By Brian Lorch

The retail landscape of Canadian cities has been dramatically altered over the past 15 years by the rapid expansion of big box store and power centre developments.  Research of this phenomenon has been disproportionately directed towards the supply side of the shopping equation through analysis of aspects such as corporate locational decision-making and tenant mix selection.  In this research letter, attention is focused on the demand side of power retail shopping.  The letter reports on a case study conducted in Winnipeg that explains dimensions of trips made by residents of a suburban neighbourhood to a nearby power retail node as well as opinions held about power retail shopping.