Prince Rupert's Acklands-Grainger location begins process of shutting down

Ackland's has started the process of a branch closure in Prince Rupert,
with the George Hills Way location set to shut its doors before March

The industrial supply chain in Prince Rupert will be missing one link in a few short weeks, as the city's Industrial Supply store Acklands-Grainger begins an inventory clear out, the first stage of the planned closure for the George Hills location.

The long time fixture in Prince Rupert's business sector has had a presence in the community for a number of decades and had survived through a number of the city's boom and bust cycles of recent years.

The rumours of the store closing first began to surface in November, but with the start of the new year, the rumour became fact, with the stock clearance signs appearing in the front window of the store as the staff prepared to follow the corporate lead to close the local branch.

Ackland's has been on a store reduction campaign for over a year now, with a number of low performing stores across the country facing the fate of the Prince Rupert location, the move comes as the company continues to consolidate its holdings in the competitive industrial supply industry.

In the last year, Acklands-Grainger has closed 59 of its 144 branches across Canada.

The Chicago based corporation plans to put a larger focus on its online services for smaller communities.

It's expected that the timeline for closure will take the store into late February or early march before they close the doors for good.

The Acklands departure reduces the options for local industry, with a few remaining industrial supply stores and the two larger hardware stores in town the sole sources for local workers and business owners to call on for their needs.

For more item related to the city's Business sector see our archive page.