Christian Dior Expands Vancouver Footprint [Photos]

By

-

February 12, 2018

Dior Holt Renfrew — (PHOTO: HOLT RENFREW)

French luxury brand Christian Dior has expanded its concession at Vancouver’s Holt Renfrew flagship, creating the largest Dior accessory boutique of its kind in Canada. The shop-in-store concession is the latest brand to expand its presence within the CF Pacific Centre Holts, which has been under renovation over the past couple of years, coinciding with a significant expansion.

The new Dior boutique replaces a smaller location that was located on the same floor — Holt Renfrew recently relocated its beauty hall to a space in the basement, freeing up valuable ground level space for a grouping of luxury accessory boutiques in an expanded leather goods and jewellery hall. As competition increases from the likes of Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom in Canada, Holt Renfrew is curating some of the world’s top brands and providing them dedicated shop-in-stores spaces.

Dior’s new location is prominent — when one enters Holt Renfrew’s ground-level Granville Street entrance, the new Dior boutique is located immediately to the left. A window that formerly showcased the store’s beauty hall now displays Dior handbags.

The boutique also includes Dior’s new font, being an all-caps stylized DIOR — all other boutiques in Canada feature ‘Dior’ stylized branding that is a bit more subtle, though we might expect Canada’s newest Dior boutiques to adopt the new signage, as is seen in new locations globally.

One of the highlights of the new Vancouver Dior boutique is a limited edition ‘Lady Dior’ handbag. A selection of styles are available in the new boutique from several notable artists — Retail Insider Vancouver correspondent, Helen Siwak, toured the new space and showcases the designs on her own blog, EcoLuxLuv, and she also provided a 3D video tour of the space as per below.

<br />

(LOOKING INTO THE NEW DIOR SPACE FROM GRANVILLE STREET. PHOTO: HELEN SIWAK)

(INSIDE THE NEW DIOR BOUTIQUE — THE STAIRS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WINDOW LEAD DOWNSTAIRS TO THE STORE’S GRANVILLE STREET ENTRANCE. PHOTO: HELEN SIWAK)

Christian Dior currently operates accessory boutiques at Holt Renfrew in Toronto (50 Bloor Street West and at Yorkdale Shopping Centre) as well as in Montreal on Sherbrooke Street West. Saks Fifth Avenue at the CF Toronto Eaton Centre also features a separate Dior accessory boutique on the ground floor, as well as a women’s ready-to-wear salon on the third level women’s designer floor — the first of its kind in Canada. Dior also operates a 10,000 square foot boutique at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, which is currently the largest standalone Dior location in North America.

That will change towards the end of this year, however, when Dior unveils a 13,400 square foot flagship at 131 Bloor Street West in Toronto — the store will be one of Dior’s largest globally, joining other flagships that have recently grown on the ‘Mink Mile’. Dior will also eventually be relocating its Montreal Holt Renfrew boutique to a new 2,000 square foot concession space at the expanded ‘Holt Renfrew Ogilvy’ which will be located in the current Ogilvy location on Sainte-Catherine Street West — the Sherbrooke Street Holt Renfrew will close once the merger is completed, some time in the year 2020.

This week in a separate Brief, we’ll be reporting on some other updates as Vancouver’s Holt Renfrew flagship renovations near completion.

As Big Food Brands Struggle, Canada has a Golden Opportunity to Develop its Own

By

Sylvain Charlebois

-

February 12, 2018

attachment-5a80bb57652deaf340fe78dc — exc-5a80bb57652deaf340fe78dc

By Sylvain Charlebois, Professor in Food Distribution and Policy, Dalhousie University

The bloodbath in foreign-owned, large-scale food manufacturing in Canada continues.

In recent weeks, we’ve learned that two plants employing almost 600 highly paid workers are closing: Dr. Oetker in Grand Falls, N.B. and Campbell’s in Toronto.

Estimates suggest that Canada has lost more than 30,000 similar positions in food manufacturing in a decade. This is not new.

Both cases have common denominators: Both plants were ancient, outdated and in dire need of a retrofit. However, the foreign-owned companies opted instead to consolidate assets and have products manufactured at more modern facilities. In other words, they never intended to modernize the existing Canadian plants.

The use of better automation and robotics could have helped, but instead the facilities were left to rot and die a natural death.

Ontario and other provinces have countless aging plants, owned by foreign companies and in need of a significant influx of capital to remain in compliance with modern-day standards of food safety and product advancement.

So, don’t be surprised to see more of these types of closures since we’re now paying for years of foreign control in this sector.

Brands are now worth more than the human capital working in their facilities across the country. It’s not personal; it’s business.

‘Endangered species’

Big food brands, often seen as symbols of out-of-touch food corporations, are becoming an endangered species. Every week stores mark down those brands — think household names like Chef Boyardee, Chips Ahoy, Wheaties, etc. — to attract customers to their private-label products.

Not only are store-owned labels cheaper, but customers, especially millenials, are moving away from major brands. They’re increasingly looking for organic, multicultural foods — hardly concepts mega-enterprises have been associated with, at least until recently.

The pace of this demographic shift is spectacular. We’re seeing more consolidation in food processing around the globe because consumers in the Western world are looking for something different, organic and local. Many of the brands we all know don’t appeal to people looking for what are known as value-based brands.

This pressure is leading to seismic shifts in the sector.

Overseas, Keurig Green Mountain, the maker of coffee pod machines, is planning to purchase the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group in a massive US$18.7 billion transaction.

The portfolio of the new company will include products varying from coffee to soft drinks. But the deal is really about competitiveness at the retail level, and allowing major brands to remain competitive.

The appeal of big brands has ruled grocery aisles for decades, but it’s slowly becoming an afterthought. Margins must be better managed and merchandising strategies will need to be reinvented. Consequently, becoming bigger and more resourceful is key.

Overly reliant on foreign brands

Most Canadians may be unaware that the food-processing sector is the second largest manufacturing industry in Canada in terms of value of production, with shipments worth $112.4 billion last year and employing over 250,000 people.

It’s a big sector that’s flown under the proverbial radar for decades.

This is why the sector just created an industry association Food Beverage Canada — so processors have a voice. Without a vibrant manufacturing sector, Canada’s agri-food sector cannot prosper.

Growing grains and raising livestock is helpful for rural economies and small- to medium-sized businesses. As Canadians, it’s what we know best. But given how our world is changing, it’s no longer enough.

Food manufacturing has a multiplying effect on growth, which cannot be emphasized enough. For years, we have been reliant on foreign brands to offer job opportunities in small communities.

Most of these brands, however, are American. The Canadian brand has never been fully exploited in the food value-added sector, a missed opportunity indeed. But the needle is slowly moving in our country, recognizing that food processing needs to find its home-grown mojo.

The Agri-Food Innovation Centre at the University of Saskatchewan opened this year to support the sector’s will to diversify and launch new businesses. Many incubator and accelerator programs in Toronto, Montreal, Halifax and elsewhere have been launched to create ag-tech companies, which focus on providing more value-added products to the market, both domestically and abroad.

Quebec now has a new market access program to support companies looking for new markets.

It’s no longer just about spreading money to different sectors across the agri-food continuum. Growing the sector and generating significant economic activity throughout the country are becoming priorities for most stakeholders in both government and industry.

Becoming a world-class agri-food giant involves building an ample food-processing sector. We also need to provide the sector with ways to mitigate against higher wages, restrictive trade rules and fluctuating currencies. Looks like someone is finally getting the message.

*This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is Dean of the Faculty of Management at Dalhousie University in Halifax. Also at Dalhousie, he is Professor in food distribution and policy in the Faculty of Agriculture. His current research interest lies in the broad area of food distribution, security and safety, and has published four books and many peer-reviewed journal articles in several publications. His research has been featured in a number of newspapers, including The Economist, the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Wall Street Journal, Foreign Affairs, the Globe & Mail, the National Post and the Toronto Star. Follow him on twitter @scharleb.

eTail Canada Conference Releases Full Agenda

By

Craig Patterson

-

February 11, 2018

attachment-5a7cc71008522973958d75b4 — exc-5a7cc71008522973958d75b4

This year’s will be held May 15-17, 2018 in Toronto, and it has just released its as well as an industry . The conference will be held at the Hyatt Regency Toronto, located at 370 King Street West in the heart of Toronto’s vibrant Entertainment District. []

About 73% of eTail Canada’s 2018 speaker roster will be new, and eTail also welcomes back its impressive alumni speakers. New to the program include talks from experts working with companies including Amazon, Hudson’s Bay Company, Walmart, Starbucks, Casper, Article, Best Buy, MEC, Aldo, Sephora, and many others.

Prominent keynote speakers include:

Rochelle Ezekiel, Vice President, Marketing-North America for the Hudson’s Bay Company,
Andrew Turner, General Manager of Softlines at Amazon.ca,
Daryl Porter, VP of Omni-channel and Online Grocery at Walmart Canada, and
Duncan Blair, Director of Marketing at Vancouver-based online furniture retailer Article, which is growing rapidly.

There will be plenty of other speakers from some of the most recognized companies in retail []

Various presentations will also be engaging and interactive, even including ‘Tonight Show’ style and fireside chats — this will no doubt be a fun year to attend eTail Canada. There will be ‘best in class’ awards that will be held on Tuesday, May 15, and nominations end on March 9, 2018.

There will be plenty of networking opportunities as well — eTail Canada notes that there is value from the face-to-face opportunities at the conference. There’s a 60% retailer ratio that’s protected, with more than 400 retailers anticipated to attend.

eTail Canada also recently published a white paper that . The eCommerce Innovation Briefing includes some in-depth discussion on retail innovation, and even a discussion about real estate. Canadian firms such as Hudson’s Bay Company and SPUD are included, as well as international success stories such as Walmart, Zillow and Casper.

eTail Canada is offering 20% off the current price for retailers when you with code ETC18RI.

To download the full schedule — []

For more information on this year’s eTail Canada conference:

[]

And furthermore: []

*****

*Partner Content. To work with Retail Insider, email Craig Patterson at: craig@retail-insider.com.

Craig Patterson, now based in Toronto, is the founder and Editor-in-Chief Retail Insider. He’s also a retail and real estate consultant, retail tour guide and public speaker.

Follow him on Twitter @RetailInsider_, LinkedIn at Craig Patterson, or email him at: craig@retail-insider.com.

Yorkville Hosts Toronto Fashion Week Amid Neighbourhood Transformation

By

Craig Patterson

-

February 10, 2018

attachment-5a7d031d419202218cdffd51 — exc-5a7d031d419202218cdffd51

Toronto’s Bloor-Yorkville area continues to establish itself as an important fashion hub. Toronto Fashion Week has just concluded at Yorkville Village, marking the first time that such an event has been held inside of an enclosed shopping centre in Toronto.

Hosting a fashion week in a shopping centre made sense — several of the brands on the runways already have a retail presence in Canada, while other brands are looking to gain a foothold in the market. Part of the Yorkville Village centre included a multi-brand pop-up space in partnership with RE/SET, where runway designers and other designers had the opportunity to sell their wares to the public. This is becoming something of a trend — at a time when consumers can get what they want when they want it, many designers are seeing value in offering the ‘instant gratification’ of selling runway pieces immediately after shows. A list of designers with descriptions at RE/SET can be found here.

The Yorkville Village shopping centre, formerly Hazelton Lanes, was transformed into an event space that included runway shows, a lounge, and other gathering places for guests. The main runway area was created by temporarily enclosing ‘The Lane’ which connects the Yorkville Village centre to Yorkville Avenue. Enclosing the outdoor space made sense, as did hosting a fashion event in an enclosed mall — this week was a particularly chilly one in Toronto, and the tent-set-up seen during September’s Toronto Fashion Week might have been a challenge to keep heated during a much colder February.

Toronto Fashion Week came under new ownership when In December of 2016, developer and businessman Peter Freed announced the purchase of Toronto Fashion Week from IMG Canada Ltd. — founding sponsors included The Hazelton Hotel, Hill & Gertner Capital Corporation and First Capital Realty’s Yorkville Village. First Capital Realty played a particularly significant role in the event this year, including housing the shows themselves within its Yorkville Village property.

The runway shows were diverse and entertaining, and included a roster of leading brands that showed their wares over the three day event. Rather than rehash all of the shows and events that were included, we direct readers to Fashion Magazine, which put together a comprehensive and well laid out summary:

–Highlights from Day 1 of Toronto Fashion Week F/W 2018,

–Highlights from Day 2 of Toronto Fashion Week F/W 2018, and

–Highlights from Day 3 of Toronto Fashion Week F/W 2018.

Toronto Fashion Week concluded with a fundraising fashion show called Fashion Heals, which was in support of SickKids Hospital.

<br />

Hosting Toronto Fashion Week in Yorkville is part of a plan to maintain a fashion focus in the neighbourhood. The area is seeing a steady stream of new retailers open stores in new developments, which is transforming Yorkville into a world-class, high-density area in a similar fashion to London’s Mayfair, New York City’s Upper East Side, or Chicago’s Gold Coast. In some respects, the dynamic makeup of Yorkville, including its mix of historical buildings and new modern construction nearby, is creating an environment unlike any in the world.

The Yorkville Village shopping centre has seen in excess of $100 million in renovations by landlord First Capital Realty — retailers such as Belstaff, Nanni Couture, Jean-Paul Fortin and Via Cavour opened in September of 2017, followed soon after by TNT Concept, Eleventy and Chase Hospitality Group’s ‘Palm Lane’ restaurant. Belstaff is a first in Canada and a second store for the brand in North America, and Eleventy is the Italian brand’s first freestanding store in North America. Other recent additions include the stunning Galerie de Bellefeuille art gallery, located across the hall from a recently opened SoulCycle location.

The Yorkville neighbourhood is having its own ‘fashion moment’, made possible in part by billions of dollars of area investments. First Capital Realty is partly responsible for this — the landlord has been buying commercial buildings in the area for several years, in an attempt to create a mix of tenants that is compelling, diverse, and luxurious. This mix includes restaurants and retailers, including some notable luxury brands. In November of 2017, a milestone was reached when Chanel unveiled its 8,550 square foot flagship at 100 Yorkville Avenue, and First Capital Realty is developing other commercial properties nearby — the 102-108 Yorkville complex, now under construction, will house Jimmy Choo, Brunello Cucinelli, Her Majesty’s Pleasure and other tenants, while a newly built 101 Yorkville Avenue will eventually house a mix of luxury retailers and restaurants in a unique ‘mews’ configuration that will create a pedestrian passage that will span from Bloor Street West to the south to Scollard Street to the north.

Below: A neighbourhood in transition — three images reflecting the latest retail news in Yorkville:

Various other luxury brands have been opening stores in the immediate area — Christian Louboutin and Off-White have stores on Yorkville Avenue, and a Richard Mille boutique recently relocated to a spectacular space on the second floor of 135 Yorkville Avenue, above pricey streetwear retailer CNTRBND.

Further away from Yorkville Avenue, retailers have been opening stores along Bloor Street West as well as on adjacent streets — the area is experiencing an incredible transformation that will see the addition of thousands of new residents, as well as billions of dollars worth of commercial construction. There’s so much activity in the area that we’ll be dedicating separate articles in the coming weeks to provide updates, including a comprehensive overview of Bloor Street West, which is seeing significant changes between Yonge Street to the east and Avenue Road and beyond to the west.

Grocery Anchor Opportunity at Vancouver’s City Square Shopping Centre

By

Craig Patterson

-

February 9, 2018

attachment-5a7cde1f419202218cd71184 — exc-5a7cde1f419202218cd71184

Vancouver’s City Square Shopping Cente is a mixed use office and retail complex located beside Vancouver City Hall at West 12th Avenue and Cambie Street in Vancouver’s affluent and growing West Side. With the recent announcement that Safeway is closing several of its Lower Mainland stores, the retail component of City Square presents an opportunity for a grocery retailer to fill Safeway’s 25,400 square foot space.

The large retail space is located at the southwest corner of the centre and includes grocery store loading/access infrastructure, as well as prominent access from within the City Square Shopping Centre itself. A bright multi-level parkade below accommodates more than 700 vehicles for shoppers and employees.

City Square is a unique property, combining heritage buildings with a commercial building that includes more than 50 retail units in approximately 141,000 square feet of retail space, as well as two six-storey class “A” office towers with approximately 900 employees (the total complex spans almost 250,000 square feet). The retail component includes locations for names such as Dollarama, Starbucks, Kin’s Farm Market, Body Energy Club and Hot Yoga 101, along with unique tenants such as the Blanche MacDonald School and a large Steve Nash Fitness World location.

Health and wellness is a focus for City Square, making the centre unique in Canada. Healthy living is present amongst the centre’s existing tenants. City Square is located a short walk away from some of Vancouver’s most important health organizations (such as Vancouver General Hospital, Centre of Disease Control, BC Cancer Agency, and Canadian Cancer Society). Moreover, third party market research has confirmed to City Square that its shoppers are enthusiastic about the shopping centre’s wellness positioning.

City Square is located a short distance from a range of upscale neighbourhoods — including high-density areas such as Fairview and Yaletown, as well as one of Canada’s most prestigious mansion neighbourhoods, Shaughnessy, which is only a short drive away.

The Broadway-City Hall Canada Line Skytrain station is only a short distance away, and the nearby Broadway corridor will see a new underground transit line pass underneath, replacing North America’s busiest surface bus transit route. Over 35,000 vehicles per day pass along on Cambie Street (at West 12th Avenue) and about 30,000 vehicles per day on West 12th Avenue (between Cambie and Ash Streets), according to the City of Vancouver.

The area is growing quickly, with new residential projects planned that will add hundreds of new residents. Development along the adjacent Cambie corridor will see thousands of new residents as the city encourages increased density.

For more information about City Square, contact Jim Greenwood at: jgreenwood@mycitysquare.com or: Office: (604) 876-5165 | Cell: (604) 682-2631

[Download PDF City Square information package here]

Momentum Continues for Retail Sector Stocks and IPOs

By

Megan Harman

-

February 8, 2018

attachment-5a7a76210d929773857252a7 — exc-5a7a76210d929773857252a7

By Megan Harman

Retail industry stocks in Canada have outperformed the broader stock market in recent years, and the sector continues to show bright prospects. For retail companies, that backdrop presents an attractive environment to consider a public offering, according to Ryan Thomas, head of business development, diversified industries at TMX Group Ltd., which owns the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX).

In the past year, the consumer discretionary index on the TSX increased by 20%, compared to a 6% increase for the broader TSX composite index, according to Thomas. The consumer discretionary index includes retail companies such as Dollarama Inc., Sleep Country Canada Holdings Inc. and Canadian Tire Corp., along with companies involved in other consumer-oriented activities such as entertainment, leisure and communications.

Over the past five years, the consumer discretionary index posted returns of approximately 122%, whereas the broader stock market index increased by roughly 30%.

“If you look at the returns for the consumer indexes, they really show a significant outperformance over the TSX over not only the last year, but over a five-year period,” Thomas says.

The gains in consumer stocks have been driven by strong performance of companies in the sector. “There have been some real homeruns in the space,” Thomas says.

Dollarama, for instance, has seen its stock surge by more than 400% over the past five years, thanks to consistently solid growth in sales and profits. As another example, luxury apparel maker Canada Goose Holdings Inc.’s stock price has more than doubled since its initial public offering (IPO) in March 2017. Other publicly traded retailers have also reported healthy growth in same-store sales recently, which have bolstered their share prices.

*(Canada goose flagship store in Chicago. Photo: Canada Goose)*

Although negative news surrounding struggling retailers such as Sears Canada and the disruption being caused by the rise of e-commerce has dominated media attention recently, Thomas says that has overshadowed the positive performance of many retail companies.

“If you look at the overall headlines in the consumer space,” he says, “I think it hides the fact that there are some really strong Canadian brands that are executing.”

With positive economic conditions contributing to growth in consumer spending across Canada, the upward trend in retail sector stocks appears likely to continue. “Overall, we’re seeing a strong economic background, which would support continued growth of these companies,” Thomas says.

The positive economic and market environment has motivated numerous retailers to pursue IPOs in the past few years. In fact, the consumer sector in Canada has seen 11 IPOs since 2015 – more than any other sector on the TSX, according to Thomas.

“We’re seeing a lot of momentum,” he says.

Examples of recent consumer sector IPOs include toymaker Spin Master Corp. and mattress retailer Sleep Country, both in July 2015, fashion retailer Aritzia Inc. in October 2016, restaurant chain Freshii Inc. in January 2017, Canada Goose in March 2017, and clothing retailer Roots Corp. in October 2017.

The primary advantage of an IPO is access to a vast new source of capital. That can provide companies such as retailers with the funds they need to pursue growth. Going public also provides a boost in profile, which can be beneficial for consumer brands.

“Certainly, a lot of retail brands would take advantage of the increased visibility and prestige of being a public company,” Thomas says.

However, becoming a publicly traded company also comes with challenges and significant new responsibilities. Managing quarterly reporting requirements and investor communications, for example, requires considerable resources. Nonetheless, Thomas says an IPO can be worthwhile for many companies.

(New 'Roots Cabin' store at Toronto's Yorkdale shopping Centre. Photo: Roots) — *(New ‘Roots Cabin’ store at Toronto’s Yorkdale shopping Centre. Photo: Roots)*

“The potential positive outcomes of accessing public capital and having a public currency for executing on your business probably far outweigh the extra layer of complexity that you have to bring on to be a public company,” he says.

Going public also comes with market volatility and the possibility that the stock price will not perform as expected. In the case of Roots, for instance, the stock tumbled by 20% in the first day of trading. However, Thomas notes that the stock has since rebounded as the company has reported positive sales growth.

“There’s always going to be short-term volatility in the marketplace,” he says. “Most management teams that go public are taking a long-term view of the opportunity. People shouldn’t be concerned about short-term stock movements.”

The prospect of going public is not only for major household names. Smaller companies in the earlier stages of growth that are looking for access to capital can pursue an IPO on the TSX Venture Exchange, Thomas notes.

For example, Canadian grocer Organic Garage Ltd. listed shares on the Venture Exchange last year, and children’s clothing company Peakaboo Beans Inc. listed shares in 2016.

“Not only do we have a platform for the Canada Gooses and Roots of the world, but we also have a platform that smaller companies can explore raising capital and growing their business on,” Thomas says. “We have a very advanced and stable ecosystem for supporting early stage growth companies.”

HBC Halts Downtown Montreal Bay Reno and Saks Fifth Avenue Flagship: Report

By

Craig Patterson

-

February 8, 2018

A previously announced overhaul to downtown Montreal’s Hudson’s Bay building, which would have included adding Canada’s largest Saks Fifth Avenue store to the property, has been put on ice. That’s according to an exclusive french language report in TVA Nouvelles, which quoted sources familiar with the situation.

The Hudson’s Bay Company announced in the fall of 2016 that downtown Montreal’s 675,000 square foot Hudson’s Bay building at 585 Sainte Catherine Street West would see an overhaul that would include renovations to the existing store, as well as the addition of a 200,000 square foot Saks Fifth Avenue flagship at the back end of the property, facing Boulevard de Maisonneuve. Saks would have opened in the fall of 2018.

About 80,000 square feet of Saks Fifth Avenue’s 200,000 square foot space would have been dedicated to a ‘Quebec-themed food hall’ — Saks’ other two Canadian stores, both in Toronto, include adjacent food halls operated by local vendor Pusateri’s Fine Foods. Montreal’s Saks would have also featured women’s designer ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, beauty, men’s, Fifth Avenue Club with private suites/personal shopping consultants and the women’s 10022-SHOE floor, according to a press release.

Montreal was a target for Saks Fifth Avenue from the moment that Saks announced that it was coming to Canada — former HBC head Bonnie Brooks had said that Montreal could see one, if not two Saks stores open in the area. Some speculated that a second full-line Saks store could open at CF Carrefour Laval.

Some are speculating that the downtown Montreal announcement could be because Hudson’s Bay is looking to sell the Montreal Hudson’s Bay building. That’s incorrect says Tiffany Bourré, Director of Corporate Communications at the Hudson’s Bay Company. “HBC does not currently have plans to sell its downtown Montreal building,” said Ms. Bourré in an email response to a request from Retail Insider for comment.

A situation that may have contributed to delaying the downtown Montreal renovation/Saks store is the planned multi-year overhaul of Sainte-Catherine Street West, which will include new sidewalks, furniture and other aesthetic improvements. Many area businesses are concerned that the overhaul will be disruptive to the area for years, negatively impacting retail sales at businesses that are struggling as it is. Luxury brands, in particular, have failed to do the same sales volumes in Montreal as they do in cities such as Toronto and Vancouver, which have seen clusterings of luxury branded stores.

EXTREME MAKEOVER: CURRENT BOULEVARD DE MAISONNEUVE FACADE WOULD HAVE SEEN A MAJOR OVERHAUL. THE STUCCO EXTERIOR WOULD HAVE BEEN REMOVED AND REPLACED WITH A DRAMATIC SAKS STOREFRONT. PHOTO: MAXIME FRECHETTE.

Despite low numbers for luxury brand sales in Montreal, Holt Renfrew has embarked on an ambitious project to merge its Holt Renfrew and Ogilvy stores in downtown Montreal. Located about 800 metres/2,600 feet to the west of the Hudson’s Bay building is the future-branded ‘Holt Renfrew Ogilvy’ that will include about 250,000 square feet of retail space, housing confirmed concessions for luxury brands such as Chanel, Hermes, Prada, Dior, and Louis Vuitton. The merger will result in a smaller existing Holt Renfrew store on Sherbrooke Street West, which has operated on the site since 1937, to close permanently.

There have been delays at the Holt’s/Ogilvy end, as well — the merged superstore was supposed to be unveiled last year, but it’s now been postponed until the year 2020. A Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences will occupy the north end of the site, with units priced between $4 million and $20 million, averaging $1,500/square foot.

Saks Fifth Avenue entered the Canadian market two years ago when it opened two stores in Toronto. In February of 2016, Saks opened a 170,000 square foot downtown Toronto flagship that occupies part of the Hudson’s Bay Queen Street building that is now part of the CF Toronto Eaton Centre complex. A week later, Saks opened a standalone 143,000 square foot store at Toronto’s suburban CF Sherway Gardens, located near the border of Mississauga. The Montreal Saks would have been in a similar configuration to the downtown Toronto Saks, which operates as a ‘large shop-in-store’ with connections to Hudson’s Bay on all of its four floors.

Saks Fifth Avenue will open its third Canadian store on February 22 of this year at Calgary’s CF Chinook Centre. The 115,000 square foot store will include a restaurant that will open later this spring, though it won’t have a food hall like the two existing Toronto locations.

Saks Fifth Avenue has also said that it wants to open at least one store in Vancouver, though sources say that a search for space is proving to be a challenge. One option would have been to insert Saks into downtown Vancouver’s existing 650,000 square foot Hudson’s Bay building, in a ‘shop-in-store’ configuration similar to that in downtown Toronto, and proposed for Montreal. Late last year, however, HBC struck a deal with co-working company WeWork to occupy the top two levels of downtown Vancouver’s Hudson’s Bay — sources say that it’s now unlikely that Saks could be an option for inclusion, given the building’s new configuration. As well, there are recent reports that HBC could sell the Vancouver store, which some are saying could fetch close to $1 billion.

The Hudson’s Bay Company also operates an off-price division called Saks OFF 5TH, which some might mistake with Saks Fifth Avenue, given the name/logo font. These divisions run separately and the off-price Saks OFF 5TH is confirmed to be opening its largest Canadian location, which will measure close to 45,000 square feet, at a renovated/expanded Montreal Eaton Centre located about a block from Montreal’s Hudson’s Bay store. Saks OFF 5TH already has a Montreal store at the suburban CF Galeries d’Anjou, and more are on the way as the off-price division plans to operate 25 Canadian stores by the end of this year.

Bulgari Opens 1st Vancouver Boutique [Photos]

By

Helen Siwak

-

February 7, 2018

Italian luxury jeweller Bulgari has officially unveiled its first Vancouver boutique at Holt Renfrew in CF Pacific Centre. The concession is located in the jewellery/accessory hall on the the store’s ground level, alongside brands such as David Yurman, Tiffany & Co., Loro Piana, Dior, and Bottega Veneta. Vancouver’s Holt Renfrew is completing an extensive renovation that will see completed concessions for Hermes watches, Miu Miu, Fendi, Givenchy, and others within the next two months.

Bulgari opened its first (and currently only) standalone Canadian boutique at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre in the winter of 2014. The Vancouver location is the second official boutique in Canada, and the brand is also carried in a handful of upscale jewellery retailers nationally.

“This milestone marks a special moment for Bulgari, as it brings our Maison’s Roman roots and spirit of innovation to Vancouver, a very important city for the brand,” said Daniel Paltridge, President of Bulgari North America. “We are pleased to open our boutique in Holt Renfrew in a manner that represents the contemporary Bulgari brand while simultaneously paying tribute to our rich, Roman heritage.”

Designed by LVMH favourite Peter Marino, the 450-square-foot concession utilizes materials that are quintessentially Roman while staying true to the original architecture of the space. The entrance is Black Grand Antique marble, the flooring is Italian walnut square-patterned parquet with a degrade effect, and the walls are finished with Bulgari’s signature gold and yellow Scagliola plaster. In the store’s center, a light bronze oval-shaped counter in galvanized iron is topped by an expansive Murano crystal chandelier by Italian artisan Vistosi.

Internationally the company enjoys renown for its craftsmanship and as Paltrdige shared at the media launch, “Bulgari finds itself, as of the 2000s, a global jeweller with a very distinct point of differentiation within the luxury jewellery market.”

See below for more photos from the store’s press opening on Tuesday February 6. Photos by Helen Siwak.

The ‘Serpenti’ necklace in this photo retails for about $500,000. Photo- Helen Siwak

Daniel Paltridge, President of Bulgari North America, poses for the camera at the opening. Photo- Helen Siwak

Cadillac Fairview Launches ‘Olympic Lounges’ at its Canadian Malls [Renderings]

By

Craig Patterson

-

February 7, 2018

attachment-5a79f1f64192021cd2f615cb — exc-5a79f1f64192021cd2f615cb

Cadillac Fairview is bringing Canadians closer to the 2018 Winter Games by introducing new CF Brighter Lounges at its properties in a partnership with the Canadian Olympic Committee.

The lounges will showcase live CBC coverage and interactive experiences at all 19 of the company’s shopping centres in Canada as well as four office towers. The lounges will help Canadians stay connected to the actions and accomplishments in PyeongChang. Officials hope they also create and build an Olympic spirit across the country.

Eighteen of the 19 lounges at the shopping centres will feature immersive screens broadcasting CBC Olympics coverage and owned content, with all lounges offering “dynamic backdrops for engaging, shareable moments.” The lounges will operate during regular property hours between February 9 to February 25.

Olympic Lounge (Rendering: Cadillac Fairview)

The lounges will be open in the following office towers: TD Centre – Toronto; Tour Deloitte – Montreal; Calgary City Centre – Calgary; and Granville Square -Vancouver.

Jason Anderson, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Cadillac Fairview, said the company believes in the power of the Olympic spirit and Team Canada to inspire greatness in all Canadians and unite local communities across the country.

“Certainly our focus at Cadillac Fairview is on creating amazing, unique experiences at our retail and office properties as we believe that’s how we can drive our business and create really great environments for our shoppers and office spots,” said Anderson.

“So what we did is we looked for opportunities to find a really great partner to help us do that. At Cadillac Fairview we have a really bold, optimistic view of the future and we want to surround ourselves with partners that have a similar view and there’s no better example of that than the Canadian Olympic Committee. So this idea that Cadillac Fairview can become both the physical and emotional home of Team Canada is just a really exciting opportunity for us to bring that idea to life in our properties. So the Brighter Lounges are a great way to do just that. We’ve created these lounges that will be a place to stay in touch with what’s going on in Korea with our Canadian athletes and cheer them on from afar, to share some great content with friends and family through social media, and also to ultimately make a contribution to CF Brighter and help to support that next generation of athletes.”

<br />

In September, Cadillac Fairview and the Canadian Olympic Committee announced a multi-year partnership that will include six Olympic Games.

“We are excited to share the thrill of the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games with Canadians through our partnership with CF, in their properties and online.” said Chris Overholt, CEO, Canadian Olympic Committee. “The CF Brighter Lounges are an exciting start to this partnership that will inspire Canadians to go out and cheer together for Team Canada.”

Anderson said the company went from property to property to find places that would create a great hub for the Olympic spirit. For the most part, they are in higher traffic areas of the shopping centres or in the lobbies of the office buildings.

Cadillac Fairview is also launching a platform to raise money for the Olympic movement in Canada. Every time the hashtags #CFBrighter or #CFBriller are used on social media throughout the 2018 Olympic Winter Games, it will commit $1 to the Canadian Olympic Foundation and WE, CF’s major philanthropic partner, who is focused on youth empowerment. CF will donate up to $250,000.

And Cadillac Fairview will sponsor six of Team Canada’s newest Olympians.: Tyler Nicholson (Snowboarding); Brigette Lacquette (Women’s Hockey); Mirela Rahneva (Skeleton); Alex Bellemare (Slopestyle Freestyle Skiing); Laurie Blouin (Snowboarding); and Jamie Macdonald (Short Track Speed Skating).

“What was important to us is really to recognize this idea that while much of the Olympics is about focusing on who gets to the finish line, we actually believe that the real story is the amount of effort it takes to get to the starting line,” said Anderson. “And we think there’s an amazing story there of optimism for young people and really this idea that you should never give up on your dreams. So we went and worked with the Canadian Olympic Committee to go find amazing people that have become part of the Canadian Olympic team that have done an amazing job of overcoming adversities and come to the starting line and take part in the Olympic Games in Korea.

“So we’re working with six amazing young people that represent a variety of different sports that will be represented in the Winter Games. We wanted to support them and partner with them to obviously make a small financial commitment and recognize the work that they’re doing but more importantly partner with them in telling a bigger story for young people about the importance of never giving up on your dreams.”

Cadillac Fairview is one of the largest owners, operators and developers of office, retail and mixed-use properties in North America. The Cadillac Fairview portfolio is owned by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, a diversified global investor which administers the pensions of more than 300,000 active and retired school teachers. The real estate portfolio also includes investments in retail, mixed-use and industrial real estate in Brazil, Colombia and Mexico. Valued at more than $28 billion, the Canadian portfolio includes over 38 million square feet of leasable space at 67 properties in Canada.

Pop-Up Retail Gains Widespread Popularity in Canada [Feature]

By

Craig Patterson

-

February 6, 2018

(Louis Vuitton fragrance Pop-up at Toronto's Yorkdale Shopping Centre, February 2018. Photo: Yorkdale)

Pop-up retail in Canada is becoming more common than ever, with retailers and landlords coordinating temporary leases in a variety of interesting ways. Experts are now saying that pop-up retail has become mainstream, with some even asking if the concept is becoming ‘over-exposed’.

It wasn’t that long ago that pop-up retail was seen as merely a solution to fill challenging real estate, or an otherwise seasonal endeavour for brands selling around Christmas and other holiday seasons. Things began changing a couple of years ago and towards the middle of 2017, pop-up retail growth in Canada became explosive, according to Linda Farha, founder and ‘Chief Connector’ at online pop-up retail platform pop-up go. “Demand has never been so great for pop-up space in Canada… landlords are seeing this as a strategy to build buzz, and retailers are utilizing it to further expand distribution and exposure”, said Ms. Farha.

Ms. Farha’s pop-up go, which also features a curated pop-up match service that provides access to the ever-growing pipeline of pop-up seekers looking for space, recently launched an innovative pop-up program in downtown Winnipeg. It’s the latest project for pop-up go, which last year partnered with Bentall Kennedy to lease out several pop-up spaces in downtown Oakville. The multi-retailer pop-up space at downtown Winnipeg’s Cityplace is a partnership with landlord Triovest. “We are seeing industry leaders across the country, like Triovest, investing in pop-up programs and dedicating strategic spaces to amplify their customer experience models,” said Ms. Farha.

Cityplace spans two levels of shops and services, and through the Winnipeg Skywalk it connects to Bell MTS Place, True North Square, Millennium Library and the RBC Convention Centre. It’s also linked to the nearby office towers housing more than 70,000 daytime workers. There’s potential for significant foot traffic in a downtown core that’s seeing a resurgence.

“Designating spaces specifically for pop-up tenants is part of Triovest’s strategy to diversify our retail offering by supporting and showcasing local talent,” said Cheryl Roney, Director of Leasing and Marketing at Triovest. “With fresh perspectives, products and experiences, our goal is to bring more people to Downtown Winnipeg and offer an exceptional shopping environment for our Cityplace customers.”

[Above: Les Parfums Louis Vuitton pop-up at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre, open until March 18, 2018. The 460 sq ft space includes 2,995 white stacked paper tube packaging containers in its construction, housing 7 LV fragrances. Photo: Yorkdale]

Pop-up tenants have the opportunity to lease for a few days, or a few months — it’s proving popular in beautiful downtown Oakville where pop-up go has already facilitated new tenants, and other landlords are also getting in on the game.

One of the biggest pop-up announcements of 2017 was CONCEPT at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre. The 3,600 square foot concept space can house several tenants on a temporary basis, and according to landlord Oxford Properties, CONCEPT has been a runaway success. Oxford Properties is expanding its pop-up initiative into several other of its properties, including housing several temporary spaces at its Kingsway Mall property in Edmonton.

Landlord Cadillac Fairview has been hosting pop-ups in its malls for several years, with some formerly temporary tenants eventually signing long-term leases. This has been the case for other landlords as well.

“Pop-up retail is a great way for retailers to test out new concepts prior to committing to a long-term lease”, noted Hilary Kellar-Parsons, broker with Avison Young, who has been strategizing with some of the world’s top brands as they look to enter the Canadian market.

As popular malls add pop-up retail to the mix like never before, is the idea at risk of becoming so mainstream as to ‘fall out of fashion’? One analyst thinks that this is only the beginning for pop-up retail in Canada.

[MUJI pop-up in Vancouver in early 2017 — MUJI learned a lot about the vancouver consumer, prompting it to open larger stores than originally planned. Photo: http://retaildesignblog.net)

David Ian Gray, consultant and retail strategist/founder of DIG360, says that he thinks more retailers should be examining pop-up retail as part of their overall retail strategy. He noted how pop-up retail is now considerably more sophisticated than in the recent past, with landlords going out of their way to accommodate temporary tenants. “The phenomenon has been gaining traction over the past several years — pop-ups were originally intended for brands to engage with customers”, he noted, describing how retailers “quickly co-opted the idea, with considerable success”.

Last year, Mr. Gray predicted that 2018 would be ‘the year of the pop-up’ — a sentiment shared by pop-up go’s Ms. Farha and other key industry players. Pop-up spaces in malls, on urban street-fronts and even in department stores, are now more common than ever.

(Toronto-based footwear brand ‘zvelle’ launched as an e-commerce brand, and has since since operated pop-up spaces as part of its strategy. Photo: Zvelle)

Nordstrom, for example, has a constant pop-up rotation at its CF Toronto Eaton Centre (Toronto) and CF Pacific Centre (Vancouver) stores. Nordstrom’s latest pop-up includes a collaboration with fashion brand The North Face. Hudson’s Bay is adding pop-up retail at some of its downtown flagships, and Holt Renfrew continues to host temporary interactive installations that range from bicycles to pricey jewellery and accessories.

Some landlords, such as Joseph Gatto of Chestnut Park Realty, are embracing pop-up retail for their own street-front properties. Mr. Gatto owns 202 Queen Street West, which is now considered to be one of the hottest pop-up spaces in the city, having recently hosted pop-ups for Microsoft Xbox and Square, among others. While the ultimate goal is to find a permanent tenant, Mr. Gatto noted that owning a pop-up space can be dynamic as well as profitable.

[Above: Microsoft Xbox hosted a pop-up on November 18-20, 2017, at 202 Queen Street West, transforming the space into an immersive brand environment]

Another hot property that has recently hosted several notable pop-ups is Toronto’s 1056 Queen Street West, in a space located just west of Ossington Avenue. Last year, the building hosted several temporary retailers, including Daniel Caesar and Glossier, both of which were very popular.

Shopping Centres are getting in on the pop-up trend in a big way, with Mississauga’s Square One being a national leader in hosting various temporary installations. Square One became home to Swarovski’s first-ever ‘Sparkle Pop-Up’, and last week the mall hosted an innovative four-day bridal pop-up for “the edgy bride” with ideas and samples from over 16 vendors and Square One retailers. Next up for Square One are two unique initiatives — a Chinese New Year pop-up in the mall’s ‘luxury wing’ near Holt Renfrew that includes an interactive station where shoppers are able to learn about their Chinese Zodiac sign and what’s upcoming for them in 2018. There’s also the recent ‘Rethink Breast Cancer pop-up’ with a charitable theme — Rethink’s returning #8008135 campaign was a modern spin on a retro “hotline”, complete with a phone-booth that was intended to educate consumers about breast health through busting breast cancer myths and answering questions.

The world of retail is changing, the dynamics of online and physical channels are merging. As e-commerce gains prominence and consumers increasingly shift spending towards experiences, pop-up retail will continue to pop-up in Canada, possibly becoming a significant component of the industry. Whatever the future holds, it appears that the world of physical retail now includes lease terms that, time wise, are more variable than ever — and we’ll continue to report on pop-up retail in Canada as it continues to rapidly gain popularity.

Retail InsiderCanada's Most-Read Online Retail Industry Publication.

Christian Dior Expands Vancouver Footprint [Photos]

As Big Food Brands Struggle, Canada has a Golden Opportunity to Develop its Own

‘Endangered species’

Overly reliant on foreign brands

eTail Canada Conference Releases Full Agenda

Yorkville Hosts Toronto Fashion Week Amid Neighbourhood Transformation

Grocery Anchor Opportunity at Vancouver’s City Square Shopping Centre

Momentum Continues for Retail Sector Stocks and IPOs

HBC Halts Downtown Montreal Bay Reno and Saks Fifth Avenue Flagship: Report

Bulgari Opens 1st Vancouver Boutique [Photos]

Cadillac Fairview Launches ‘Olympic Lounges’ at its Canadian Malls [Renderings]

Pop-Up Retail Gains Widespread Popularity in Canada [Feature]

About

Contact

Media

Follow