Kitchen

[Nomore]

A longtime business in Colorado Springs is shutting its doors. More than 150 people will soon be out of jobs.

....

CHEFS Catalog was purchased by Target in 2013. They sell kitchen accessories. The store is mainly based through a catalog and online. 

Target officials say they are closing CHEFS Catalog and Cooking.com businesses. Target purchased both in 2013 but tell us they no longer align with the company’s direction.

Target said in a statement: “Target purchased CHEFS Catalog and Cooking.com in 2013 to help build new capabilities – like our recipe portal on Target.com - and to determine how guests might respond to broadened access to different brands.

“Target’s digital business has strengthened and grown but as the company’s priorities evolved, CHEFS Catalog and Cooking.com no longer aligned with the broader strategy.

http://www.kktv.com/home/headlines/CHEFS-Catalog-is-Closing-339060822.html

I didn't know Target owned these.

[mousiegirl]

Neither did I nomore.  I use Chef's Catalog online. It has been having a stupendous sale lately, so I should have realized that it was closing.  I bought the most fantastic soup bowls from Italy, practically for nothing, and they are a great size for onion soup, not small as the usual are, or for any soups or stews.

[millieshops]

You didn't know they belonged to Target, but at least you knew they existed.  I never heard of them - although I probably wouldn't have been much of a buyer anyway.

Sorry about the workers. 

[DoneTryin]

I've shopped at Chef's Catalog a few times but did't know about the Target connection.  Sorry to hear about the closure & the employees losing their jobs.  I wonder if Target will hire any of them.

[chickenbutt]

I didn't know they were owned by Target, either.     Both have been pretty big online retailers from some time now and I've purchased from both.

Interesting that they were purchased by Target.  Maybe that could, at least partially, explain why I got burned one time by Chef's.  I had ordered from them quite a few times and considered them very reputable.  But, down the road when this happened, I backed away from them.

Sometimes when a really good company is bought it goes downhill and maybe that's what happened to these.  Unfortunately, they didn't have as big or as long of a reputation to coast on like some long-time retailers that are bought out.   j

KitchenAid is one that comes to mind.  When they were Bosch, they made excellent products.  Then they were sold to another company and they started using cheaper parts, adversely affecting the quality of the products.  BUT, they've been around so long that they still coast on their original reputation because a lot of people won't pay attention and buy blindly.

[momtochloe]

I am so sorry to hear this.  It's sad to see smaller companies that get gobbled up only to be shut down when they no longer "fit the company's vision".  My heart goes out to their employees.

[denisemb]

My late MIL used to order from Chef's and I loved their catalog - it was like a Wish Book for adults!  I had no idea Target owned them.

My thoughts are with the employees losing their jobs.

[Kachina624]

Sometimes companies buy other businesses then close them just to remove the competition.  I got Chef"s Catalog a couple of times and couldn't figure out why since I'm the furthest thing in the world from being a chef.  I was amazed at their selection of colors in Kitchen aid mixers.  Many more than QVC.

[gardenman]

I've shopped from both companies in the past, but lately most of my cooking supplies have come from Amazon. With Prime shipping and lower costs, Amazon was simply the best option.

We're seeing the same things happening with other retailers that we saw with gardening retailers in the last decade. Small, profitable companies are being bought out, absorbed, and forgotten. Big companies think the small companies will help their bottom line and they suck them up like candy, then discover they aren't that beneficial and kill them. 

[debic]

That's too bad, I've ordered from both places.