Homegrown company, MEGA Brands is having a seasonal warehouse sale . Besides their well-known snap together Mega Bloks, they also sell arts and crafts under the RoseArt brand. Expect prices to be 40-70% of retail for toys, puzzles,  school and office supplies, construction sets, trucks, and Board Dudes. This sale is for excess inventory and discontinued lines., you may find  some regular priced items

Location: 3858 boul. Taschereau, Greenfield Park
Phone: 514-333-3339
Dates and Hours for sale:  Wed-Fri, Aug 18-20: 11-9, Sat & Sun, Aug 21 & 22: 10-4

If you miss the sale, you can catch similar deals at their headquarters’ Mega Blokswarehouse  store
Location: 4505 Hickmore, Ville St-Laurent
Hours for Store: Tues & Thurs : 12-7

Q1: Let’s talk about vinyl records, something close to a radio broadcaster’s heart.

The reason I wanted to talk about them it that though sales of  CD’s and DVD’s have been dropping, sales of vinyl records have risen. We are not talking about anything meteoric that could save the industry, but rising a tiny bit.

Q2:  Who’s buying the records?

There has been a re-discovery of vinyl by the 15-30 year-old generation and sales to the 45-65 year-olds too. They are all interested in 70’s rock: Led Zepplin , Pink Floyd, Doors, Jimi Hendrix, Neil Young.  That interest is now spilling in to a wave of 80’s music and even 90’s.

Q3: What is driving this mini resurgence?

Let’s face it, music still sounds better on vinyl  99% of the time - it has more life to it, not a flat electronic sound. Music lovers are realizing that. New music by performers such as Lady Gaga or Arcade Fire have come out on vinyl.

Sales are being driven in a few different ways. Some producers in the alternative music industry are offering,  with the purchase of vinyl album, a certificate to later legally download a copy. So you get the great sound on the vinyl and then you don’t’ have to do conversion to CD if you want to listen to it electronically.

Daniel Hadley owner of the Death of Vinyl store was mentioning that CD manufacturing plants keep closing as CD’s are probably on their way out. So in the future, if you want a physical copy of the music, you’ll be buying vinyl and then you’ll have an electronic version..

Q4: That generation is so plugged in to their iPods or computers, how can they enjoy the music if they can only listen to it on a turntable?

Well they can buy USB turntables which make it easy to plug into a computer to play the music on their computer or play it on an iPod, They can make a copy and to listen to all of it or just  save  favorite tracks.  However these turntables will not last the way the old ones did, so if you have an old turntable around, you can still do this but you need a pre-amp to do it.

Q5: Are there many stores still selling vinyl records in the city?

Yes, we never lost them.

Death of Vinyl is a gold mine for both used records and liquidated vinyl from other dealers as the owner was a record distributor for 11 years. Of the 60,000 records stocked here, expect prices to be $1, $2.99 or $4.99. If those weren’t low enough, they have sales around  3 times a year:  Back to School, Xmas and in the Spring. All kinds of music abounds - world, Francophone, jazz, rock, disco, punk, Broadway, dance, etc. They buy all kinds of records.

Location: 6307 boul. St-Laurent
corner: Beaubien
Tel: 514-495-2786
Hours: Mon-Wed 10-6, Thurs & Fri 10-9, Sat & Sun 12-5
www.deathofvinyl.com

On the West Island, Musiquest has been in the business for 15 years, so this choc-a-bloc vinyl record shop has perhaps 85,000 33 1/3 LP’s, 100,000 45’s and 7,000 78’s to offer you. Wander around to find the rock & pop, disco, Motown, folk, country, blues, easy listening, children, organ, chorale, classical, gospel and even banjo. There are about 200 audio cassettes, 350 DVD’s and 5,000 CD’s.

Location: 63E Donegani, Pointe Claire
corner: Valois
Tel: 514-426-0876
Hours: Tues-Sun 10-5

Disques Beatnick Records has a combination of old and new music in vinyl. To tell them apart, the red or pink stickers indicate the used items and the green means it’s new. Sections for rock, jazz, reggae, soul 60’s, etc. have bins and there are walls of vinyl; don’t miss the little back room.

Location: 3770 St-Denis
corner: des Pins
Tel: 514-842-0664
Hours: Mon-Wed 11-7, Thurs & Fri 11-9, Sat & Sun 11-6
www.beatnickmusic.com

Aux 33 1/3 is a store which specializes in new and used (60% of stock) vinyl records: jazz, rock, country, classical music or hip-hop. For those of you who don’t know, the 33 1/3  in their name refers to the speed of vinyl records -33 1/3 revolutions per minute. They have 45,000 LP’s and about 10,000 used CDs in stock and you can listen to the ones you’re thinking of buying on the 2 turntables.

1379 Mont-Royal est
corner: Garnier
Tel:514-524-7397
Hours: Mon-Wed 10-7, Thurs & Fri 10-9, Sat 10-5, Sun 11-5
www.aux33tours.com

The Canadian Bead Oasis Show is landing here at Place Bonaventure and is open to the public. Besides the thousands of types of beads, you can buy jewelry, kits, and they offer classes.

Location: Place Bonaventure, 800 de la Gauchetiere
corner: University
Tel: 866-311-1104
Dates: Aug 13 - 15
Hours: Fri 12-8, Sat 10-6, Sun 11-5
oasisshows.com

Archambault has a piano sale each August  After you have stepped through the Art Nouveau portals of Montreal’s oldest (1896) and largest music emporium, head to the second floor, where you’ll discover the grand salon piano department which is Quebec’s largest piano store.

Right now they are clearing the new pianos from their regular stock: perhaps Hallet and Davis (Baldwin), George Steck or Perzina from Germany. However on August 16th, the Yamaha pianos from camps at Orford and Lanaudiere will come in to be sold.  The insider information is that you can reserve one of those pianos before they get here and really score as prices are almost half off ; They have only been used for about 6 weeks.

There are 50 used and new pianos both in uprights and grands. All come with a 10 year parts and labor guarantee and delivery is included.

500 Ste. Catherine St. East
corner: Berri St
Phone: 514-830-1833 or 514-849-6201
Dates: Aug 5 - Sept 5
Hours: Monday to Friday 9:30 a.m .to 9 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
www.archambault.ca

Q1:  It’s time to be a tourist in our own city, can you tell us a bit about what’s happening in Old Montreal?

When was the last time you went to Old Montreal? If you haven’t seen it in the last few years, you won’t recognize it. The software companies that marched into its western end, mostly west of McGill St., have turned this area on its nose.

Now there are people living and working down here. Fabulous new restaurants have opened up in wonderful new boutique hotels. At the eastern end, near Bonsecours St., an entire new neighborhood was created.

Q2:  That sounds like a lot of changing, is the street scene modernizing and losing its Old World charm?

Did you know that the buildings on de la Commune Street look exactly the same today as they would have been to a sailor who sailed into the port in the 19th century?  Place Jacques Cartier has been totally refreshed. For the summer, St. Paul street has been turned into a pedestrian mall.

Q3:  Let’s get back to your specialty, what about the shopping there?

For all of the new inhabitants, retail shops opened to feed and care for them  - bakeries, dry cleaners, clothing shops, furriers and depanneurs have filled up the empty storefronts.

At first glance, dear old St. Paul St. is still filled with so many souvenir shops. Having said that, a handful of them contain the works of real artisans or more upscale gifts, and those are worth stopping in to see.

Q4:  What kinds of thing would we find in those stores?

You can think of these shops as shopping green and shopping local:

L’empreinte Cooperative is a 37-year-old co-op for over 70 Quebec artists and artisans, you can expect to find variety, including ceramics, handmade albums, glass vases, bowls, sheepskin slippers, pewter lamps, handmade clothing, puppets and creative jewelry. Marianne Chevalier weaves pictures using copper thread and for souvenir hunters, Renee Bovet captures Montreal street scenes on silk.

Location:  272 St. Paul St. East
corner:  Marche Bonsecours St.
Phone: 514-861-4427.
Hours:  Sun-Wed 10-6, Thurs-Sat 10-10 (Summer daily 10-10, Jan & Feb 11-5:30 daily)
www.empreintecoop.com

Smack in the middle of old Montreal, Les artisans du meuble quebecois, is a 43-year-old artisan’s consignment shop displays some of the wares of a minimum of 450 artists. Look for: glassware, ceramics, handmade cards, duck decoys, door knockers, fish bone shadow boxes, scarves, wooden kids’ furniture, dolls, quilts, creches, jewelry (silver, beaded), wooden boxes and then some.

Location:
88 St. Paul St. East
corner: St. Gabriel St.
Phone: 514- 866-1836.
Hours: Daily 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

At Tant qu’il y aura des fleurs, the decor here feels like you’ve stepped into someone’s lovely rustic home. Objects to fill yours include artificial fruit and veggies, candlesticks, large quilts and pillows, Joanel purses, animal wallets, woven place mats, colorful tablecloths from Provence (wash ‘n use, stain repellent), dishes, wooden bowls, vases, interesting jewelry and for fun, roosters, For babies, look in the back for little terry robes and booties made in Quebec. Everything can be gift-wrapped to go.  Right now you’d be surprised but they have set up a Christmas section and does make people smile when the see it.

347 St. Paul St. East
corner: St. Claude St.
Phone: 514-395-9079
Hours: Daily 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Inside Marche Bonsecours, , emphasizes natural items. Look for framed displays of beetles or butterflies, petrified wood, some minerals and fossils. You can buy an 8′ giraffe, skin drums, stone candle holders, dream catchers, bamboo flutes, paper lanterns and some really nice handmade paper stationery.

300 St. Paul St. East
corner: Bonsecours St.,  inside Marche Bonsecours
Phone: 514- 868-9992
Hours: Monday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Q1: Today you wanted to talk about stores that have stood the test of time and have been open a long time, a really long time - an entire century!

I have so much admiration for stores that stand the test of time. It is so hard to be in business in the retail sector and to survive through generations of changing styles, language issues, population shifts and recessions, that these stores deserve kudos.

Q2: What are some of the obstacles they have had to overcome to last this long?

There are so many things that retailers seem to think are necessary to take into consideration these days to operate a store - merchandising their wares, buying the right mix of products, the flow of traffic in and around the store, the way things are presented to grab the buyer’s attention, the amount of air and space in the store, the price points to set, colors to influence you, the right music to put you in the mood to buy, and on and on.

Q3: Is there a key thing you might say that links the different kinds of stores that have survived?

When stores are run by head offices and the owners are not there with their ear to the ground, it’s like the game of “Broken Telephone”. The retail shoppers  may be looking for one thing, but the store’s buyers are ordering out of a different catalogue. There is a lag between the customer’s wants and what the store stocks.

And probably most importantly, most stores that are open this long are family businesses. In order to keep food in the fridge and a roof over their heads, every single customer who walks in that door is crucial to them, so they must treat them right, listening to their needs and solving problems positively so they will come back again and again.

Q4: What types of stores have made it this far?

Another thing to mention is that each of these businesses is in a niche market, and one in which  there has always been a need:

Made-to-measure coffee has brought java lovers to Union Coffee, a Montreal institution since 1910. Owner Stephan Khoury, says they try to make customers feel at home.  It’s so comfortable, they want to come back, hang out at the coffee bar and chat”.

This wholesaler roasts the coffee right here, so you can choose one or custom blend from amongst the espresso, melange maison (regular and strong), french press, Kenya, Panama, Columbia Supremo, Fair Trade, decaf and Swiss washed decaf.

Those who like flavors can buy  or one of the 30 flavored syrups (vanilla, hazelnut, caramel, etc.) to add in. Coffee related products like iced cappuccino, or chai latte concentrate now line the shelves.

Free delivery is offered for 5 pounds or more. They sell espresso machines (Saeco, Rancilio, Pavoni, Breville, Quick Mill, Jura, La Spaziale) and teapots, too. Repairs to these machines are available.

Location: 148 Jean-Talon ouest
corner: Waverly
el: 514-273-5555
Hours: Mon-Fri 8-5:30, Sat 9-3
www.cafe-union.com

Don’t be put off by the location - it’s only 15 minutes across the Mercier bridge, and the sheer volume (100,000 sq. ft.) of merchandise at Tapis Lanctot is worth the ride. The Lanctot business has been around for 127 years; Now they sell floating and hardwood floors (look for the bargain bins starting at $.89) including condo solutions, ceramic tiles (starting at $1.25), about 500 area rugs, carpeting, vinyl flooring (lots of  remnants too).

Denis Lanctot told me that one thing that was impressed upon them from their elders (besides honesty and respect) when growing up in the business, was to look to the future and see what is coming. The store started out as a general store, saw the beginnings of the automobile, changed merchandise, saw shopping centers, changed direction, etc. etc. This generation built a warehouse building to include other home-oriented vendors.

They’re known for choice and service, and their prices are low all year round. Other vendors are inside their building selling wallpaper, paint, bedding, blinds, furniture, kitchen cabinets, plumbing, windows and doors.

Location: 148 Boyer,  St Isadore
corner: St-Regis
Tel: 514-875-1954
Hours: Regular plus Sun 11-5
Other location: Longueuil, 2025 ch. Chambly (450-647-1571)
www.lanctot.qc.ca

After you’ve stepped through the Art Nouveau portals of Archambault, Montreal’s oldest (1896) and largest music emporium, you can feast upon 4 floors and 45,000 sq. ft. of musical supplies, from sheet music and a grand salon of pianos to a full store of CD’s, DVD’s, books, games, office supplies and gifts

Locations: Main store,  500 Ste-Catherine est
corner: Berri
Tel: 514-849-6201
Hours: Mon-Fri 9:30-9, Sat 9-5, Sun 10-5
Other locations: Place des Arts, 175A Ste-Catherine o. (514-281-0367); Laval, 1545 boul. Le Corbusier (450-978-9900); Brossard, 2151 boul. Lapiniere (450-671-0801); 7500 Les Galeries d’Anjou (514-351-2230); 677 Ste-Catherine o. (514-875-5975); Mega-Centre Ste-Dorothee (450-719-2020).
www.archambault.ca

Q 1: It’s holiday time for a lot of people,  you have some ideas of outings that are cool and FREE to the public?

With money for vacation fun limited in a tight economy, you can enjoy a holiday in your own city. Museums which are cooly air-conditioned have a FREE days, and you can spend hours exploring.

Q 2:  Of the art museums, which ones are open for FREE and on which days?

Musee d’art contemporain du Montreal focuses on  modern art, so the color and forms are usually quite appealing to children and its always FREE for kids under 12.  Right now the exhibit “With Glass, Under Glass, Without Glass” focuses on glass, neon and mirrors in sculpture, architecture, furniture and films. Kids might like the shattering mirror one. There’s a Projection Series about Music Video.

Location: 185  Ste. Catherine  ouest
Tel: 514-847-6226
FREE Hours: Wednesday 5 - 9 pm. Always FREE for children under 12
www.macm.org

Musee des Beaux Arts’ entire permanent collection in the building on the  North side of Sherbrooke is always FREE to the public. You can see Monet, Picasso, Renoir, Rembrandt, Renoir, Dali, Corot, Courbet and more.

One show on now is a collaboration between Cirque de Soleil and the House of Bourgeron, the Parisian jeweler, with 20 necklaces on view. You can also see  Ben Weider’s Napoleon collection.

Location: 1379 Sherbrooke ouest
Tel: 514-285-1600.
FREE Hours: Everyday for the North side main building. South side Demerais Pavillion which houses temporary exhibits are ½ price Wed evenings 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. Children under 12 are always FREE
www.mmfa.qc.ca

Q 3:  Some people don’t enjoy going to see artwork, what other options are there for them?

At the McCord Museum of Canadian History you can see see costumes, textiles, decorative arts, ethnology, drawings, photographs and First Nations  collections from the 18th century to the present. On now: Dream Weavers - Costumes by Cirque du Soleil which salutes the costume designers and artisans by opening a window into Cirque’s costume workshop. You’ll see  the various steps in costume and accessory production, from dyes and design to hats, lace and shoes.

If you like photography, Nance Ackerman traveled to all parts of Canada to capture faces and expressions of about 20 Aboriginal women.

Location: 690 Sherbrooke ouest
Tel:  514-398-7100
FREE Hours: 1st Sat each month 10 a.m- noon. Children 5 and under are always FREE.
www.mccord-museum.qc.ca

The Canadian Centre for Architecture focuses on architecture, urban planning, landscape design research and collection dating. Surprisingly the show on now is “Other Space Odysseys”: Greg Lynn, Michael Maltzan, and Alessandro Poli developed unique and imaginative approaches to the questions of space travel and the habitation of new, extraterrestrial areas. Expect to see models, collages, animation, and drawings both real and virtual, from the simple tools of a farmer to the digital animation of a science fiction film.

Location: 1920 Baile St.
Tel: 514-939-7026
FREE Hours: Thurs eves 5:30- 9. Students and children are always FREE
www.cca.qc.ca

The Redpath Museum on the McGill University campus is in a gorgeous grand home. It holds real gems, dinosaur bones, sea shells, skulls, skeletons , stuffed animals, fossilized plants, Egyptian mummies as well as African musical instruments.

Location: McGill Univiverstiy, Sherbrooke St. at McTavish St.
Tel: 514-398-4086.
FREE  Hour: Always Free
www.mcgill.ca/redpath

Q4: You haven’t spent anything for your entrance but you haven’t yet stepped into the gift shops, is it good idea to shop in them?

At the Musee des Beaux Arts de Montreal you can buy prints of the artwork. At their jewelry counters they showcase original designs by Quebec artisans, toys, stationery and serving pieces.

Since the Musee d’Art Contemporain de Montreal is so modern, the items sold here are cutting edge designs like  zipper necklaces,  costume jewelry designed by Anne-Marie Chagnon, Vanessa Yanow, Michel de Bellefeuille, Sonia Ferland, Racine, Marianne Alexandre, and Carole Rivet. There are purses made out of recycled 45-rpm records, pens and desk accessories, Atelier Entre-peaux re-cyled sacs, Toma vases, glass objects, kitchen gadgets, Scrap Postal albums, key holders, Cloe dolls, wooden mind puzzles, note cards, and toys.

The Musee Pointe a Calliere focuses on archeological history so you can buy Amerindian jewelry, wampum pouches, quill pen sets and Inukshuks.

Boulevard St-Laurent has been hard hit over the last few years as the city has taken it upon themselves to rip it up to renew it, over and over again. It’s time to re-learn the new shopping on the street and give these local merchants a bit of our community support.

This weekend the Boulevard St-Laurent sidewalk sale will be happening from Thursday to Sunday. The street sale begins at Sherbrooke and goes all the way up to Mont-Royale.  Some of the stores mentioned in my Smart Shopping Montreal book that fall into that section of the street:

3653 Slovenia - homemade sausages: veal knockwurst, lyoner, pariser, schnitzel, all kinds of bacon and on…
3667 Nino La Cuisinere - for all things kitchen
3843 Boucherie Hongroise - grab one of their sizzling sausages to go while you peruse the street
3885 La Vieille Europe - charcuterie and foods from all over the world
3985 Frenco en Vrac - bulk food for more natural products
4358 Schreters - best shop on the street for men’s and boys clothing and now- ladies shoes

Dates and Times: June 17 & 18: 9:30-9, June 19 & 20: 9:30-6. Some stores on the lower Main, closer to Sherbrooke may stay open later on the weekend as they are in the busy restaurant area.

Diamancel products are made with diamond dust and are as hard as diamonds so they are very strong, sharp, washable and never need replacing. They make, right here in Quebec,  diamond nail files, foot buffers and rasps (and also foot cream but I doubt they have diamonds in them!).  The files come in fine, medium, coarse, extra coarse and the callous rasp comes in medium and coarse.

I use their nail file and like it so much I buy them as gifts. They are having a 3-day warehouse clearance sale this week.

Location: 4345 Poirier Blvd, Ville St-Laurent
corner: Thimens Blvd West
Phone: 514-856-9711
Dates and times : June 3: 11-8, June 4: 10-8, June 5: 9-5

Okay so the Habs are out of the race for the Stanley Cup, but all is not lost for Habs fans. This weekend at the Bell Center you can Score Big! There will be a big sale of Habs stuff.  It is the end of season game-used equipment clearance and when they sell off  Canadiens paraphernalia that you love to wear at greatly reduced prices like caps and t-shirts for $8.95 and jerseys for $49.95.

Location: Bell Center Habs Zone Store, 1909, avenue des Canadiens-de-Montréal
Phone: 514-932-2582 or 800 663-6786
Dates: May 29 & 30
Time: 9:30-5