There's plenty of movement happening on the Prince George retail scene, but not all of the rumours match the reality.
Prince George will soon be home to Old Navy. The family-focused clothing giant is apparently going to be located at Westgate Plaza near Wal-Mart. The parent company for Old Navy is Gap Inc., which also owns The Gap, Banana Republic and other related retail chains.
"I can confirm we are opening an Old Navy in Prince George next year. We will not however, be opening a Gap," said company spokeswoman Victoria Kirk.
There had been well-circulated rumours that Gap would be moving into Pine Centre Mall.
Another rumour causing shoppers to clap their hands was the possibility of a Pier 1 Imports location coming to Prince George. The popular housewares company was reportedly going into the as-yet unbuilt retail plaza slated for construction south of the Signature Sandman on Highway 16. Other street-chat had the company going instead into the anchor space left vacant by Sport Mart at the Spruceland Shopping Centre.
Neither rumour is true, according to company officials.
"Although we do not have immediate plans to open a new store in the Prince George, B.C. area, members of the Pier 1 Imports team routinely review new and existing markets to locate new stores as part of our ongoing expansion plans," said Pier 1 spokeswoman Chrissy Madison. "I will be sure to reach out if a store is slated to open in the future."
Meanwhile, Wholesale Sports, the Alberta-based outdoor recreation chain iowned by United Farmers of Alberta, has confirmed it will soon enter the Prince George market in the Redwood Plaza downtown.
"I can confirm we will be coming to Prince George in early fall," said company spokeswoman Amanda Bates. "We're as obsessed about the outdoors as we know the citizens of Prince George are, so we're definitely looking forward to becoming part of the community there."
It will create a head-to-head competition with Surplus Herbie's, another new arrival to the Prince George market .
The Kamloops-based chain is venturing into Prince George at the vacant site of the former City Furniture location on 2nd Avenue and Dominion Street. For Frederick, it was a very familiar place, as someone who grew up here but hasn't resided in the city for more than 20 years. The areas around the city are barely recognizable, she said.
"In Kamloops it was the same thing," she said. "The big box stores opened up on the hill, a lot of businesses followed them, but things cycle back too and that is happening there. We certainly liked the option we had in downtown Prince George. We think we have a lot of visibility here."
All this is a continuation of major retailer investment by the likes of Target which opened its doors in May, providing a major anchor boost to the Pine Centre Mall.
