This event is a great opportunity for anyone in the retail sector who is interested in learning how to harness the power of digital and mobile technology to delight customers and drive footfall, sales & frequency.
After 40+ years working with and for retailers, Mr. Mason was given the opportunity to distil all he has learned into a book. Omnichannel Retail shares lessons from Tim’s time as CMO and Deputy CEO of Tesco through to his current role as CEO of Eagle Eye, where he has been central to the success of the PC Optimum programme at Loblaws in Canada.
Omnichannel Retail demystifies digital engagement and loyalty in today’s customer-facing physical spaces. It also traces the impact and growing online opportunity to bring digital in store via mobile, based on lessons learned using customer data to foster loyalty in the face of unprecedented change.
The book has already been rated Best New Book on Retail by the BookAuthority and has featured on the BBC, Retail TouchPoints and the Retail Transformation Show.
Guests will receive a complimentary copy of the book along with a chance to meet the author and get involved in an interactive Q&A session.
EVENT INFORMATION
Title: How to Build Winning Stores Meet the Author and Eagle Eye CEO, Tim Mason
Date: Tuesday, June 18, 2019
Location: 2nd Floor Events (461 King Street West Toronto, ON M5V 1K4 Canada)
PHOTO: RETAIL INSIDER (OPENING OF UNIQLO STORE, WEM)
Popular Japanese fashion retailer Uniqlo will enter the Alberta market this fall when it opens a storefront at the popular West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton. The store is the first in Canada for Uniqlo outside of the Toronto and Vancouver markets, kicking off the brand’s national expansion that could eventually see as many as 100 stores in the coming years.
Uniqlo will locate in a second-level retail space at West Edmonton Mall spanning just over 17,000 square feet according to lease plans, in a strategic location overlooking the mall’s indoor skating rink called the ‘Mayfield Toyota Ice Palace’. Uniqlo will occupy three retail spaces formerly occupied by Murale, Laura and Browns Shoes. Shoppers Drug Mart-owned beauty concept Murale appears to be in the process of shuttering its last stores. The former West Edmonton Mall Murale unit included about 3,000 square feet of retail space with an additional 2,665 square feet on an upstairs mezzanine level. Laura recently relocated to a new retail space at West Edmonton Mall, vacating its 10,300 square foot space next to Murale and across from the mall’s busy Lululemon and Zara stores. Browns Shoes has already vacated its space next to the former Laura unit and will reopen in a 7,500 square foot space in the mall that was formerly occupied by Williams Sonoma, making it one of Browns’ largest stores when it opens.
CLICK FOR INTERACTIVE MAP
West Edmonton Mall is likely to be a very successful location for Uniqlo. The busy shopping centre sees more than 28-million visitors annually, with nearly half being from out-of-town. Edmonton is becoming more multicultural and many residents are already familiar with the Uniqlo brand — locals have been eagerly anticipating the brand’s entry into the Edmonton market after Uniqlo opened its first Canadian storefronts in the fall of 2016.
Uniqlo’s colourful stores are known for their staple fashion lines — Uniqlo ‘ultra light down puffer jackets’ are wildly popular worldwide, as is the brand’s cashmere offerings and the ‘HEATTECH’ line which features a technological innovation involving inner wear that generates heat from one’s own body temperature (Uniqlo refers to its fashions as ‘LifeWear’). Uniqlo also regularly releases limited-edition t-shirts which often sellout quickly to crowds of fans.
Uniqlo currently operates 11 stores in Canada, with seven of those in the Greater Toronto Area and four in the Vancouver area. Uniqlo entered the Canadian market with two stores in Toronto in the fall of 2016. In September of 2016, Uniqlo opened its first Canadian flagship, spanning 33,400 square feet, at CF Toronto Eaton Centre. A 30,000+ square foot Yorkdale Shopping Centre Uniqlo store subsequently opened in October of 2016, in the mall’s Nordstrom-anchored expansion wing. The CF Toronto Eaton Centre flagship recently expanded further by about 4,500 square feet when it added Canada’s first ‘UT’ shop selling the brand’s popular limited edition t-shirts.
YORKDALE SHOPPING CENTRE STORE OPENING IN AUGUST OF 2016. PHOTO: DEVON JOHNSON
PHOTO: UNIQLO
Uniqlo’s first store in the BC Lower Mainland opened in October of 2017 at Metropolis at Metrotown in Burnaby, in a 20,630 two-level space. That was followed by the opening of a 17,900 square foot location at Guildford Town Centre in Surrey in March of 2018, and then with an 11,570 square foot store at CF Richmond Centre in suburban Vancouver.
Most recently, Uniqlo opened its 10th and 11th Canadian storefronts in the Greater Toronto Area. In March, the retailer opened a 12,000 square foot store at Oshawa Centre east of Toronto, which was followed by the April opening of a 15,000 square foot location at Upper Canada Mall in Newmarket.
Uniqlo is noticeably absent from the downtown Vancouver market, and a large flagship store announcement is expected at some point if a retail space can be secured. As far back as 2014, sources confirmed that Uniqlo had been in talks to operate a three-level flagship on Robson Street in a newly-build retail building next to Sephora on the 1000-block, though the store never opened.
UNIQLO’S NEWLY EXPANDED CF TORONTO EATON CENTRE STORE ALL PHOTOS: UNIQLO VIA FACEBOOK
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The Montreal market is also a target market for Uniqlo and the retailer’s website has been advertising job openings for the past several months. More details of a first location are expected to be released soon.
Jeff Berkowitz of brokerage Aurora Realty Consultants is handling Uniqlo’s search for retail space in Canada and negotiated all Canadian lease deals on behalf of the retailer.
We’re already seeing some chains such as Le Chateau struggling, with the future of other chains in Canada such as J. Crew being uncertain. There are also more international retailers that are in a similar space to Uniqlo that are considering Canada — an example is fast-fashion Swedish brand Lindex, which was recently seeking out a local partner to launch a Canadian store expansion.
Canada is also seeing an influx of Asian retailers opening stores — minimalist Japanese retailer Muji plans to operate between 20 and 25 stores in Canada , and it is also expected to expand beyond Toronto and Vancouver as it secures Canadian real estate. Value-priced variety retailer Miniso, now being run by its Chinese parent company after accusations of fraud by its former Canadian division, plans to open about 500 stores in Canada over the next three years is another example. Hong Kong-based eyewear retailer Mujosh is another example, with plans to penetrate the already crowded Canadian market with more eyewear storefronts.
Toronto-based POPCANN, the only tech-driven, prefabricated cannabis retail store, is poised for aggressive expansion across the country.
Co-founders Mike Girgis and Jake Neiman have created a concept they believe will disrupt the mainstream retail approach for bringing legal cannabis to more markets and alternative destinations.
“Mike and I have been business partners now for 17 years in the marketing and experiential technology space,” said Neiman, who is the company’s CEO. “We own and operate an innovation company and a marketing technology company called Big Digital and through our operation of Big Digital we do lots of pop up and permanent activation and technology installations for advertising agencies and brands and retailers.
PHOTO: POPCANN
“Through all of our efforts with these different organizations we uncovered this very interesting and untapped opportunity within the cannabis space. And that was about a year ago when we first started to develop POPCANN as a solution for the cannabis industry . . . Our mandate is to ensure legal cannabis is made accessible to customers wherever they may be. Optimal sizes and layouts enable us to bring legal cannabis to northern communities, music festivals, seasonal towns and other non-traditional environments, and offer a truly unique retail experience.”
The company is applying for retail licences and in the next 12 months, it is expecting seven to 10 stores to be fully operational. Three locations are currently under development in Manitoba and should be operating by the end of summer.
“In the long-term, we think that there could be several hundred POPCANNs operational across North America,” said Neiman.
PHOTO: POPCANN
POPCANN’s are developed specifically for the cannabis industry and are compliant with the regulations in the markets in which they operate.
POPCANNs integrate the latest experiential and projection mapping technology.
“POPCANN is a solution to make legal cannabis much more accessible to Canadians,” said Neiman. “POPCANN was created as a responsive solution to be able to bring legal cannabis to these different markets very quickly.”
The retail stores range in size from 400 square feet up to about 800 square feet and the company is developing POPCANNs that are up to 2,000 square feet. The units are built from reclaimed shipping containers.
“The way we can do a 2,000-square-foot POPCANN is having multiple modular sections that get delivered in sections that can be assembled within a couple of days,” said Neiman.
PHOTO: POPCANN
Girgis, the company’s President, said it has created an immersive experience by deploying marketing technology in the shipping containers.
“When you walk into a POPCANN, the moment you walk in, you’re going to realize that it’s not like a regular store. Not just because the fact it’s a shipping container and it’s a little smaller. But we’re using projection technology to map visual communications right on the wall so you won’t see shelving, won’t see product. You will just see digital imagery and communications on the walls to create these immersive experiences,” said Girgis.
“You will have a wide screen right above the ordering counter that displays our feature products. You’ll have touchscreen technology if you want to peruse the products on your own and there’s also a WiFi network that you can jump onto the POPCANN network to peruse the products as well. But it’s really, truly, taking advantage of the latest in digital technology from a projection perspective. We’re using augmented reality so people can use their own phones to look at products based on markers that we have on our walls and on the screens. So really trying to create an innovative digital experience.”
PHOTO: POPCANN
Inside of every POPCANN is a vault to hold the product. The interior is custom built to be fully compliant with cannabis retail regulations.
POPCANN has also partnered with Storage Vault’s portable storage division to bring POPCANN to diverse regions.
“Our partnership with POPCANN is an excellent example of how very different businesses can team up in creative ways,” said Steven Scott, CEO of Storage Vault. “This partnership provides POPCANN with a national infrastructure, logistics and distribution platform to bring legal cannabis to Canadians from secure, yet accessible areas.”
Neiman said a unique element of POPCANN’s partnership with Storage Vault is that the company has the cranes, the trucking and the logistical infrastructure to support its needs as it starts to distribute the units to different destinations.
“One of the reasons POPCANN partnered with them was to leverage their existing infrastructure to enable us to be operating in places like Calgary and Edmonton where they have existing facilities already in place. We can leverage their logistical infrastructure to be much more responsive than we would as a startup,” he said.
Neiman said POPCANNs are perfect solutions for having retail stores at music festivals, concerts and multi-day events. The units are custom-engineered for these types of environments.
Mattress-in-a-Box Brand ‘Casper’ to Open Calgary Showroom: New York City-based sleep brand Casper, which has been expanding its Canadian operations by opening showrooms as well as a new flagship/headquarters, is opening a 2,200 square foot showroom at CF Chinook Centre in Calgary with construction now underway. It will be the fourth standalone Casper location in Canada.
CASPER’S SLEEP SHOP IN DOWNTOWN TORONTO, ON PHOTO: CASPER
The Calgary Casper storefront will be located on the main level of CF Chinook Centre near the entrance to the mall’s Nordstrom anchor store. A large Microsoft store is located next door and retailers Birks and Tumi are located across the way. CF Chinook Centre is the leading shopping centre in southern Alberta in terms of overall sales-per-square-foot productivity and tenant mix, and is anchored by Hudson’s Bay as well as Alberta’s only Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom stores. As well, Louis Vuitton opened a standalone store in the centre last year and more big names are on the way.
Casper opened its first Canadian location in the spring of 2018 at Toronto’s CF Sherway Gardens. That was followed by its Canadian flagship at 342 Queen Street West in Toronto, which also houses the brand’s Canadian headquarters. Casper recently announced that a Canadian manufacturing facility is now producing mattresses for the local market. Future locations are planned for British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec, as well as even more in the Ontario market.
CLICK IMAGE FOR INTERACTIVE CF CHINOOK CENTRE MALL FLOOR PLAN, VIA CADILLAC FAIRVIEW
Casper was founded in New York City in 2014 as a direct-to-consumer online retailer and has celebrity backers including Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Adam Levine and Ashton Kutcher. The company boasts sales in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
Nordstrom Men Continues its Pop-up “Concept” Series with a Patagonia Shop-in-Store: Nordstrom’s New Concepts@NordstromMen series continues with the retailer’s fourth pop-up: Patagonia. The collaboration with the popular outdoor brand marks the first time New Concepts will expand to include products for women and children. Canadian shoppers can view the collection at Nordstrom’s CF Pacific Centre location in Vancouver until July 7th, 2019 as well as online.
Meticulous curation continues to be the theme of the “Concepts” series. The Patagonia shop will showcase a collection of favourites like Responsibili-Tees, Baggies shorts, and Snap-T fleece pullovers to name a few. Echoing the rise of slow fashion and giving gently used clothing a second life, the shop will showcase items from Patagonia’s “Worn Wear” program. The program is an effort to help reduce the related carbon, water, and waste footprints that are associated with the fashion industry.
“The more you learn about Patagonia, the more you connect with their overall mission to protect the planet,” said Sam Lobban, VP Men’s Fashion at Nordstrom. “I’ve always been a fan of sustainable fashion that is functional, well made and built to last, and we’re excited to share Patagonia’s story through our pop-ups.”
Each Patagonia pop-up shop is custom designed in collaboration with the outdoor retailer and features unique fixtures crafted by artist Jay Nelson that are made from reclaimed and sustainable lumber sources. A core part of Patagonia’s mission is to save our home planet; they are a certified B-Corporation along with being internationally recognized for their commitment to product quality and environmental activism.
Above: Video of Oberfeld Snowcap’s VP of Business Development, Jay Freedman, who discusses some of the exceptional services that the consultancy/brokerage offers its clients. Click to watch the video and for more information, visit: www.OberfeldSnowcap.com.
Relaunch of Audi Queensway Dealership by Dilwari Group in Toronto: Designed by WEIS and Associates and RH Carter, the newly relaunched Audi Queensway dealership in Etobicoke is based on the Terminal Design from Audi AG and the company says that it focuses on customer convenience and future growth. Audi Queensway was relaunched to create the most immersive and customer-focused brand experience for premium automobile enthusiasts in western Toronto, according to the retailer.
PHOTO: AUDI QUEENSWAY
PHOTO: AUDI QUEENSWAY
Audi Queensway now features unique designs, including a frameless glass edge at the front of the showroom, encompassing one of the largest Audi showrooms in the country. The new indoor vehicle handover area was designed with cloud lighting made to resemble natural sunlight and emphasize the bold lines and exceptional design of each Audi vehicle, while the six-vehicle dual lane heated service drive through ensures customers do not need to step outside during any of Canada’s four weather seasons.
Customers can relax during service appointments in the 1,500 square-foot private customer lounge and adjoining rooftop terrace and putting green. Perhaps most notably, Audi Queensway boasts an environmentally green rooftop to help positively impact Toronto’s urban environment.
The multi-million dollar, state-of-the-art dealership is reflective of the premium Audi brand and Canada’s largest automotive dealership enterprise, Dilawri Group. The relaunched Audi Queensway dealership opens Tuesday, June 19, and is located at 1635 The Queensway, Etobicoke.
Staples Launches Innovative “Solutionshop” In-Store Concept: Retailer Staples Canada continues to uphold its updated brand promise of being a place to “Work. Learn. Grow” with the launch of its new “Solutionshop” concept at all 305 stores nationwide and online. This new concept from Staples is a reimagination of their previous Print & Marketing services. The Solutionshop offers a range of design, print, marketing, shipping and tech services to help people achieve their business goals.
STAPLES’ NEW SOLUTIONSHOP PHOTO: STAPLES
STAPLES’ NEW SOLUTIONSHOP PHOTO: STAPLES
“Whether you’re a student, teacher, side-hustler, entrepreneur or small business owner, we want Solutionshop to be the place that you turn to for expert advice and support,” said Gogi Grewal, Chief Services and Transformation Officer, Staples Canada. Staples has secured exclusive partnerships with FedEx, Purolator, and Xpresspost, giving entrepreneurs and small businesses access to one of Canada’s largest shipping networks. The retailer’s Connected Tech service will help customers in-store, at home, or at their office with all their tech needs from computer maintenance to data protection and recovery.
To support entrepreneurs across the country, Staples launched the “This is How I Grow my Business Contest” which will give three Canadian small businesses the chance to win a $20,000 prize package from Staples. The three winners will also receive a mentorship opportunity with Joe Mimran, founder of Joe Fresh and recent Staples collaborator. To learn more about the contest, click here.
As well, brand consultancy Jackman Reinvents announced this week that it is communications agency of record for Staples. Jackman was also behind Staples’ rebranding and strategy for its new store format that we profiled recently in Retail Insider, which includes interactive spaces that include in-store co-working areas.
Toronto’s Fairmont Royal York Unveils Renovation: The iconic Toronto hotel, the Fairmont Royal York is revealing some newly renovated areas ahead of its 90th anniversary. The redesign was conceived by New York-based architecture and design studio, Rockwell Group. When the hotel originally opened in June of 1929, it was designed by Ross and Macdonald (along with Sproatt and Rolph), who was one of Canada’s most respected firms of the 20th century.
Fairmont Royal York
Two levels dedicated to retail, including ground-floor and a concourse level connected to the PATH pedestrian network, have been refreshed as part of the renovations. Once upon a time, Canada’s major luxury department store, Holt Renfrew, operated a small store at the Royal York in decades past.
The inspiration for the renovated Royal York was a journey from Toronto’s past to its present. Due to its proximity and connection to Union Station, Rockwell incorporated elements and details cued from the aesthetics of train cars and railroads. It was very important to the Fairmont Royal York and Rockwell group that the history of the hotel was preserved in a way that would catapult it into its next era.
ENDY Releases Bed Frame to Compliment the Brand’s Mattresses: The popular Canadian mattress-in-a-box brand Endy has released its first furniture piece to their assortment of products: a bed frame. The launch of the bed frame is a logical extension of the product line; Endy already offers other sleep essentials like sheets, mattress covers, and pillows.
Photo: Endy
The Endy Bed Frame features a German-engineered connecting system and does not require the use of screws or tools to be assembled, which is a lovely contrast from the flat-packaged, self-assembled furniture many people have come to know over the years. The new addition was designed with a modern and sleek look and low profile for a stylish feel.
In a first for the Canadian furniture industry, the slats of the frame are made from sustainably-sourced and Canadian-made materials. Endy’s new bed frame is built to last and can hold up to 1200 lbs. The Endy Bed Frame is available in mattress sizes from twin to California king with prices ranging from $299 – $450. Endy’s American competitor, Casper, offers a range of bed frames including an adjustable option. Casper’s product lineup also includes nightstands and dog beds; it’s possible that we will see similar offerings and new innovations from Endy to maintain their competitive edge.
We are seeing some movement with grocers on the food packaging front. Over a month ago, Metro opted to allow consumers to come in to shop for food with their own containers. Metro was first, but it’s not a national player. Loblaw just announced it was partnering with TerraCycle, an American-based company which specializes in consignment packaging, for a one-year pilot project, in the Toronto area. Good timing, considering the mounting pressures that the food industry is under these days.
For months, rumors in Canada were swirling about the Loop’s entry into the market. Most observers knew it was just a matter of time. The Loop is the TerraCycle-led program, which allows consumers to buy food in reusable containers. In Canada, only Loblaw really has the sales volume to support the logistics required to run this circular economy initiative.
Loblaw is Canada’s number one grocer with sales exceeding $47 billion yearly. Starting some time in 2020 when the program is launched, these containers will only be available to customers purchasing online and will be picked up again by Loblaw. No information has been given yet about fees or costs for consumers, but The Loop program typically requires an initial deposit, as seen in other markets in the U.S.
PHOTO: LOOP VIA FACEBOOK
It will be interesting to see whether consumers embrace The Loop’s program at Loblaw’s. A recent study released by Dalhousie University suggested that while 93.1% of Canadians want the plastic issue to disappear, only 23.2% of them would accept paying a fee to a food company for reusable food packaging. Furthermore, most Canadians would not accept their food bill going up while still seeing more plastic packaging in food stores. These statistics are far from convincing.
This is likely why Loblaw opted to run a pilot with TerraCycle, instead of committing to a full-blown, nation-wide initiative. Loblaw is clearly challenging Canadians to become better environmental stewards and investing partners, as it were. Literally everyone – industry, governments, and consumers – want less plastic in the food industry. But at the core of this issue is cost. The environmental factor, as with the issue of food safety, has zero market currency. Charging more for an eco-friendly program in food retailing remains a non-starter for most Canadians.
Consumers are not willing to pay more to address our collective addiction to plastics. But the plastics legacy in food goes beyond the discussion about pollution that we have all seen in the media. As a cheap material, plastics have kept food affordable and safe, and have reduced the amount of food waste we all generate. As much as plastics have become this despicable monster to our society and our current course remains unsustainable, eliminating plastics in the food industry is no easy task.
METRO BLOOR STREET: PHOTO WIKIPEDIA
Our way of life and food safety expectations can only force the food industry to use more plastics, if current practices are not altered. For one thing, single servings of ready-to-eat, portable portions are more popular than ever. More people live alone or will eat on-the-go. These servings require more packaging, and thus, more plastics. Secondly, new food safety rules which are now being implemented for better traceability are putting more pressure on the food industry to use more packaging. Most of our food safety regulations are not really aligned with the industry’s environmental obligations. But based on the Dalhousie report, it appears as though consumers see the environment as a more important factor than food safety.
Despite knowing all this, both Metro and Loblaw have shown leadership, in different ways. On the one hand, Metro is going out on a limb, from a food safety perspective, for the environment. Allowing customers to bring in their own “clean” containers raises significant food safety concerns. Even if containers are indeed clean, the naked eye cannot see pathogens like salmonella, E. coli, or even worse, allergens.
While Metro now has a moral contract with its patrons, Loblaw is going ahead with a more supply chain-focused solution, which will most likely require consumers to pay more, one way or another. Sobeys will come up with something soon, no doubt, but Canadians will need to respond to our grocers’ invitation to save the planet, because they just can’t do it on their own.
Our journey to a food world with less plastics won’t be easy, but it will require consumers, not just the industry, to act. Do expect more initiatives to come from industry in the months to come, as they can’t afford to wait for governments to lead this. As with many issues, industry is always ahead of policy, and the plastics dilemma we all face is no exception.
Faced with escalating costs, including huge business property tax hikes, Calgary’s small business community has rallied to fight back in a tax revolt the likes of which the city has never seen.
Hundreds of small business owners gathered on the steps of City Hall early Monday morning prior to city council holding an emergency debate over the controversial issue. Later, council voted unanimously to cut spending and deliver rebates that would effectively chop 10 per cent from the non-residential property tax – council voted unanimously to cut $60 million from the city’s budget and to direct $70.9 million towards business rebates.
“The 10 per cent commercial property tax cut seems to me to be a reactionary and ineffective measure that goes nowhere to acknowledge and deal with the real problem with how property taxes are allocated and applied and just kicks the can down the road again. Calgary risks being perceived as a business unfriendly jurisdiction as this mess rolls out in the media and online. Our civic leaders need to sort this out in an equitable and timely manner and help our City get its entrepreneurial mojo back,” said Michael Kehoe, broker/owner with Fairfield Commercial Real Estate who attended the rally.
PHOTO: MARIO TONEGUZZI
“We’re hearing that Calgary has lost its competitiveness. Retailers are under pressure in a soft economy with rising costs such as property taxes and it’s really affecting their bottom line and their competitiveness.”
If the problem doesn’t get fixed, Kehoe said it will lead to some small business closures, while other stores will be under pressure to save costs by taking measures such as laying off staff.
“There is a tax revolt happening in the business community in Calgary. People are really upset and their voices are being heard by council,” said Kehoe. “Council’s under pressure to find a solution and I think the small business community is finally mobilizing to fight back to the city councillors, who have not performed. They basically killed the goose that laid the golden egg in our retail and our food service community in Calgary.”
PHOTO: MARIO TONEGUZZI
Richard Truscott, Alberta director of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said the organization has been hearing a lot of frustration and a lot of anger from the small business community and Calgary’s city council has lit a fuse.
“They’ve done this to themselves and push has come to shove and finally small business owners are pushing back,” said Truscott.
“They’re really disgusted by the fact that small businesses in this city continue to be treated like a cash cow by the mayor and council and it’s got to stop. Finally council has woken up and they’re going to do something about the emergency, about the crisis, but they must do something about the longer term issue here which is the fundamental unfairness for small business in Calgary that pay four to four and a half times more than residents based on the same assessed value of property. The system needs to be made a lot more fair for small businesses. No question about it. And the time is now.”
PHOTO: MARIO TONEGUZZI
Truscott said there have been many issues that have affected small business in the past few years from all levels of government.
Is this the worst level of anger and frustration he’s seen directed at a government?
“The only other time I’ve seen this frustration and anger was a couple of years ago when the federal government tried to change the tax rules on small business and pull the rug out from under their feet. This is something. I’ve never seen this at the municipal level,” he said.
“If this issue doesn’t get fixed, Calgary’s going to erode the tax base. Council and mayor will rue the day that they didn’t do something to rebalance the system. To make it more fair for small business. This has to happen. We’ve been telling council for years and years that this is a risky and unsustainable strategy to squeeze small business so hard in this city to pay for the ever rising cost of city government And it’s got to stop. Hopefully today this is the beginning of the end of treating small businesses like a cash cow in the city.”
PHOTO: MARIO TONEGUZZI
Truscott said he was relieved to see Council do what it had to do to stop the bleeding – for now.
“But slapping on bigger and bigger band-aids is not a long-term solution. What’s truly needed is major surgery to make sure the property tax system stops negatively impacting the health of small business,” he said.
“I am pleased to see Council finally act, even it was a last-minute Hail Mary pass. Calgary’s independent business owners are sick of being treated like a cash cow. Moving forward, it’s crucial the mayor and Council focus on major reform to the property tax system to make it a lot more fair for small business.”
Kristi Stuart, a co-founder of Barre Belle and one of the organizers of Monday’s small business rally, said she’s worried about what’s happening with small businesses in Calgary.
PHOTO: MARIO TONEGUZZI
“I’m gutted every day. Over the past week I’ve received an email or a message from someone who has had to shut their business in the last six months or will have to shut it in the next few months due to high property taxes. It’s not fair,” she said. “Entrepreneurs are the hardest working people I know. They put everything on the line. They should not be forced to close their businesses due to taxes.”
Jill Belland, co-founder of Barre Belle, said the current tax burden is not a sustainable environment for small businesses to survive.
“Long term we need to look at those ratios in terms of non-residential properties and residential properties and who is paying what,” said Belland.
Kelly Doody, founder of Social School, who was facing a hefty tax hike and an organizer of the rally, said the rally was held because people are fighting to save local business and want to continue to see entrepreneurs thrive in Calgary.
PHOTO: MARIO TONEGUZZI
“We have all experienced what’s happening and we know how important small business entrepreneurship is to this city. We have 55,000 small business owners in this city,” Doody told the rally earlier in the day.
Michael Going, owner of Good Earth Cafes, said business people focus on their customers and their business and meanwhile take “these hits over time, and it’s like death by a thousand cuts but this one is taking the feet out from underneath us.”
“We’ve seen increases of 300 per cent for some of our stores here in Calgary and we just can’t sustain that,” Going told the rally.
PHOTO: MARIO TONEGUZZI
“Business can’t carry the burden that we have. There has to be a reallocation to residential taxes. Politicians have to have the courage to make that reallocation.”
Mike Blayney, with RE/MAX Complete Commercial, said he attended the rally to support the city’s small business community.
“I’ve been a commercial realtor. I’m frustrated with what’s happening out there. I see a lot of lives being shattered due to the high taxes both on the tenant side having to absorb these huge taxes and the landlord side having to reduce rents to compensate for the high taxes. So it’s time we all stood up,” he said.
“Now with what’s happening the tax has pretty much taken up the portion that used to go to the owner and there’s really no more incentive for the owners to carry on. Without profit, there’s no business.”
Reitmans, a Canadian women’s apparel and accessories brand that was founded in 1926, has unveiled a new concept store at its Carrefour Laval location in Montreal which is a pilot project for other stores across the country. Included are shop-in-stores for the Hyba Activewear that formerly operated stand-alone stores.
The retailer says the new concept store is aimed at offering customers an “exceptional and memorable” shopping experience and it includes the “La Conciergerie” service which is a one-stop shop aimed at improving the customer journey by offering a personalized service.
This includes a more personalized, omni-channel in-store experience with a goal to combine the convenience and fast access of e-commerce and the authentic, in-person service of a boutique store.
Jackie Tardif, President of Reitmans which has 260 stores across Canada, told Retail Insider the concept will be rolled out to six to eight more stores this year and then evaluated to see what happens next.
“The new concept is really an integral part of the transformation. We started transforming Reitmans two years already by changing the brand perception and elevating the product. The store itself needed to be more exciting, more noticeable and needed to also fill the gap caused by omni-channel expectations. This concept aims to create a seamless experience from the omni-channel benefit to the in-store experience,” said Tardif.
“And bring the personalized shopping experience to life in our stores. Obviously with 260 stores you understand that the real estate is very important to the Reitmans brand. So we re-invented the stores and the brick and mortar experience.”
Brick and mortar stores represent an important part of Reitmans’ business and the retailer is striving to meet customers’ changing needs.
“To create a seamless shopping experience, stores need to become more experimental, more educational where customer can touch, try and interact with sales associates. This is the best way to express the brand,” added Tardif.
She said the storefront at Carrefour Laval was renovated to create a new and exciting look – an inviting look designed to create a ‘wow’ effect. It’s also a way to entice new customers to come in.
The aesthetic transformation included a sleek black and white theme, accented by wood and neutral touches, giving the space a clean, modern feel. Special attention paid to décor and furnishings aim to offer customers an overall pleasing and comfortable store visit. A new digital screen behind the cash counter plays the current season’s product videos, contextualizing the current and upcoming pieces.
With the “La Conciergerie” service, customers can have access to all of Reitmans’ inventory, both in-store and online, including online exclusives, allowing them the possibility to have their desired pieces shipped to their home address at no additional cost, enabling a seamless path to purchase.
At the “La Conciergerie”, customers can also easily pick up or return their online purchases, and sign up for personalized styling sessions. These sessions are free to customers and range from 30 to 90 minutes. A fashion associate guides customers through the session of their choice.
“With e-commerce taking up more and more space in the retail world, we wanted to make certain that our store experience is complementary with this new reality. When customers come in store within this new concept, they have the same access that they would have online. But more than that, they have the in person, one-on-one experience that one cannot find online,” says Tardif.
Since the Montreal opening, the retailer has opened a similar store concept in London, Ontario and plans to renovate six to eight more stores by the end of the year.
Then the brand will evaluate the concept and how it has responded to the market. Has it changed the perception of Reitmans? Does it drive traffic to the store? What is the conversion rate to sales?
“If it continues the way we think it will then that’s very encouraging to have a bigger rollout,” said Tardif.
She said the “La Conciergerie” service will be rolled out sooner to more stores and perhaps half the chain by next year.
HYBA Activewear
Earlier this year, the Hyba Activewear line was moved from stand-alone stores into Reitmans stores and continues to have an online presence.
The brand moved back into Reitmans exclusively earlier this year in 241 stores with a dedicated space for the brand in the form of a shop-in-shop Hyba boutique.
Last year the company closed 17 brick and mortar stores of Hyba as it transitioned the brand to a presence in the Reitmans stores.
“It’s one of our fastest growth categories. It’s a very strong brand. We believe in this brand,” added Tardif.
Retail Insider will continue to monitor Reitmans’ retail transformation as it rolls-out its new store concept nationally.
Fresh off of opening its first cannabis retail location in the heart of Toronto, Tokyo Smoke is looking to expand its operations across the country.
Recently, the company opened a new 6,500-square-foot outlet at Yonge and Dundas Square. It also has four dispensing stores in Manitoba – three in Winnipeg and one in Brandon.
“Tokyo Smoke is a cannabis brand that originated via coffee shops in Toronto and has grown into education-focused, design-oriented cannabis dispensaries,” said Lacey Norton, VP Retail for Tokyo Smoke, which is owned by Canopy Growth Corp.
“The coffee shops opened three years ago and were really a platform for us to educate people on what the future of cannabis could look like. Cannabis, as you know, is a highly-stigmatized product that has I think been perceived in a certain way for years and moving towards legalization the original founder of Tokyo Smoke had a vision that cannabis could be a product that had a meaningful place in people’s lives and associated it with coffee which is something that people consume on a regular basis.
“The coffee shops provided a safe and approachable environment for people to come in and learn about cannabis but also see beautifully-designed accessories, educational materials, apparel, etc. associated with the cannabis lifestyle which was unlike what anyone had experienced in the past.”
Five coffee shops are located in Toronto and one in Calgary.
“We have other locations sourced and secured (for retail stores) but won’t have visibility into whether or not they’ll be licenced until the Province of Ontario opens up licensing again,” said Norton.
“At this point, the dispensing stores are really our focus and continuing to build those out across the country. The cafes served as a really great opportunity for us to share our brand story before cannabis actually became a legal product. But ultimately at this stage, at this point in time, all of our efforts are focused on building out the brand via our dispensing stores across the country.”
Now, additional retail stores are in the plans.
“I’d say a good ballpark is anywhere – and it’s all contingent on licensing restrictions at this stage – from 10 to 20 additional locations throughout Canada over the next six to 12 months,” she said.
The stores are about 2,000 square feet depending on the real estate.
“We’re constantly sourcing locations that align with the overall purpose and objective of the brand as well as connect with our target audience. Not unlike other brands, we have a particular target audience that we’re seeking to connect with but also want to be approachable to a much broader audience as well,” said Norton.
“The whole purpose of Tokyo Smoke is to bring a level of design, intentional design, to cannabis in general and so we associate ourselves in locations that are aligned with the overall brand purpose.”
Since the legalization of cannabis in October, business has been very good.
“It’s been really mind-blowing so to speak. It’s been really exciting to see the brand become established in the market. We’re only in Manitoba and Ontario at this time so it’s still a relatively small footprint but sales continue to exceed expectations,” said Norton.
“We’ve also dealt with the supply constraints that everyone else in the industry has faced. We’re overcoming those issues as an industry. Despite being open for only six months, the industry is also only six months old. So everyone is learning as we go. We’re definitely excited for fall 2019 where new formats will be released into the market where we’ll see additional items added to our assortment from vape pens to edibles to topicals. There’s a whole wave of product that will be coming to market which is a focus for us right now in planning to integrate those products into our stores.”
LINEUP AT ONE OF OMP SALES’ SUCCESSFUL WAREHOUSE EVENTS. PHOTO: OPM SALES
OPM Sales, a well-established warehouse sale facilitator based in Newmarket, Ontario, is expanding its liquidation events to all industries. OPM Sales aims to serve a wide range of companies that are looking to clear-out products from categories such as appliances, BBQ’s, toys, home décor, outdoor furniture and more.
It’s a significant progression from OPM Sales’ traditional fashion brand clearance sales that have been held since 2012. In only seven years, OPM Sales grew to become one of Canada’s largest and most highly respected inventory clearance businesses, with it’s five-day warehouse sale events that bring in thousands of visitors from the GTA and even beyond.
‘OPM’ stands for ‘Other People’s Merchandise’, a fitting name for OPM as it expands its sales offerings. The 60,000 square foot facility, with easy highway access to Toronto and other nearby markets, has become a destination for OPM Sales’ loyal email database that boasts an abundant amount of subscribers.
OPM Sales’ next warehouse sale event takes place Wednesday, June 12 to Sunday, June 16. Included will be an expanded assortment of product from name brand healthy, beauty and home care products.
OUTSIDE THE NEWMARKET FACILITY. PHOTO: OPM SALES
For its warehouse sales, OPM works closely in collaboration with some of the world’s most recognized brands as well as utilizing proven marketing and advertising strategies to help drive substantial traffic to each event. OPM Sales provides turnkey solutions to manufacturers and retailers who are looking to optimize supply chains while turning inventory into cash. Businesses are drawn to OPM Sales events because they have a full-time management team and fully trained, reputable staff at each sale. This includes full-time cashiers, sales associates and floor supervisors. OPM Sales also employs a full-time merchandising team with numerous years of experience. Besides utilizing its email marketing, OPM Sales promotes its sales through its website as well as with digital and print advertising methods.
Every year, Metroland Media readers cast their votes for their favourite businesses across all industries. OPM is honoured to have won the Readers’ Choice Award for 2 years consecutively.
Businesses work with OPM Sales for a variety of reasons. Some vendors have surplus inventory that they would like to clear out, while other vendors may have become insolvent or have declared bankruptcy and need a means to liquidate. For additional information on working with OPM Sales, please contact Matthew at: matthew@opmsales.com
“It was an absolute pleasure to work with OPM Sales. From the initial coordination, during and after the sale, OPM was always attentive, organized and accommodating.” – Albert La Penna, Vice President of Toni Plus.
“OPM Sales ensured that every step of the process during and after the sale was executed with attention and detail.The OPM team is professional and a pleasure to work with because they understand the consumer and what a vendor partner requires. – John Condon, President, Wolverine Worldwide
For those seeking to experience one of OPM’s premium warehouse events themselves, the June sale takes place at:
Wednesday, June 12 to Friday, June 14 from 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM
Saturday June 15 and Sunday, June 16 from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand goop has opened its first standalone storefront in Canada in a retail space at the base of the Hazelton Hotel in Toronto. The 1,300 square foot boutique, which opened on Friday, will remain open until September 22.
Called goop MRKT, the shop carries a range of “goop approved favourites” that include a range of clean beauty, wellness, upscale fashions, and curated home essentials. As with other goop MRKT locations, the Toronto storefront will host a series of events throughout the summer to keep customers coming back, and the company has partnered with Canadian company Flow Alkaline Spring Water for the events.
The goop brand was founded by Ms. Paltrow in the fall of 2008 as a weekly newsletter with an aim to provide “unbiased” travel recommendations, health-centric recipes, and shopping discoveries. It grew into a lifestyle brand with six key pillars: wellness, travel, food, beauty, style, and work. A range of curated and edited “goop-approved products” were launched as well as a developed in-house line of beauty, fashion, and wellness-focused items that are available in the new Toronto storefront.
“We’ve always been in awe of our neighbors to the north, which is why we picked Canada as the first place to launch e-commerce internationally in 2017. Since then, we’ve created moments in Montreal and Vancouver, so it felt like the natural next step to activate in Toronto with our first goop MRKT pop-up shop. We hope locals and travelers alike will enjoy what we have to offer at goop MRKT Toronto,” said goop’s vice president of retail, Melanie Ramer.
The Toronto goop MRKT was designed by Toronto-based design firm Yabu Pushelberg, which has been responsible for creating some of the world’s most dramatic retail environments. “Creating the right tone for the pop-up has been an interesting process, a coming together of the psyche of what Toronto is all about with the strong personality of the goop brand,” said George Yabu and Glenn Pushelberg of Yabu Pushelberg. “If the goop customer lived in Toronto, she would feel differently and live differently than the one in New York or Los Angeles. Each city and each context is unique, and that is the challenge, and the fun.”
Contained in goop’s Toronto retail space are a range of products for the body and the home. Included is a “Canada-specific” edit of ready-to-wear, swim, and activewear from brands including La DoubleJ, ATM, Bassike, Rhode, Natalie Martin, and goop’s own lines of G.Label apparel and G. Sport activewear. Items from Canadian contemporary brand Smythe are also on hand.
Jewellery on display includes pieces from designers such as La Californienne and Foundrae — we spied a vintage Rolex from La Californienne, which is also supplying similar Rolex watches to Holt Renfrew this season. There’s also an expansive assortment of home goods including Mosser Glass cake stands, plates, and glassware; Serax drinkware; The Beach People and Caravan linens; and goop x CB2 glassware, plates, flatware. A Kohler Purist Kitchen faucet was installed in the clean beauty apothecary area which showcases skin care, makeup, and body care from brands including Tata Harper, Kosas, May Lindstrom, Necessaire, and Vintner’s Daughter. As well, goop’s own collection of clean skin care is on hand as well as “skinboosting ingestibles” and artisanal fragrance, bath, and body items.
In 2017, goop expanded into Canada for the fist time with a partnership with Nordstrom that saw temporary goop shop-in-stores open at the Pop-In@Nordstrom at CF Toronto Eaton Centre in Toronto as well as at the CF Pacific Centre flagship. A total of eight Nordstrom stores housed the goop line temporarily and sales were said to have been 64% above initial projections.
In the fall of 2018, goop hosted its first international wellness summit called ‘In goop Health’ in Vancouver. The two-day event included talks from wellness experts as well as beauty treatments, spiritual health workshops, and fitness sessions. Prior to that, goop hosted a dinner in Montreal.
Toronto’s goop MRKT adds a unique element of retail to Toronto’s rapidly transforming Yorkville Avenue. Landlord First Capital Realty, which now owns the commercial components to the Hazelton Hotel at 118 Yorkville Avenue, is redeveloping much of the street for luxury retailers. Chanel was the first luxury brand to open in First Capital Realty’s new Yorkville Avenue portfolio in the fall of 2017, and Brunello Cucinelli opened its largest North American storefront in the adjacent 102-108 Yorkville Avenue complex subsequently.
The Toronto goop MRKT operates until September 22 (which means those attending the Toronto International Film Festival that month will be able to check it out) with hours 10:00am-6:00pm Monday-Saturday, and Sundays 12:00pm-5:00pm.
