years ago to the new "updated" version.

Ultimately i think their supply chain during COVID was the final nail in the coffin. The stores have been picked clean since early spring and they can't restock fast enough. On paper this summer should have been great for outdoor retailers yet for some reason the opposite is happening. SAIL is done in the GTA, Atmosphere closed down all standalone stores and only sells soft goods at their Sport Chek combo stores, and now MEC will be restructured.
 
Last edited:
Mec died when they decided new fancy stores were more important than making money. If they hadn't built the new Toronto store they would have been fine

Sent from my moto g(8) plus using Tapatalk
 
Scuba Steve said:
Mec died when they decided new fancy stores were more important than making money. If they hadn't built the new Toronto store they would have been fine

Sent from my moto g(8) plus using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
When they first rebuilt the king street store for many many millions to add a green roof you could see it coming. When they abandoned that store and moved that sped up the whirlpool.

FWIW, a local running group used to meet at MEC for weekly runs. They would park in spaces far from the store and some would buy things. Last year, for some reason they were told they were not welcome to park there anymore. I suspect 90% of them never shopped at MEC again. Why pay MSRP for something when you can get it cheaper at almost every other store and MEC is not providing you any additional value?
 
Last edited:
Sail stores with 'as good' brands and more, CTC and Atmosphere / Sportcheck, Amazon and on a low end Mountain Warehouse. That's a lot of ways to slice a pie, and the hardcore granola heads can only float the concept for so long, its always comes down to profit.
 
I liked Sail when they were here, nice selection, reasonable quality, and fair prices. I bought a couple of Osprey packs and a ****-ton of ice fishing stuff from them in the last year, outside of a compact shovel (their brand), I've been really happy with them. Most of my motocamping kit came from Sail too.
 
Mad Mike said:
I liked Sail when they were here, nice selection, reasonable quality, and fair prices. I bought a couple of Osprey packs and a ****-ton of ice fishing stuff from them in the last year, outside of a compact shovel (their brand), I've been really happy with them. Most of my motocamping kit came from Sail too.
Click to expand...

Sail also closed a bunch of stores recently. I like the place but their online presence is a mess. Half the stuff on their website is "in store only".

The problem with MEC is that it went from plain but works well to stylish but crappy made. I had an MEC goretex jacket from donkey's years ago that just wouldn't die and was fabulous. Eventually some taped seams went and I fixed them a few times. Bought an Arcteryx one that was a top of the line jacket and it's like walking around in a chip packet it rustles so much.
 
"MEC as we know it will be no more...." I checked if this wasn't a 10 year old bump.

Ever heard of Steve Jones? I tried to bring attention to him before elections. His platform was focused on bringing MEC back to its core values. He got 12k votes.


1602858295594.png
 
My daughter found a pair of vintage MEC pants at Value Village a few weeks ago for $5. You'd have thought she won the lottery.
 
GreyGhost said:
She might have. They will outlast anything you can buy there now (for 40x the money).
Click to expand...

Seems to eventually happen to a lot of brands when shareholders become a thing and then want profit profit profit, or Management needs another yacht - take a quality product that made you big, and start whittling away at the quality until next thing you know you're just putting the same cheap Chinese garbage on the shelf as the other guys but trying to ride the coat-tails of your name from years past.

Lets look at Coleman for example. Used to be one of the go-to names in quality camping gear. Now, garbage with few exceptions.

And the Yeti and Marmot's of today will almost inevitably be the Coleman of tomorrow in another 20-40 years when money comes before quality and reputation.
 
I went last year and they had downhill ski equipment. I was so sure that they wouldn't that I bet my wife a coffee.
 
PrivatePilot said:
Seems to eventually happen to a lot of brands when shareholders become a thing and then want profit profit profit, or Management needs another yacht - take a quality product that made you big, and start whittling away at the quality until next thing you know you're just putting the same cheap Chinese garbage on the shelf as the other guys but trying to ride the coat-tails of your name from years past.

Lets look at Coleman for example. Used to be one of the go-to names in quality camping gear. Now, garbage with few exceptions.

And the Yeti and Marmot's of today will almost inevitably be the Coleman of tomorrow in another 20-40 years when money comes before quality and reputation.
Click to expand...
I have 2 old Coleman steel coolers, a naphtha stove and lanterns... and a World Famous backpack I bought in 1979 for my first round the continent adventure. They are still working, my kids borrow them still. They were go to brands back then.
 
Yr7TdP4.gif
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom