Cabela’s, the retail giant whose presence thrilled Moncton so much it named a street after the store, closed Thursday after less than three years in the city. The hunting, fishing and outdoor gear retailer believes it can “better serve” its customers in the region with the existing Bass Pro Shops location in neighbouring Dieppe and the new Halifax-area Cabela’s store, scheduled to open this spring, said Cabela’s Incorporated spokesman Nathan Borowski.
“We have no plans to close any other Canadian locations for the foreseeable future,” he said in an emailed statement.
“Most” of the 25 full-time employees in Moncton are being given the opportunity to transfer to Dieppe or the Halifax area, said Borowski.
When the store opened in May 2015, about 150 people were hired for full time, part time and seasonal work.
Staff were sent home on Thursday morning.
Brown paper and closed signs now cover the windows of the 50,000-square-foot store at 100 Cabela’s Crt.
A security guard was turning customers away and directing them to Bass Pro Shops at 1 Promenade Bass Pro Dr., about 10 minutes away in the Champlain Place shopping centre.
Bass Pro will honour Cabela’s gift cards, returns, warranties and promotions, said Borowski.
Len Bryden was one of the turned-away customers. He was driving back home to Halifax from Fredericton and was looking forward to doing some shopping at Cabela’s.
“It was a bit of a shock, for sure,” said Bryden, adding he was disappointed.
Bryden said the loss of jobs in the city is also “unfortunate.”
“I hope that the workers find suitable employment soon.”
Bass Pro bought Cabela’s in a $4.5 billion US deal announced in October 2016.
Moncton was the American retail giant’s first location in Atlantic Canada.
Cabela’s has 10 locations in Canada, including Calgary and Edmonton, where it has two stores, Abbotsford and Nanaimo in B.C., Barrie and Ottawa in Ontario, Regina, Saskatoon and Winnipeg, according to its website.
The Moncton store’s website has already been disabled.
“We’re sorry. The resource you were looking for could not be found or is not available,” it states.
The closed signs on the store windows instruct customers with questions about returns, exchanges or gift cards to call a 1-800 number.
When the store opened, Moncton city council voted to rename the street from Portico Court to Cabela’s Court.