DCHP-2

loonie store Loonie Store DCHP-2 (November 2016)

• n. — rare

  a dollar store.

  Type: 1. Origin — As loonie is Canadian by origin, it follows that loonie store and other compound formations are as well. In Canada, the term loonie store is a minority term compared to "dollar store", which is in widespread use (see Chart 1). Note how the first written quotation surfaced in the early 1990s, six years after the introduction in 1987 of the loonie coin, when loonie store began to be used in company names (see the 1993 quotation).

  See also: loonie  

  • Not listed in COD-2, Gage-5 or ITP Nelson.

  • 1993  Leisure Systems Ltd. 304 Pinestream Pl. N.E. T1Y 3A5 Loonie Store Guildford Corp. 500-222 58 Av S.W. T2H 2S3 Lui & Hoang Investments Inc. 116 Pensacola Cl S.E. T2A 2K4 
  • 1994  Loonie stores have become part of Canada's retailing fabric, he says. It's now a popular concept south of the border. 
  • 1994  There's one business eagerly awaiting the arrival of WalMart: The modern-day five-and-dimes -- loonie stores -- thrive on the increased number of customers the U.S. discount giant is expected to bring to malls across Canada. Wal-Mart is a huge traffic generator, says Bill Thomas, chief financial officer of A Buck or Two Stores. "Our concept thrives on traffic," says Thomas, whose company has 14 stores in B.C. and 100 across the country. 
  • 1996  Q: I like to wear rubber thongs in the summer. Did they quit making them? Where can I buy them? I learned that they are in Wal-Mart when I called the North Vancouver store. If they are in Wal-Mart, they are still made and likely will be in similar stores such as Kmart and Zellers as well as Dollar stores and Loonie stores. 
  • 2003  Skaarup did some comparison shopping. At the Lucky Loonies store, he found a yo-yo -- complete with ball bearings visible through the toy's plastic body -- tching from the school's office down the length of the hall, with dozens of kids willing to pay U.S.A. Yo-yo Extravaganza's prices. 
  • 2006  We pulled into one of those everything-costs-a-loonie stores so I could get a pair of earrings for a buck that would not embarrass my children. 
  • 2011  DEMOLITION Grover Construction will begin demolition of the old Loonie Store as soon as they complete the work at the river, opening the inlet for the water supply to the water treatment plant.
  • 2015  But obviously that's too late for us folks looking to celebrate on All Hallows' Eve. So Ellis-Smith has a few suggestions for last-minute Halloween home decorating. First, she says, skip the loonie store stuff. Most is made only for one season; buy it and you'll just end up tossing it when the night is done, she says. "Try to buy a few really good pieces that you can pull out year after year, and just add spiderwebby stuff," she says.