Quebec language police crack down on retailers with English-only signs

[Locutus]

MONTREAL — Major Canadian retailers are preparing to fight Quebec’s language police to keep their trademarks intact, in the face of threatened prosecution of English-named companies that include no French in their storefront signage.

Montreal’s downtown streets and suburban shopping malls are awash with such brands as Banana Republic, Old Navy, Sunglass Hut, Foot Locker and Home Depot, and the Office québécois de la langue française has decided things have gone too far.

The Office last month began mailing warnings to dozens of companies that have not co-operated with its push to have stores with trademarked English names add generic French terms to their signs. For example, Second Cup has added “les cafés” before its name and the eyewear chain New Look added “lunetterie.”


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Quebec language police crack down on retailers with English-only signs | News | National Post

 

[taxslave]

Bilingual country, eh?

 

[DurkaDurka]

These companies should pack up and leave, it's the only way Quebec will get any sort of message.

 

[s_lone]

These companies should pack up and leave, it's the only way Quebec will get any sort of message.

Companies want to make money and Quebecers buy stuff like all other Canadians. From a business point of view, there's no good reason to pack up.

 

[Spade]

Why is compliance such a difficult hurdle? Accommodation is good business. It is a sign of respect.

 

[lone wolf]

I wonder if they'd object to badly spelled English handles - like Kwikee March

 

[DurkaDurka]

Companies want to make money and Quebecers buy stuff like all other Canadians. From a business point of view, there's no good reason to pack up.

Expecting companies to change their trademarked logos etc is ridiculous. As long as you can be served in french, it should end there. How can you expect the rest of Canada to respect Bilingualism when you don't practise what you preach? Do you not understand what "The Gap" is? Or do you need a bunch of French words added on to it to make you feel all warm inside?

Why is compliance such a difficult hurdle? Accommodation is good business. It is a sign of respect.

It seems it only a problem now since some whiny nationalists called your "hotline".

Here is the crux of the problem

"English-only trademarks have been accepted by the government for years and now the rules are being re-written on short notice – which is bad for business, the Retail Council of Canada says.

Read more:

 

[B00Mer]

New France, we should kick them out of Canada.. sucking up the West's revenues and gives what back to Canada, culture?

If I want culture, I'll go to Florida or California.. there is enough culture in California for a life time, on every street corner..

Fresh squeezed oranges anyone?? (...and you thought I was talking about hookers) tisk tisk

 

[mentalfloss]

Why is compliance such a difficult hurdle? Accommodation is good business. It is a sign of respect.

Yea but companies don't want to pay for the ink and translators.

Bad for profits!

 

[DurkaDurka]

Yea but companies don't want to pay for the ink and translators.

Bad for profits!

It's hardly an issue of profits, it's an issue of transparency as the language police basically changes the rules on the fly.

 

[lone wolf]

Say it with a French accent. The mouthiest of them wouldn't know the difference anyway

 

[TenPenny]

Why is compliance such a difficult hurdle? Accommodation is good business. It is a sign of respect.

Eaton's had to call themselves Eaton in Quebec, it was an expensive legal process to go through. For nothing, really.

 

[B00Mer]