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Low prices set Target apart from its competition

On Thursday, a Target pop-up shop at 363 King Street West, Toronto, opened its doors to the fashion-loving masses who were patient enough to wait in a very long line. The temporary shop carried only 2,500 items from the retailer's recent, much-buzzed-about collaboration with esteemed fashion designer Jason Wu, at impressive price points ranging from $10 to $45 and all proceeds being donated to United Way Toronto. Wu himself even flew in for the day, but not without the company of stylist to the stars (and Port Perry native) Brad Goreski to add to the media frenzy.

This event was designed to be a teaser, preceding Target's official Canadian launch in 2013—beginning with 24 stores in Ontario and totaling around 125 across Canada within the year, reports The Globe and Mail.

What Target's presence in Canada will mean to the country's retail landscape is anyone's guess, but York University marketing professor Detlev Zwick told CBC News, "It's going to be greeted with a lot of enthusiasm, especially by middle-class consumers in urban areas, where there is a gap between the high end, with Harry Rosen and Holt Renfrew, and the low end, with Zellers and Walmart."

Kenric Tyghe, a consumer and retail analyst with Raymond James Capital, told CBC News. He believes the retailer's main Ontario competitors will include Walmart, Loblaws, The Bay and Shoppers Drug Mart.

What do we think sets Target apart from its competition? The quality and price points, definitely, but also the incredible designer collaborations. These capsule collections allow shoppers to snag great-quality designer duds for a fraction of high-end prices. Wu's regular dresses, for example, generally sell for upwards of $800.

As Wu explained to The Globe and Mail, "Younger girls, in their teens or 20s, often can't afford what I do, but they're fans. So this is an opportunity, a gift for people who have supported me. It's a way to get my name out there in a whole different way."

Fashion magazine editor-in-chief Bernadette Morra also weighed in on the trend of designer collaborations with retailers, telling The Globe and Mail, "For a mass retailer like Target to link its name to his will bring them a lot of attention and a perception of being cool and with it," she says.

Target being in Canada, for us, will mean less shopping trips to the U.S. and plenty of exciting designer collaborations to look forward to.