September 2003

Inside the Former Wal-Mart Store

This is the back parking lot of Oakridge Mall, as seen from the sidewalk on the west side of Hyde Park Road. At far left is the rear of the original Loblaws store. Nearby is the rear entrance into Oakridge Mall, which is much less creative than the two entrances out front. The red lettering above the entrance simply says "MALL ENTRANCE". Apparently this bland look is the look that the rest of Oakridge Mall had prior to the late 1980s. The focal point of the back parking lot is the main entrance into the old Wal-Mart store. The sign for Wal-Mart may be gone, but the mark it made is still visible above the doors. Woolco facades were quite bland, and unlike most other Woolcos that were converted to Wal-Marts, this facade was left as bland as previously. To the right of the entrance is the former Wal-Mart auto shop, originally part of Woolco as well. Normally a former department store is closed to the public, but on the week of 24 September 2003, Orchestra London was holding a rummage sale inside the old store. I got the opportunity to go inside to see the old Wal-Mart one last time.

Here it is, the inside of the old Wal-Mart store! In the foreground are some of the items being offered at the Orchestra London rummage sale. This photo was taken in the approximate location of the checkout counters near the main entrance, facing where the stationery and automotive departments were located. It looks so strange to see Wal-Mart like this!

Another view of inside Wal-Mart. At left in the background, where the lights are on, was the location of the one-hour photo area. Directly behind this was the McDonald's outlet. The area immediately in front of where I am standing was where the toy department was located. The rest of the store is big, dark, and eerie, and is roped off to the public.

Please click on a link below for more photos of Oakridge Mall.

« Back

Last updated: August 15, 2004
Copyright 2003, 2004, Michael J. La Rochelle
This site is in no way affiliated with RioCan, Loblaw Companies Limited, Wal-Mart, or any other company or organization associated with Oakridge Mall.