After 34 years operating from a narrow multi-level storefront on Church Street, Toronto LGBTQ+ retailer Out on the Street has entered a new era with the opening of a redesigned and fully accessible store in the heart of the Church-Wellesley Village.
The retailer officially opened its new location at 504 Church Street on May 1, relocating from its longtime home at 551 Church Street, where founder Ian Kelly built one of Canada’s best-known LGBTQ+ retail businesses beginning in 1991. What was once spread across three floors inside a heritage building has now been transformed into a bright single-level retail environment focused on accessibility, visibility, expanded merchandising, and a more immersive shopping experience.
The Out on the Street new store also arrives at a time when many long-running independent LGBTQ+ retailers across North America have disappeared amid rising operating costs, online competition, redevelopment pressures, and changing nightlife patterns. Against that backdrop, the relocation represents both reinvention and continuity for a business that remains closely tied to Toronto’s LGBTQ+ community and the evolution of Church Street itself.
“We are seeing a whole new diverse community base coming into our store,” co-owner Michael Azzopardi said during an interview inside the new location. “We are fully accessible now, so we are welcoming customers that were never able to shop at our store before.”
The move also places the retailer more directly within the Village’s busiest pedestrian corridor south of Wellesley Street, where restaurants, nightlife, retail, and Pride activity continue to anchor one of Canada’s most historically significant LGBTQ+ neighbourhoods.
A Longtime Village Institution Evolves
For decades, Out on the Street operated from a distinctive but challenging three-level space that became a landmark for generations of customers. The store developed a loyal following through its eclectic mix of underwear, Pride merchandise, gifts, novelty products, adult items, apparel, and swimwear, becoming a staple of the Church-Wellesley Village retail landscape.
Over time, however, the building’s layout became increasingly difficult for both customers and staff to navigate.
Visitors regularly moved between narrow staircases and separate merchandise areas, while employees worked across disconnected floors that limited visibility and made merchandising more difficult.
The new one-level format has changed that dramatically.
“We get to see all of our customers at the same time now,” Azzopardi explained. “Customers get to see all of our merchandise in one go instead of travelling up and down stairs. Putting outfits together is much easier because people can see everything together, and our staff are better able to assist.”
The redesign has also introduced new customers to the business, particularly those who previously found the old location inaccessible.
Large walls of brightly merchandised underwear and swimwear are now visible almost immediately upon entering the store, while the open layout allows customers to browse the assortment more comfortably and naturally than before. Softer lighting around the cash area creates a warmer atmosphere that contrasts with the more compartmentalized feel of the previous location.
Although the new store occupies approximately 1,600 square feet on one level, compared to roughly 1,800 square feet spread across three floors previously, the brighter layout and improved sightlines make the space feel significantly larger.
Out on the Street’s former location at 551 Church Street will continue operating temporarily as a clearance centre until approximately Halloween while the final stages of the transition are completed.
Bringing New Energy to a Vacant Church Street Space
The move has also reactivated a storefront that sat vacant for approximately 13 years.
The space at 504 Church Street previously housed hospitality concepts including George’s Play and Gatsby’s before remaining dark for more than a decade. The reopening therefore carries significance beyond the retailer itself, contributing renewed retail activity to a stretch of Church Street that has experienced both revitalization and contraction in recent years.
The geography of Toronto’s Village has shifted noticeably over the past two decades, with much of the district’s nightlife and pedestrian activity concentrating south of Wellesley Street. Independent LGBTQ+-focused businesses have become increasingly rare as redevelopment pressures, rising rents, and evolving consumer habits continue reshaping the area.
Yet Church Street remains a symbolic and cultural anchor for Toronto’s LGBTQ+ community, particularly during Pride celebrations and major community events. For Out on the Street, remaining within the centre of that activity was critical.
A More Contemporary Store Experience
Inside the new store, the visual transformation is immediate.
Warm lighting, refreshed fixtures, expanded product walls, digital signage, and subtle rainbow integrations create a more polished and modern atmosphere while still preserving the personality longtime customers associate with the business.
“Part of our new design was to take the rainbow and integrate it into everything we do,” Azzopardi said. “Our gift card, our business card, the colours, the lighting, even the outside digital sign.”
Rather than relying heavily on overt Pride branding throughout the store, rainbow elements have been woven more subtly into displays, signage, graphics, and environmental details.
The fitting rooms have also been completely redesigned with upgraded mirrors and lighting systems that have already generated strong customer feedback.
At the rear of the store, one small but meaningful piece of the previous location remains. “The Back Room” signage from the original store was relocated into the new space as a nod to the company’s history.
“That sign was brought over just as a little nod to our old location,” Azzopardi said. “We tried to bring in one or two pieces from the old store to maintain who we are.”
The balance between modernization and familiarity appears to be resonating with customers, many of whom have followed the retailer for decades.
Expanded Brands Reflect Broader Retail Shifts
The redesigned layout has also allowed Out on the Street to expand portions of its assortment despite operating within a slightly smaller footprint.
“Our gift cards have increased by about 150 SKUs,” Azzopardi said. “We have been able to expand more of our Addicted and ES lines. We now carry Levi’s. We now carry Psycho Bunny. We have expanded our Alpha Charlie lines.”
The addition of brands such as Levi’s and Psycho Bunny signals a broader merchandise evolution beyond nightlife and Pride-focused apparel into more premium everyday fashion categories.
That opportunity has emerged partly because of major changes within Canada’s department store landscape. Following the closures of retailers including Sears Canada and Hudson’s Bay, shoppers now have fewer destinations carrying broad denim and casualwear assortments.
“We still need to offer that to our customers,” Azzopardi said. “We saw an opportunity, we reached out to Levi’s, and we started there.”
The retailer currently carries staple Levi’s fits including the 501, 504, 511, and 512 styles, while the Psycho Bunny assortment focuses on premium polos and elevated casual basics.
“If customers are looking for not so much club wear but more everyday wear, we are now expanding those lines as well,” Azzopardi explained.
At the same time, Out on the Street continues to lean heavily into the categories that built its reputation within the Village.
“It is the biggest in the Village,” Azzopardi said of the store’s underwear assortment. “Across Canada, besides some online retailers, nobody quite does what we do.”
The retailer has also secured a Canadian-exclusive swimwear collaboration with Spanish brand Addicted.
“We now have an exclusive with Addicted,” Azzopardi said. “We have created a Canadian-brand swimwear collection with them that is exclusive to Out on the Street.”
Expanding Reach Beyond Toronto
While the retailer remains deeply tied to the Church-Wellesley Village physically and culturally, its ambitions increasingly extend well beyond Toronto through e-commerce and social media.
Out on the Street ships products nationally and internationally, serving customers in markets where dedicated LGBTQ+ retail options may be limited or nonexistent.
“We ship all across the country and even globally,” Azzopardi said.
The company recently launched a new Instagram presence under the handle “outonthestreet.ca” as part of the broader refresh tied to the relocation.
“What we are trying to do is expand our online presence into the Prairies,” Azzopardi explained. “We want people to know that we are available.”
The approach reflects how many independent specialty retailers are increasingly pairing destination physical stores with national digital reach while relying on community connection and curated assortments to differentiate themselves from mass online marketplaces.
