A growing number of Canadian retailers are using scent marketing as a key tool to enhance customer experience and brand awareness.
It’s being used by more stores which are looking for that something extra to create the ambiance that may entice customers to linger a little longer in their bricks and mortar location.
ScentAir, with corporate headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina, has become a global leader in scent marketing with the hospitality, real estate, senior care, gaming, and retail markets being its primary focus. It also has a presence in Toronto for the Canadian market.
“We’re the largest, most experienced scent marketing firm in the world,” says Ed Burke, vice-president of customer strategy and communications. “We take a very passionate view of the senses. Smell is the most powerful of the five senses when it comes to memory and how we connect to experiences.”
Image: ScentAir
“Our business is essentially to help businesses put the sense of smell to work in their retail experience and hopefully creating more of a connection with their consumer or a more memorable connection or to drive things. Each retailer has a different objective. It might be dwell time or it might be perception of time. There’s all these different objectives that retailers are trying to create so we try help them think about the air in their retail space and how they can use that to help create a better experience for customers. We help them through the entire process from the initial strategy all the way through execution and service.”
Burke says the company has about 120,000 active locations that it services around the world for all industries. The retail industry would encompass about 20,000 to 30,000 locations.
The company has been around since the late 1990s.
Image: ScentAir
The hotel industry drove ScentAir’s growth in its early days. It ended up developing signature scents for most of the major hospitality brands.
As that growth took place, retailers started to look at ways to differentiate themselves from competitors. This opened a new door for scent marketing.
“Our most powerful memories are those tied to our sense of smell, which makes olfactory marketing the final frontier for businesses looking for a competitive edge. Scent is the most powerful way to connect on emotional and memorable levels with your customers,” says the company on its website. “We have used scent in our homes and lives for millennia and businesses are just starting to tap into this awesome power.”
Toronto’s waterfront continues to see a retail transformation that has been ongoing for the past several years. It’s all about creating a sense of place, according to those involved, with the necessity to future-proof new developments. The future looks bright with the announcement that developers including Sidewalk Labs will be involved with substantial development on the eastern waterfront.
The city’s Harbourfront area between Bathurst and Yonge Street had been an industrial area for decades prior to the 1980’s, when developers began building multi-use projects to bring people down to the waterfront. Queen’s Quay Terminal was one of the first projects to change the area — the massive 10-storey, 750,000 square foot circa 1926 building was converted from a warehouse to a condominium and retail complex in 1983. Developers added other retail to the area as residential towers were added — since the 1980’s, thousands of people have moved into the area, and many more are on the way as Toronto sees an unprecedented building boom in its downtown core unlike anything on the continent.
Despite the population explosion, the waterfront hasn’t lived up to its reputation aesthetically, nor has a mix of compelling retailers been added to create a shopping destination. All of that is about to change, both east and west of Yonge Street along the waterfront.
(Toronto was a very different place in 1970. Photo: City of Toronto archives)
Rob Spanier, Partner and Principal at Toronto-based consultancy LiveWorkLearnPlay, explained how Toronto is increasingly becoming a global focal point and as such, its waterfront is key to an overall urban strategy that lives up to the company’s name. Aesthetically, the city’s western waterfront has seen huge improvements, which include new streets and sidewalks in a substantially improved public realm. Still, he points out, the Toronto waterfront lacks “things to do” — which includes shopping, which many consider to be a pastime.
Mr. Spanier can speak to topic — he has more than 14 years experience in mixed use development and deals making, and has helped develop more than 50 large-scale projects around the world. He’s been instrumental in prominent developments such as the 2015 PanAm Games Athletes Village in Toronto, Harmony Village in Barrie and North York, and the downtown revitalizations of Guelph, Mississauga and Vaughan. He sees big opportunity for Toronto’s waterfront, as well.
For the Toronto waterfront, LiveWorkLearnPlay partnered with Toronto’s Waterfront Business Improvement Area (WBIA) on a Strategic Framework and Tactical Plan. Over a five month period between February of 2017 and June of 2017, LiveWorkLearnPlay studied the area and came up with an overview assessment from three angles — real estate, planning, and economic development. The resulting report (download PDF here) identifies challenges and opportunities as well as a strategic framework for incorporating and implementing tactics to guide future WBIA initiatives in its role as “the voice of the Waterfront’s business community”.
(Queen’s Quay streetscape improvements — thing are progressing based on plans revealed in 2015)
As part of an overall retail strategy, creating experiential places that people can enjoy will be key, Mr. Spanier explained — its long-term success will depend on creating a “city destination”. LiveWorkLearnPlay was instrumental in the development of Toronto’s Canary District, located to the east of the Distillery District, for example, where smaller, independent retailers were curated to create a neighbourhood experience that speaks to place-making.
Mr. Spanier explained how much of the retail space on the north side of Queen’s Quay was built as something of an afterthought by developers selling condos — including low ceilings and poor visibility, it’s a wonder some spaces have been leased at all. Smart developers are creating retail spaces with higher ceilings and overall better usability and in some instances, it’s purpose-built with a tenant in mind.
Retail is inevitably a component of city building in the modern world — it’s often what we see when walking down urban streets. Other cities are creating spectacular waterfronts and if Toronto wants to compete, it will have to up its game in terms of overall experiences on the downtown lakefront.
(The Gardiner Expressway continues to be a barrier — both psychological and physicaly, between the downtown core and the Toronto Waterfront. Click image for interactive Google Map)
Accessibility is an issue in some instances — Mr. Spanier noted that despite efforts to increase noth-south access between the Financial District and the waterfront, there’s still work to be done. The streetscape under the Gardiner Expressway remains harsh, walking lights are a challenge, and walking under it can be unpleasant — and once one is at the waterfront, there’s limited retail beyond a handful of restaurants and small grocery stores. Crowds of tourists visit and when they get there, some are disappointed.
The question to ask is: Is Toronto a waterfront city, or merely a city on the water?
Things are certainly changing, — proposed developments between Yonge Street and Jarvis Street along the waterfront will add thousands more new residents in towers that will approach 100 storeys in height — and ample retail will be included to service those living and working in the area. As well, Sidewalk Labs, the urban innovation arm of Alphabet Inc. (formerly Google) will be instrumental in being involved with the redevelopment of much of the vacant port lands located east of Sherbourne Street, while also relocating Google’s Canadian headquarters to a site just south of the Distillery District in a new area called Quayside.
(Sidewalk’s Mixed-Use Vision for the Quayside area, image courtesy of Sidewalk Toronto)
David Ian Gray, consultant and retail strategist/founder of DIG360, explained how Sidewalk Labs’ Toronto development could revolutionize retail as a whole, while also acting as a test base for new concept and ideas. Retail is changing — omnichannel isn’t a new buzzword, though there’s a blurring of in-store and online unlike anything in history. “Much of the fresh thinking is being imposed on traditional retail by outsiders such as Google and Amazon. It will be interesting to see how Google will rethink physical retail development”. Pop-up retail is more popular than ever, as well, and Mr. Gray recently went on record saying that he predicts 2018 to be ‘The year of the pop-up’ — though given what we’ve seen lately, we might already be there.
(David Ian Gray)
‘Future-proofing’ new retail developments is important and Mr. Gray should know — his firm, DIG360, is involved in transformative subjects, including a number of urban renewal projects anticipating relevance for retail in two, five, ten, and even 25 years down the road. He notes that it’s important to keep an open mind and to design retail spaces with flexibility if planning for the unknown — high ceilings, convenient access and overall flexibility will be key for a retail space that might see different uses over its lifetime.
Ultimately, designing pleasing retail environments is what will get customers to come — not to mention stay and spend. That includes not only making retail space itself desirable for tenants, but also making the overall experience as painless as possible, from getting to the store to exiting it. Global cities are stepping up to the plate by creating pleasing public realms that also attract shoppers — cities such as Barcelona and Vancouver have invested in their public realms with considerably better results than Toronto, which struggles with its appearance.
(A notional map of the Quayside neighbourhood, image courtesy of Sidewalk Toronto)
(A futuristic view of Toronto’s Port lands)
While the future of Toronto’s eastern waterfront is full of promise, some of Toronto’s elected officials could get in the way. It’s already happening — in June of 2015, Toronto City Council voted to replace the elevated Gardiner Expressway with a newly built structure that will continue to impede access between the core and the waterfront, both physically as well as psychologically. This, at a time when other global cities are demolishing similar infrastructure with success. Mayor John Tory supported a vote to maintain the minimally-used stretch of elevated freeway, as did several city councillors who appear to be more concerned with appeasing suburban constituents than supporting logical urban infrastructure investments.
Despite its politicians, Toronto’s future is bright — brilliant minds are coming together to strategize and create gathering places that will be compelling, and retail will play a critical role in its success. With a strong vision towards the future that includes place-making, Toronto’s waterfront has the potential to be a retail draw for the city, not to mention globally — welcoming communities could be created that are great places to live, work, learn and play. Future-proofing these developments will be key to their success and ultimately, Toronto’s waterfront could become a global leader.
Paris-based luxury jewellery brand Van Cleef & Arpels has unveiled a large two-level flagship retail space in Vancouver at 1069 Alberni Street. The boutique, which spans more than 4,000 square feet, is second in size only to the Manhattan flagship in the Americas, and marks a milestone for Vancouver’s burgeoning, world-class Luxury Zone.
The Vancouver boutique is a particularly special location for Van Cleef & Arpels, because it marks the first time that the brand has built its own retail space from the ground-up — The Alberni Street building was constructed in partnership with Kingswood Capital, and houses another Richemont brand, IWC Schaffhausen, in a building measuring about 6,200 square feet. Mario Negris and Martin Moriarty of CBRE Vancouver handled both transactions.
The Alberni Street building’s facade features gold metallic draperies behind polished glass, creating a shimmering effect on the exterior of the boutique. The store’s interior is beautiful, with a first floor featuring handmade Murano glass chandeliers, custom gold-leaf paneling on the walls, lush velvet draperies and bubble-shaped glass vitrines. An Art Deco stairway leads upstairs to a private salon and Library, which offer a more intimate environment for clients to view pieces that can cost well into the six figures and even more.
(CLICK FOR INTERACTIVE GOOGLE MAP)
(GROUND LEVEL, FEATURING CHANDELIER AND VARIOUS JEWELLERY COLLECTIONS)
(GROUND FLOOR AT THE NEW STORE)
The Vancouver boutique is the second-largest Van Cleef & Arpels location in the Americas, surpassed only by the company’s 6,000 square foot Maison at the corner of 5th Avenue and 57th Streets in New York City. Vancouver’s luxury zone is home to a remarkably robust collection of large flagships the Rolex boutique at 1119 Alberni Street is already the largest in the Americas at 2,750 square feet, and it’s expanding even further. Luxury watch brand Hublot, which opened in the summer across from Van Cleef & Arpels, is one of its largest globally and as well, the 4,800 square foot two-level Saint Laurent boutique on nearby Thurlow Street is also one of the company’s largest — and more large flagships are on the way for the area, including updated flagship spaces for Cartier and Hermes.
Vancouver’s new Van Cleef & Arpels boutique is the second standalone location in Canada for the brand. In the summer of 2017, Van Cleef & Arpels opened its first freestanding Canadian boutique at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre, in a one-level 1,620 square foot retail space — the new Vancouver flagship is more than twice the size of the Yorkdale store.
Van Cleef & Arpels entered the Canadian market in 2006 when it opened a partner boutique with Canadian jewellery chain Birks at Toronto’s Manulife Centre on Bloor Street West. A Vancouver Birks boutique followed, and that space was expanded to 1,435 square feet in early 2016, featuring a street-front entrance onto Granville Street. The Toronto Birks boutique will also gain a street-front entrance onto Bloor Street West when it opens in an overhauled Birks flagship next year.
(LOOKING DOWN A PASSAGE TOWARDS WEST GEORGIA STREET, WITH THE TWG TEA SALON TO THE RIGHT. PHOTO: HELEN SIWAK) (THE SECOND LEVEL SPACE FEATURES A SKYLIGHT AND PRIVATE VIEWING AREA)
(SECOND LEVEL, INCLUDING ‘LIBRARY’ AND PRIVATE SALON)
Van Cleef & Arpels is owned by luxury conglomerate Richemont Group, which also operates several other boutiques in Canada. Richemont’s watch brand IWC Schaffhausen opened last week next to Van Cleef & Arpels at 1071 Alberni Street, and another Richemont watch brand, Officine Panerai, opened in the fall of 2017 at 1008 Alberni Street.
Founded in 1906 by Alfred Van Cleef and his brothers-in-law Charles and Julien Arpels on the Place Vendome in Paris, Van Cleef & Arpels is considered to be one of the world’s most prestigious jewellery brands. Van Cleef & Arpels currently operates 14 freestanding locations in the United States. Cities include New York City, Aspen CO, Bal Harbour FL, Beverly Hills, Costa Mesa CA, Chicago, Las Vegas (x2), Manhasset NY, Miami, Houston, Naples FL, Palm Beach FL, and Short Hills NJ. Noticeably absent are large cities with plenty of luxury brands such as San Francisco, Boston, Washington DC, and Dallas. All of the latter four metro regions, with the exception of Boston, feature Van Cleef & Arpels shop-in-stores at Neiman Marcus.
*Thank you Helen Siwak for providing us with external photos of the new Vancouver store.
In the past few days, the UK has seen its first snowfall of the winter. But there’s snow and there’s snow. And this year, it’s not just our snowfall that will likely be a pale imitation of what Canadians will enjoy.
On my visit to Toronto last month, I couldn’t help but be impressed by the way Canadian stores have embraced the festive season. This year, they have gone all out to really bring the wow factor, delivering a fantastic offering that leaves instore celebrations in the UK… well, out in the cold – feeling somewhat tired and underwhelming by comparison.
UK retailers follow a rather unsightly tradition of cramming stores with product, piling it high wherever there’s a modicum of space. There’s no escaping the fact that this trend hasn’t been helped since Black Friday arrived from the US – retailers competing to offer the cheapest prices, often at the expense of brand alignment and shopper experience.
By contrast, Canadian retailers appear to look at the bigger picture. Not for them a sale driven by stress and panic. Instead, they focus on experience, space and relaxation in the retail environment, igniting the magic and spirit of the season.
Toronto provided a spirited reminder of how a festive obsession can be turned into an all-out spectacle, with stores pulling out all the stops to deliver a jaw-dropping, premium visual merchandising offering which creates a shopper experience full of seasonal joy.
Take the newly renovated CF Sherway Gardens Mall, for example, featuring gorgeous larger-than-life size stags and reindeer and baubles enveloped in white lights to provide a truly magical feel. No other decorations were used throughout the Mall – these were enough, delivering an eye-catching yet tastefully premium look and feel.
Riotous red – the unofficial colour of Christmas for retail – clearly rules this year. It’s a clever psychological ploy; adding bright colour pops to dull days and inviting warmth and cheer into the darkest of winters. And Canadian stores are delivering it with real authority for Christmas 2017.
Pottery Barn has opted for an impactful red and white theme, effortlessly bringing the spirit of Christmas to life throughout the whole store. Exquisite trees, meticulously dressed tables, and the most careful attention to detail, make this a true VM festive delight.
Nordstrom was another shining example of how to get Christmas right. Its folk theme was added to every focal point, a combination of hanging wreaths and trees, with the main theme or red running throughout the scheme. It made full use of its space, was easy to navigate and a pleasure to shop.
Williams and Sonoma… simply VM heaven. Blending crisp whites with bold reds, it is stunningly impactful, from its incredible tall biscuit tins to uber creative hot chocolate displays, taking shoppers on what can only be described as an amazing journey.
In short, I think the Canadian retailers have delivered Christmas to another level, one that we simply aren’t used to in the UK. And it’s a clear case of lessons to be learned by many UK stores. By looking to their Canadian counterparts they will surely see the value in delivering a stress-free, sensory and emotionally connected experience to shoppers. Concentrate on this and the sales will look after themselves. Ignore it, and retailers will find themselves with piles of cheap stock… and no one to buy it.
Karl McKeever is the founder and driving force behind Visual Thinking, a globally recognised retail transformation agency. A renowned retail expert, he has worked with an impressive roster of major global retail brands, including: Gap, IKEA, Harley-Davidson, John Lewis, and Marks & Spencer during his 30 year career. He has also appeared as a judge on BBC TV series, The Apprentice.
Cobs in Toronto's Annex Neighbourhood (Image: Cobs Bread)
Fresh from opening three new locations, COBS Bread has big plans to further expand its brand across the country.
Brad Bissonnette, VP Marketing & Franchise Recruitment for the company which first opened in North Vancouver in August 2003, tells Retail Insider that it plans to grow to 250 locations in Canada by the end of fiscal year 2022.
“We have a vision to be your favourite bakery within every community that we do business in. Currently, we see an opportunity to really ignite a passion for fresh bread and the freshest baked treats,” says Bissonnette.
“We’re looking to strategically expand across Canada.”
COBS Bread opened its 100th Canadian bakery in Chestermere, Alberta at the end of November. Since then it opened its 101st location in Grande Prairie, Alberta and 102nd location in Ottawa. COBS Bread will also be expanding into Manitoba in early 2018, opening in Winnipeg at St.Vital Square with a local franchisee.
“We’re really excited to be opening our first location in Winnipeg around the end of February and we’re currently recruiting franchisees to share our values and our vision for the Atlantic provinces,” says Bissonnette.
“We’re still considering what our strategic plan will be to enter the Quebec market.”
It has bakeries throughout British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario. It also has one location in the United States in Stamford, Connecticut, which opened about three years ago.
“One of the strengths of this national network, and why we are hitting such a milestone, is due to the strong business systems we have in place,” says Bissonnette. “COBS Bread has a strong commitment to building the brand through the financial health of our franchises, a strong commitment to customer experience and a focus on quality products.”
COBS Bread has been awarded the Franchisee’s Choice Designation by the Canadian Franchise Association for seven consecutive years.
COBS Bread features hand-crafted bread and fresh treats baked every day. It is part of Bakers Delight Holdings Ltd, established in 1980 and operating as Bakers Delight in Australia and New Zealand and COBS Bread in Canada and the United States.
Together they have grown to become the world’s most successful bakery franchise with more than 700 bakery locations worldwide.
Canadian-based e-commerce retailer Simpli Home is seeking to revolutionize the furniture retail space, with a high-tech business model that is growing rapidly.
The company specializes in affordable, fashion-forward furniture, which is sold in Canada and the U.S. through major e-commerce companies such as Amazon, Wayfair, Walmart, Costco and Home Depot. Simpli Home also recently launched its own e-commerce website, which allows consumers to buy products directly.
The company is growing by between 25-35% per year, according to Yoram Weinreich, chief growth officer at Simpli Home. Currently, the company sells approximately 400,000 pieces of furniture per year, and Weinreich expects that volume could double in the next two to three years.
“We’ve experienced very, very rapid growth,” he says.
Simpli Home caters primarily to consumers between the ages of 25 and 54 who are in search of stylish home furnishings at an affordable price. The company focuses on casual contemporary furniture, with styles that evolve as trends change. Currently, industrial and mid-century styles are among the company’s top selling items, Weinreich says.
Although the vast majority of consumers buy furniture in stores, Weinreich says consumers are becoming increasingly comfortable buying items online. As that trend continues, he says demand for buying furniture online is “unlimited and growing.”
“You still have 90% of the population buying furniture in stores,” he says. “But, the advantage online is you have unlimited variety, whereas in stores, you have very limited variety.”
In fact, Weinreich notes that Simpli Home currently has 1,200 different products available. Next year, the company intends to increase its selection to 2,000 products. The online sales channel makes it easy to continually release new products to gauge consumer appetite, Weinreich says.
“It’s easy to experiment online,” he says.
Weinreich believes that the digital transformation currently underway in the retail business is only just beginning. As e-commerce companies embrace tools such as augmented reality to support the online shopping experience, he suspects that a much higher proportion of consumers will eventually make purchases online rather than in stores.
Retailers that fail to keep up, he says, could find themselves out of business.
“E-commerce is a massive transformation that’s happening in the retail marketplace,” Weinreich says. “Either retailers are going to adapt and change, or they’re going to lose giant market share.”
Simpli Home has embraced technology into nearly all aspects of its business and supply chain in order to provide rapid shipping turnaround and responsive customer service. Utilizing technology has also helped the company to run an efficient global operation, with offices in Canada, U.S., China, Macau, Vietnam and India.
“We take every technology available to us and apply it in order to automate,” Weinreich said.
“We work as a global operation in the real sense of the word, utilizing people in remote locations, using technology to work together.”
GLASS SPHERE AT ERIN MILLS TOWN CENTRE. (PHOTO: CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD)
An innovative and creative use of space in a Mississauga shopping mall may well be the wave of the future in the retail and real estate industries.
Recently, Erin Mills Town Centre became what’s believed to be Canada’s first shopping centre to create a co-working office space in the mall.
The MindShare WorkSpace is the brainchild of founder and CEO Robert Martellaci who was inspired by a desire to fill a space void in Mississauga, to accelerate innovation and promote a healthy and vibrant 21st century city ecosystem.
The MindShare WorkSpace is a state-of-the-art innovation space designed to inspire people to work hard, connect with a diverse group of professionals, and have fun.
GLASS SPHERE AT ERIN MILLS TOWN CENTRE. (PHOTO: CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD)MindShare WorkSpace at Erin Mills Town Centre
“I’ve been researching this for the last year and a half, two years or so,” says Martellacci. “The MindShare WorkSpace was inspired by our work in the education space and really redefines the future of work and learning, providing opportunities for Mississauga startups and small business leaders from all sectors to live, work, and play in their own backyard.”
The growth of online shopping and the growth of co-working created a perfect storm for Martellaci to create a space in a shopping mall.
“We’re re-defining the future of work and learning. Our tag line is innovate, connect and grow,” says the founder of MindShare Learning Technology. “We’re working with individuals, consultants, startups, small businesses to inspire them to innovate, connect and grow. Those are our three pillars that we have.”
“The original plan was to go into the downtown core but when I presented to the mall management group . . . they immediately got into ‘we want you in here’. They were very, very supportive. Our research showed that Mississauga was under-served when it came to collaborative, innovative work spaces.”
MindShare WorkSpace at Erin Mills Town CentreMindShare WorkSpace at Erin Mills Town Centre
The MindShare WorkSpace special features include:
4,000 square feet of flexible co-working space with state-of-the-art technology, modern dedicated desks, private offices and meeting rooms;
Podcasting/video studio;
Classroom Innovation Space for leadership training, community outreach programs and lifelong learning workshops;
Professional development and educational workshops;
Weekend Robotics, Coding, DIY workshops for kids and adults; and
Mall Amenities.
Martellaci says MindShare WorkSpace is designed for community members to inspire cross-sector collaboration – from individual consultants, to startups and small business.
MindShare WorkSpace at Erin Mills Town CentreMindShare WorkSpace at Erin Mills Town Centre
Susan Amring, Director of Economic Development for City of Mississauga, says the concept “is a great asset for our new and expanding business community looking for office space. With modern design, flexible work areas and current technologies, MindShare creates a great atmosphere for business development and growth.”
Francesca Bourré, Marketing Director for Erin Mills Town Centre, says the idea “will add great value to our customer offering and to the community” as a first-of-its-kind offering in a shopping centre.
“I’ve had since we announced a developer who owns multiple malls in North America approach us about a joint venture because of what they see as being the future,” says Martellacci.
“So it’s been a bit of a shock and a surprise to me just how much interest there is. So it’s really exciting and a little daunting by the same token. We’re really filling a void in many ways.”
French luxury bakery and sweets maker Ladurée opened its first Toronto location at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre on Thursday at noon and as was expected, there were lineups to get in. Yorkdale marks Ladurée’s third Canadian location, following the opening of its first two in Vancouver.
The 1,185 square foot Yorkdale Ladurée is in the mall’s ‘luxury wing’, across the hall from Saint Laurent, and next to Links of London as per the mall floor plan below. Ladurée features a retail area as well as a 26-seat tea salon.
The menu includes Ladurée’s signature macarons in a variety of flavours, as well as chocolates, specialty teas, jams, branded honey, Ladurée accessories (including candles, room fragrances) and other merchandise such as key chains and shopping bags, as well as gift boxes. The tea salon features a variety of tea and other drinks, as well as popular menu items such as French toast, salads, sandwiches and Afternoon Tea. For a limited time only, Ladurée is offering a Maple Syrup-flavoured macaron at its Canadian locations.
The interior design was inspired by the colonial style of the 18th century — the pastel pink tea room is decorated with a white marble sales counter that is beautifully accentuated with gold lattice details. Gold Lattice is also present on the walls of the salon, providing a cohesive and luxurious backdrop. A Classic crystal chandelier contrasts with contemporary madeleine lights hanging from the ceilings, as well as the geometric marble tile flooring and velvet-accented furniture. The store’s soaring ceilings are dramatic with plaster ceiling treatments — it’s the first Ladurée store to feature the brand’s updated look.
Overall, it’s a beautiful setting that brings a bit of Paris to bustling Toronto. The Yorkdale Ladurée was built by Vergo Construction’s Commercial Interiors Division, which provided complete construction management including the planning (drawings, etc), procurement and project management of the entire project. Ladurée worked directly with landlord Oxford Properties on the Yorkdale deal. “We had a shared vision,” said Olesya Krakhmalyova, Canadian licensee for Ladurée. She said that Oxford presented a retail space opportunity that was just too good to pass up.
Ladurée entered Canada in March of 2016, when it opened a 1,100 square foot boutique and 23-seat tea salon at 1141 Robson Street in Vancouver. That was followed by a second Vancouver location in March of 2017 with the opening of a 500 square foot Ladurée concession (including an 18-seat tea salon) at Vancouver’s Holt Renfrew flagship, adjacent to the store’s recently overhauled 8,500 square foot women’s designer footwear salon.
Ms. Krakhmalyova said that she expects the new Yorkdale location will be able to serve alcoholic drinks in the spring of 2018. Ladurée ice cream is also expected around that time, as well.
Ms. Krakhmalyova explained how each Ladurée location requires detail-oriented precision and because of this, the Canadian rollout will be carefully executed. The two Vancouver locations opened almost exactly a year apart, she noted, and the company’s focus for Toronto will initially just be on the Yorkdale location.
The Vancouver locations will see an expanded assortment of fresh pastries next year — Ms. Krakhmalyova explained that she will be opening a ‘pastry laboratory’ kitchen in the city in the spring of 2018, and that a pastry chef is being moved to Vancouver to supply locations with a full range of Ladurée pastries — until now, only a limited selection has been available in Canada.
Founded in Paris in 1862, Ladurée is best known for its double-decker macarons, selling over 15,000 of them daily. Many Ladurée locations also sell ice cream, sorbets, jams, chocolate and candy, as well as branded accessories. Ladurée was purchased by French business group Groupe Holder in 1993, expanding Ladurée from a handful of locations to dozens of boutiques in 27 countries, including several in the United States.
Hallmark Canada has discovered an innovative way to reach out to consumers with a new strategy that entails opening up smaller stores within other big retail stores across the country.
The multi-focus store initiative was designed to address the challenges of operating in the current retail market. The company now has 14 mini Hallmark Gold Crown locations in Canada – with many more to come.
Michelle Smye, General Manager, Canada Retail for Hallmark, says the company wants to continue to grow its bricks and mortar network.
“It’s really important to us to have stores out there in the community that are carrying our brand and particularly the Gold Crown brand which is an expanded breadth of product than what you might find Hallmark selling in mass points of distribution,” says Smye.
Image: Hallmark Canada
“In the current marketplace, it’s very hard to grow our traditional Hallmark store network given rising rents, especially in A and A minus, B, location malls. With our individual average transaction value being in the paper business, it’s very hard to remain profitable at the rents that are being charged in these locations. So we really wanted to think out of the box and get back to being the stores of the community.”
Currently, 126 stores across Canada carry Gold Crown products. There are 111 stores in Canada that have Hallmark on their bulkhead.
“There’s all kinds of people out there who are familiar with the Hallmark brand and would like to bring the Hallmark brand into their households but they just don’t have access,” says Smye
“What we’ve started to do is look at where do we have a lack of distribution. Where’s that white space and what stores may exist and be operating profitably and would like to team up with us and carry their brand and our brand in their stores. We started doing this at the end of last year – in the fourth quarter of 2016.”
Image: Hallmark Canada
Because of the success of the initial launch, Hallmark has decided for 2018 to be aggressive in its approach to grow its market.
“We’re really looking at growing exponentially. But in our plan we’ve got at least a group of another 25 locations opening in 2018,” says Smye.
The new store within a store concept is primarily located now in larger independent drug stores and some specialty gift shops.
“There’s definitely some potential for other places but we’re trying to focus in on stores of the community. So for example, it could be a hardware store if it was in a rural area and that was the store where everybody came to get their general merchandise needs and there was a real call for Hallmark products in that area,” says Smye.
She says consumer reaction has been great to the new concept.
Holt Renfrew has partnered with Toronto’s Chase Hospitality Group to rebrand five of Holt Renfrew’s in-store restaurants. In early 2018, Holt’s restaurants will be renamed Colette Grand Café.
Colette Grand Café opened at Toronto’s Thompson Hotel in the summer of 2014, and the French-inspired restaurant has been a hit ever since. Holt Renfrew’s restaurants in Edmonton, Montreal, Vancouver, and Toronto’s Yorkdale and 50 Bloor Street West locations, will all be converted to the Colette Grand Café, taking the restaurant concept national.
“Colette Grand Café embodies the French-style and is the perfect fit for Holt Renfrew to offer clientele the full luxury experience,” said Mario Grauso, President, Holt Renfrew. “Well-known for culinary excellence and creating beautifully designed spaces, we are excited to have Chase Hospitality Group restaurants as a valued partner.”
THE CAFÉ AT HOLT’S IN VANCOUVER’S CF PACIFIC CENTRE OPENED AS PART OF A STORE EXPANSION IN THE FALL OF 2016. PHOTO: HOLT’S
MONTREAL HOLT’S RESTAURANT — NO WORD YET WHAT WILL HAPPEN WITH THE NEW ‘HOLT RENFREW OGILVY — PHOTO COURTESY OF HOLT’S
“We are very happy to be partnering with such an iconic luxury brand as Holt Renfrew, and to be expanding Colette Grand Café across Canada,” said Steven Salm, President, Chase Hospitality Group. “The French-inspired aesthetic and menu are a natural fit for the stylish destination and we are so pleased to bring the two together.”
The Ladurée café at Holt’s in Vancouver will be unaffected by the announcement — Ladurée has operated a 500 square foot space adjacent to the store’s women’s shoe department since the spring of 2017, and is opening this morning at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre.
THE COLETTE GRAND CAFÉ IN TORONTO
Chase Hospitality Group develops, manages, and operates restaurants in Toronto under several nameplates including The Chase Fish & Oyster (downtown) Kasa Moto (a contemporary Japanese restaurant and lounge in Yorkville), Planta (offering a 100% plant-based menu in Yorkville), Planta Burger (offering a 100% plant-based menu featuring burgers, downtown), Palm Lane (emphasizing whole-meal salads and bowls at Yorkville Village), as well as Colette Grand Café.
It’s not the first time that an external restaurant provider has opened restaurants in an upscale, large Canadian store — both of Saks Fifth Avenue’s Canadian stores, located in Toronto, feature Oliver & Bonacini-operated food establishments. Hudson’s Bay, under the same ownership umbrella as Saks, also features Oliver & Bonacini restaurants in a handful of its flagships. Nordstrom, on the other hand, operates a collection of in-house branded restaurants in its Canadian and American stores.
