UK-based foodservice chain Pret a Manger is expanding its presence in the Canadian market with fully-branded location in the Financial District in downtown Toronto. It follows a pilot project that some were calling insufficient.
The original two-year pilot project saw the brand open as a shop-in-shop concept within select A&W Canada locations across the country, with the Vancouver debut in July 2022 and Toronto later that year. Dozens of stores had been retrofitted to include Pret, which included a refrigeration and warming unit for prepared items.
What was lacking in these A&W locations was a full Pret a Manger experience, possibly prompting the launch of a fully dedicated storefront to test the market.
Construction hoarding for the new stand-alone QSR location was installed on the former Tim Hortons at 90 Adelaide Street West at the end of September, with wrapping that announced the store would be opening in “Winter 2024”.
The previous tenant had shuttered in 2021 after more than 15-years in that location.
Canada’s first Pret a Manager will be located across the street from First Canadian Place, with a number of newly-added and soon-to-open brands.
Modern Golf opened in the former Tip Top Tailors location in early 2023, bringing the indoor golf experience to the financial district for its first downtown Toronto location. Paul Fisher, President, CEO and Managing Partner of Modern Golf shared in the Retail Insider exclusive announcement that the location “is as centre ice as centre ice can get. First Canadian Place is an iconic asset. It’s Brookfield. It doesn’t get any bigger than that. It’s so special to me.”
Justin Curtis and Robert Weinberg of real estate company Oberfeld Snowcap are representing Modern Golf in the brand’s national expansion.
Signage has been installed nearby for Sing Sing Beer Bar, a Vancouver-based concept managed by Freehouse Collective and operated by Donnelly Group. The beer, pho and pizza restaurant is set to open in the former Duke of Westminster at First Canadian Place.
Sing Sing joins Black + Blue Steakhouse, Cactus Club, King Taps and Reds as restaurant anchors in First Canadian Place and the Exchange Tower.
First Canadian Place also recently saw the opening of a renovated Starbucks, relocated Karir Eyewear, Fancy Face “Champagne Room” pop-up lifestyle and beauty concept and a soon-to-open NEO Coffee Bar.
The area around the new Pret a Manger is also developing. With stock-market inspired bar concept CKTL & Co at Bay & Adelaide having opened this past April and Alobar debuting its York & Adelaide location in May, the area is making a calculated shift to cater to both the traditional financial district clientele and the new evening & weekend crowds.
Retail Insider will be reporting on a number of new F&B brands that will be opening in the area soon, including the soon-to-open Mott32 on University Avenue at the Shangri-La Hotel. We will also be reporting on the new JOEY King Street, which will see the addition of an upscale dining experience to the former RBC at 20 King Street West.
The response for the first wave of Pret a Manger’s shop-in-shop retrofitting inside existing A&W in Canada was mixed, with a variety of reviews and first-hand personal accounts focused on quality and supply chain issues. With a dedicated format for the Pret brand coming to the market, it could bring an element of consistency that is currently amiss with the partnership format.
Retail Insider had reached out to both Pret a Manger and A&W Canada at the end of September for comment for an article on the first standalone store, with no comment being provided. We will continue to cover this developing story.
Robert Weinberg of real estate company Oberfeld Snowcap is representing Pret a Manger.
I always thought 20 King W would make a perfect Apple Store even though there was little chance of them locating one there. Still, glad to see something going in.