Mark Tesolin Complete Source for Windsor Real Estate

Giant Tiger is Canada's favorite discount store. Founded in Ottawa in 1961 with a $15,000, investment, it has grown to over 184 locations across Canada, with 106 locations in Ontario alone. Some stores are company owned, but the majority are franchised operations, a reflection of company philosophy that customers are better served by local owners.

Giant Tiger carries fashions, home accessories, toys, specialty foods, and housewares. Just as Oprah Winfrey boosted Target's fashion appeal by softening the "t" at the end so it sounds French ("Tar-gay"), Giant Tiger fashion customers refer to the store as "GT Boutique." The company responded by printing bags with this name for fashion purchase.

Employing over 6,500 people in Canada, the chain has undertaken a major expansion in the Greater Toronto Area since 2005 by opening six stores in Bradford, Brampton, Markham, Mississauga, Newmarket, and Scarborough. The store also operates as Scott's Discount and Chez Tante Marie in some areas.

Aside from being a popular place to shop, the chain has distinguished itself for beatifying the local areas with colorful exterior mural Since 1991, Mural artist Pierre Hardy, a native of Ottawa, has created outdoor art that often features tigers, as well as local points of interest. Giant Tiger locations which offer his works of art include: Ottawa, Smiths Falls, Pembroke, Prescott, New Liskeard, Napanee, Mont Laurier, Campbellford, Picton, Cornwall, St. Jerome, Deep River, Lakefield, Granby, Shawinigan Sud, Saint-Jovite, L'Annonciation, Listowel, Shawville and Gavenhurst.

There are two Giant Tiger stores conveniently located in Windsor. For information about great places to live in Windsor, call your Prudential Select Real Estate Agent Mark Tesolin at (519) 972-5505 or visit http://marktesolin.com.

Home Health Care in Windsor has taken a high-tech turn. Nurses and patients will both benefit from a pilot project by Saint Elizabeth Health Care. The company has chosen Windsor's 200 frontline staff to test the C5 Tablet Computer. The technology will eliminate much of a nurse's paperwork and free up more of his or her time to care for patients. It allows them to access a client's chart and history, fill out forms online, take photographs of the patient or any sores or wounds they may have, and communicate with doctors and specialists in their offices. It will hopefully increase the speed of treatment for minor conditions and reduce the number of office visits patients have to make for these conditions. If this project is successful, it will be used by SEHC in its other locations across the province. SEHC made 290,000 home visits last year in Windsor and 3 million across Ontario.

This innovative program is one more reason to settle in Windsor. For information about properties in Windsor, call your Prudential Select Real Estate Agent Mark Tesolin at (519) 972-5505 or visit http://marktesolin.com.

Windsor's Holland Consignment Shoppe & Auction House is the perfect place for finding treasures for your new home or selling items that you prefer not to take to your next home. They have a showroom that is over 11,000 square feet filled with an assortment of unique, antique, and nearly new items. As Southern Ontario's largest personal property liquidation company, they not only have retail consignment sales, they also provide auction services, eBay sales, and appraisals by an accredited appraiser.

Visit Holland Consignment Shoppe & Auction House on the web and then head over to their showroom at 1407 Ottawa St, at the corner of Ottawa and Moy, behind the TD Bank. Parking is along the side of the building. The store is open Monday through Saturday.

Need a new home to put those treasures in? Or need to sel the old one you're cleaning out?

For information about properties in Windsor, call your Prudential Select Real Estate Agent Mark Tesolin at (519) 972-5505 or visit http://marktesolin.com.

Over 60 years ago, Erie Street and the St. Angela Merici Church was a haven for Windsor's Italian immigrants. An assortment of Italian family-run restaurants and shops sprang up around the church, and Erie Street became the center for Windsor's Italian culture.

Nowadays, this one-mile strip of Erie Street is known as Via Italia and it attracts visitors from across Canada, the U.S., and around the world. Via Italia draws on its Italian roots and provides over 100 small, family-run businesses with an Italian flair. You will find Italian-style clothing boutiques, shoe stores, kitchenware shops, linen stores, grocery stores, and more. Additionally, you can partake in some of the best Italian food Windsor has to offer, from intimate espresso and cappuccino shops to exquisite Ristorantes. Come enjoy Windsor's Little Italy; a trip to Italy has never been this close.

For information about properties in Windsor, call your Prudential Select Real Estate Agent Mark Tesolin at (519) 972-5505 or visit http://marktesolin.com.

Hybrid and diesel-powered minivans are hot items on the market now. Although there has been a recent shift to smaller cars, there will always be a demand for vehicles that seat five to seven people and are capable of lugging baby gear. With gas price at recent all time highs, space AND 20 mpg city, 30 mpg highway are a desirable combination.

The Dodge Grand Caravan, built in Windsor since 2007, could be the first hybrid minivan to make it to market. It certainly won't be the last, though. Toyota plans to offer a hybrid Sienna by 2010. And Volkswagen and Honda are expected to offer diesel versions of their minivans to meet the demand for more fuel efficient vehicles. VW just began assembling the Routan van in Windsor via a contract with Chrysler's van assembly plant.

J.D. Power reports that Chrysler will use its two-mode hybrid system it developed in partnership with General Motors, BMW, and Daimler Benz in its minivans. The two-mode system is currently available in the Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon but these are not selling well due to the high price tag. Chrysler may also opt for a cheaper alternative from China.

Chrysler is bringing hybrids to market to meet both consumer demand and to improve its fuel economy numbers under U.S. law. Chrysler is under more pressure to bring fuel-efficient vehicles to market than either Ford or GM because its sales are more heavily skewed to trucks than its Detroit rivals. Yet, the vehicle is predicted to do very well in the Canadian marketplace, where it has been the third highest selling vehicle in the country.

Honda's and Volkswagen's diesel-powered vans could be competitive with hybrids because they can be sold at a premium of about $2,000 per unit, which is less than half the premium demanded by the more expensive hybrid systems.