Canadian Tire started as a tire store (in the 1930s), turned into an auto parts store, started selling camping and fishing gear, and then became a general hardware store. After that they had an outbreak of housewares. There was a recent -- corporate consumption of Mark's Work Warehouse -- expansion into clothing, too.

So, basically, an auto parts chain remembered that the department store success formula is consistent value and has been filling the department store niche as all the ostensible department stores stagger off into fashionability and die horribly.