The signage on the store itself is also newer, replacing
the much cooler original signage (which does still live on at some locations!), but it still shows the huge breadth of services the chain still offers today, something that most retail chains that once had larger-ranging operations dropped ages ago. Having a post office inside a retail business is something that is pretty much exclusive to rural areas in the US, but it seems to be much more common in Canada, with London Drugs frequently including them. Looking at the store itself, which is built into the large, mixed-use London Plaza development, it really reminds me of
Circuit City's well-known "plug" design, which also dates back to well before 1995.
Happy New Year! I hope you had a good holiday. Around here in Houston, it's not uncommon for post offices to be located inside Ace Hardware stores. In fact, here is the Ace Hardware located near me which does have a post office in it: https://goo.gl/maps/ohQCBZc21fpcoVZp8
ReplyDeleteAnd, yes, the department signs for that Ace does include 'Doohickies", lol. The oddity of that led to this Ace being featured in one of the local newspapers or TV stations a few years ago, lol. Also, you may notice a lack of Subarus in the parking lot, which isn't a surprise for here, but check out that BMW 5-Series station wagon! That's probably a rare sight anywhere in the US, even in the NW.
It's interesting that the Canada Post sign says it is an authorized dealer. I'm not sure what that means. In some European countries, the post offices have been privatized, but I think Canada's is still government-owned, but run in a somewhat privatized manner. Thus, it's hard to compare post offices across countries because they all operate in pretty different ways.
It's certainly strange to see computers and cosmetics as featured departments at any retailer, but that's the magic of London Drugs!
Interesting! It's not unheard-of to find retail post offices in the Seattle area (there's even one in a QFC in Seattle, a leftover from when it was an independent grocery store), but it's quite uncommon. I didn't get into that "authorized dealer" thing because, like you said, postal services can be quite different in other countries, but I'm guessing it's similar to how the retail post offices in the US are generally privately operated.
DeleteYou'd be surprised -- BMW and Mercedes station wagons aren't all that rare around here, though they aren't all that common either, especially since I'm pretty sure they aren't being sold in the US any longer. You probably won't see many of them on the blog, though, since I tend to stay away from the wealthier neighborhoods where you would expect to find them.