Lowe's gets 13 Target Canada stores

The Lowe's home improvement chain has a deal to buy 13 former Target Canada locations and a distribution centre west of Toronto for about $151 million.

Lowe's Canada says the stores are across Canada and the distribution centre is in Milton, Ont.

It said about 2,000 jobs will be created by the transaction but didn't disclose details.

Lowe's is the latest major retailer to acquire pieces of Target's former 133-store Canadian retail network through a court-supervised auction, following Canadian Tire and Walmart Canada.

Last Friday Walmart Canada announced it would be buying 13 former Target Canada locations as well as a distribution centre in Cornwall, Ont.

Canadian Tire has also agreed to buy leases for 12 properties previously held by Target.

Minneapolis-based Target Corp. announced in January that it would pull out of Canada, barely two years after entering the market to much fanfare, saying it didn't expect the operation could be profitable for several years.