El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Shoppers may need a little holiday magic themselves to snag one of this year's hottest toys.
Demand has been high in Canada and the United States for Magic Mixies, a creation of Moose Toys out of Australia.
The toy has kids mix magical ingredients together in a cauldron, creating real mist, and then, with the tap of a special wand and a couple of magic words, a pink or blue furry pet, or Mixie, is born.
With helpful marketing from 'How I Met Your Mother' star Neil Patrick Harris, the holiday frenzy for Magic Mixies has been dubbed by The New York Post as "worse than 'Tickle Me Elmo.'"
Up north, several retailers have reported being out of stock of the popular toy as of Friday, including Walmart, Indigo, The Bay and Toys 'R' Us.
Those willing to fork up a few more bucks can find Magic Mixies on Amazon.ca or eBay for well over $100 in most cases, with some listing the furry creature for about $200.
"There's so many cool elements to this toy, I think," Kristin Morency Goldman, a spokesperson for the U.S. not-for-profit The Toy Association, told CTVNews.ca by phone.
"Really, the innovation and the creativity in the toy itself is really driving the demand — and you can repeat the process over and over again."
Goldman says there always is that one toy every holiday season that everyone wants but can't get their hands on, whether it's Tickle Me Elmo or back in the 1980s with Cabbage Patch Kids.
And this year, Magic Mixies just happens to have that perfect storm of ingredients that drives what kids want in a toy, she says, with kids able to go through the "magic reveal" over and over again.
The current shipping crisis has impacted the availability of all toys, Goldman says, although there are still many options out there that are just as innovative as Magic Mixies.
"But I would say, if you see one and want one, get it. Don't wait five minutes, because in five minutes it'll be gone."
Marty Weintraub, national retail leader at Deloitte, says shoppers have been a bit more fearful as a result of the supply chain challenges, with people starting their holiday shopping earlier than ever "to a pretty serious magnitude."
Holiday shopping, which usually begins closer to Black Friday, saw an uptake around the end of October and early November, he says.
As part of its 2021 holiday retail outlook, Deloitte found 14 per cent of consumers planned on completing their shopping on Cyber Monday. Another 65 per cent expected to finish in December, down from 75 per cent in 2019, which Deloitte believes reflects rising concerns around pandemic-driven supply chain issues and their impact on retailers.
Even with existing supply chain challenges, Weintraub says stores do have a lot of product available — shoppers just may not be able to get the exact item they want, or at as deep of a discount.
"Unfortunately, there's lots of things that have to get solved, and on top of that you have really strong demand," Weintraub said as far as when consumers and retailers may see some easing in the supply chain.
There are signs that the situation may improve over the next several months, Weintraub says, although that will depend on factors such as when demand starts to waver or whether existing labour challenges continue to persist.
As far as advice he would give to shoppers — and with only a few weeks left before Christmas — Weintraub says don't procrastinate, and the more digitally savvy you are the better shot you'll have.
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
The Maple Leafs battled back from a 3-1 series deficit against the Boston Bruins with consecutive 2-1 victories - including one that required extra time - in their first-round playoff series to push the club's Original Six rival to the limit before suffering a devastating Game 7 overtime loss.
Amid scientists' warnings that nations need to transition away from fossil fuels to limit climate change, Canadians are still lukewarm on electric vehicles, according to a study conducted by Nanos Research for CTV News.
Three people have died and two have been hospitalized after a speeding car struck a tree and landed on another vehicle in Fredericton Sunday morning.
A Montreal man is warning Tesla drivers about using the Smart Summon feature after his vehicle hit another in a parking lot.
Madonna put on a free concert on Copacabana beach Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro's vast stretch of sand into an enormous dance floor teeming with a multitude of her fans.
Thieves killed two Australians and an American on a surfing trip to Mexico in order to steal their truck, particularly because they wanted the tires, authorities said Sunday.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.