Store review - Homesense

Yes, Homesense has finally opened in Quebec! Today was the grand opening of the stores at Decarie Square and Fairview Pointe Claire. Seeing as how I am a 20-minute walk from Decarie Square, I wandered over at lunch for a look. First, I would like to say that I have never seen so many cars in the Decarie Square parking lot. It's a fairly dilapidated shopping centre, and has declined further through years of neglect and wool carpet sales. Expect a bit of a hassle getting in and out, and long waits at the lights. Today, they had many parking attendants out assisting drivers looking for spots. This was absolutely essential and a very nice "we care" touch. The old Winners at the centre has been removed and both stores are combined on the second floor a few steps from the escalators. I was surprised that it wasn't a bit bigger, in fact a lot of the store layout appeared crammed. A small piece of advice: when you are having a grand opening and know that there are going to be boatloads of people in and out of your store, do not put those annoying island shelves in the middles of the aisles. They slow people down with carts and strollers. I know you want people to see your wares, but they aren't going to buy anything if they can't get through the aisles easily, they will turn around and leave. I wandered without a cart and still found it difficult. The winners side was much the same, some good deals, some not so good. I'm not paying $99 for a cashmere sweater at Winners.
The Homesense side was smaller than it should have been, and there was an enormous amount of knickknack stuff cluttering shelves throughout the middle of the store. I guess many people are searching for an antique-looking wooden car for their coffeetables, or another glass vase. I found it a bit off-putting, like a dollar store had exploded. The bedding section was nice, everything was neatly organized and decidedly not an ugly selection of sheets and bedding. The bath section was a little slim except for the towels. I was drawn to the kitchen section, lots of pots and utensils, no electronic appliances though. A small but good selection of dishware and glasses, and lots of holiday-ware for Christmas. The prices were fairly decent, I found many things around $20 and under. There's also a nice selection of frames and framed art/mirrors. There were a few larger pieces (chairs, sofas) in the back of the store, but they looked like they were there for display only. The current layout does not support large items. All in all, there are some good deals to be had at Homesense, but I think they should streamline the space and concentrate on bedding, kitchenware and bath, and decrease the floor space given for the knickknacks.