Retail Insider is streamlining its Canadian retail news from around the web to include a handful of top news stories that can be viewed quickly during the day. Here are the top stories from the past three days.
Rendering of the new location. Final signage package subject to approvals
Restaurant chain A&W will be opening a location this spring in a key retail space at 1023 Government Street in downtown Victoria. The building was formerly occupied by Montreal-based jeweller Birks, which exited its Victoria operations in March of 2022.
The new Government Street A&W will span about 1,400 square feet, according to Mika Desloges, A&W’s Manager of Real Estate for Western Canada, and will be the first in the chain to feature a walk-up window. A unique feature in the restaurant will be its ceiling — the construction team discovered original woodwork and exposed brick when removing what was there before, and the heritage elements will be incorporated into the new A&W.
A&W will attempt to keep as many of the original elements of the building as possible, according to Desloges, including the facade and various design elements. The clock on the exterior of the building, installed by former tenant Birks, will also be retained.
A&W under construction at 1023 Government Street in Victoria, BC, on February 2, 2024, in a retail space formerly occupied by a Birks jewellery store. Photo: Lee RivettFormer Maison Birks at 1023 Government St, Victoria, BC (Photo: ‘Amir’ via Google Images)
The franchised restaurant is owned by Wyatt McMurray of the McMurray Group, which operates 42 A&W franchises in British Columbia.
The prime corner at Government Street and Fort Street is across from a multi-level Hudson’s Bay department store and the adjacent Bay Centre shopping mall. An opposite corner is occupied by Lugaro Jewellers, which features a selection of Rolex watches on site. Government Street is frequented by tourists, particularly in the summer. The new A&W will be about three blocks north of the historic Empress Hotel and the Inner Harbour.
Visitors to the Inner Harbour area will also have the opportunity to shop at a new 6,500 Lululemon store that was just announced to be opening this year. The store will be located in the iconic Customs House building with a facade facing onto the corner of Government Street and Wharf Street.
Birks vacated its Government Street store in March of 2020 after operating in the city for 74 years. Birks moved into the 1023 Government Street store in June of 2001. Prior to that, Birks operated out of a much larger space at 706-708 Yates Street, from 1948 until 2001. Birks moved its operations to Government Street as downtown retail polarized in that direction and away from Douglas Street.
Prior to Birks, the 1023 Government Street building was occupied by a retailer called METRO Today’s Clothing, which opened in 1994. From the mid 1950s to 1993, an Indigenous art retailer called The Quest operated a store there. Newspaper advertisements in the 1940s and 1950s noted a “K Shoe store” that occupied the address for the time. About a century ago, the site was occupied by a John Cochrane Williams drug store.
Craig and Lee discuss CF Sherway Gardens, a Toronto shopping centre that boasts high sales per square foot productivity as new retailers open. The mall is anchored by Hudson’s Bay, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Harry Rosen, and will be welcoming new retailers such as Arcteryx, Ray Ban, and Alo Yoga. The future of Saks Fifth Avenue at the mall is uncertain, with the store having significantly downsized its offerings. Additionally, the mall lacks a direct subway connection and faces competition from Square One in Mississauga, which boasts a luxury offering.
Despite these challenges, CF Sherway Gardens is undergoing significant redevelopment. Plans are in place to add residential towers and other uses to the site, reflecting a broader trend of shopping center intensification in Toronto. The future of CF Sherway Gardens remains to be seen, but it is currently a successful mall with ambitious plans for the future.
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CF Sherway Gardens: Sales Per Square Foot Record Set as New Retailers Open [Podcast]
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The Body Shop at Toronto Pearson Airport (Image: Pearson Airport)
The Body Shop Canada, the Canadian subsidiary of the global beauty brand with 105 stores across the country, announced Friday it has commenced restructuring proceedings by filing a Notice of Intention (NOI) to Make a Proposal pursuant to the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (Canada).
It will be closing 33 Canadian stores.
“Following the commencement of administration proceedings in the United Kingdom by its parent company, The Body Shop Canada is commencing this NOI process to obtain a stay of proceedings to provide additional breathing room while it evaluates its strategic alternatives and implements certain restructuring initiatives,” said the company in a news release.
“All of The Body Shop Canada’s 105 store locations are currently open for business, however online sales via Canada’s ecommerce store will stop and certain stores noted below will close in the near term.”
The Body Shop at Dufferin Mall (Image: Dufferin Mall)
As part of the NOI process, The Body Shop Canada said it is immediately commencing liquidation sales at the following 33 closing stores:
BC:
Hillside Shopping Centre (Victoria)
Semiahmoo (White Rock)
Village Green (Vernon)
Alberta:
Londonderry Mall (Edmonton)
Medicine Hat Mall (Medicine)
Park Place (Lethbridge)
Sunridge Mall (Calgary)
Lloyd Mall (Lloydminster)
Medicine Hat Mall (Medicine Hat)
Park Place (Lethbridge)
Saskatchewan:
Lawson Heights (Saskatoon)
The Centre (Saskatoon)
Midtown Plaza (Saskatoon)
Cornwall Centre (Regina)
Manitoba:
Shoppers Mall (Brandon)
Ontario:
Bayview Village (Toronto)
Queen Street East (Toronto)
Rideau Centre (Ottawa)
Carlingwood Mall (Ottawa)
Fairview Park Mall (Kitchener)
Cataraqui Town Centre (Kingston)
Lynden Park Mall (Brantford)
Stone Road Mall (Guelph)
Dufferin Mall (Toronto)
The Shops at Don Mills (Toronto)
Toronto Pearson Term. 1 (Toronto)
Lambton Mall (Sarnia)
Place d’Orleans (Orleans)
Timmins Square (Timmins)
Lansdowne Place (Peterborough)
Atlantic Canada
Corner Brook Plaza (Corner Brook)
Champlain Place (Dieppe)
Mayflower Mall (Sydney)
McAllister Place (Saint John)
Truro Mall (Truro)
Alvarez & Marsal Canada Inc. was appointed as the Proposal Trustee.
The company also announced Friday that effective today, March 1, 2024, The Body Shop US Limited has ceased operations.
“Body Shop was indisputably a cultural pioneer with respect to its courageous stance on animal testing. A position which, at the time, was indeed unique within the industry. Regrettably, like many innovators, they could do little but watch as rivals followed suit, erasing any material competitive advantage Body Shop possessed,” said Doug Stephens, Founder of Retail Prophet.
Doug Stephens
“Without continued strategic evolution, the brand simply lost much of its relevance to a new generation of consumers.”
Image: TheBodyShop.com
Bruce Winder
Added Bruce Winder, Retail Analyst & Author: “Very sad to see another retailer in serious trouble. Once differentiated with its purpose positioning, The Body Shop faced strong competitors such as Lush who did it better.
“The retailer also failed to innovate, lacking investment in digital technology. It became another cog in the massive L’Oreal wheel and was eventually sold to private equity.
“Finally, with economic headwinds and pressure on discretionary goods, consumers tightened their belts.”
“You always have to ask why brands fail the test of time and all of the strategies you are taught in business schools and the overwhelming presentations that say here is a new catchall idea that will save your brand,” said George Minakakis, CEO of the Inception Retail Group. “It is a myth to believe that just because you have an e-commerce site, being digitally native, you will succeed. The fundamentals of retailing remain the same. The right product for the right consumer at the right price and the right brand story has a foundation.
George Minakakis
“Delivering all of that remains a challenge for many retailers. The Body Shop has faced the same marketplace challenges. Closing 33 stores tells me these are the stores losing money. But let’s not forget when retail brands are acquired as investments; they become financial instruments within other organizations. In these circumstances, they fail to invest internally in technology, product development, and overall brand innovation. That’s what’s happened here.
“Will restructuring save them? In my experience, I have seen many such situations, and recovering from this isn’t easy. Bad news follows bad news; what that means is that the consumer has heard that The Body Shop is filing for bankruptcy protection. The news wasn’t that they were opening another 100 stores. And that is the bad news that follows, consumers will simply move to other brands they can depend on. The Body Shop is not alone. I am tracking two other retailers in Canada, and I do not believe 2023 has been good for them. They, too, risk facing the same future as The Body Shop. The real impact is always with the employees and the suppliers who lose out.”
Image: The Body Shop
Michael Kehoe, Broker of Record at Fairfield Commercial Real Estate, said The Body Shop restructuring announcement is representative of the current turmoil in some sectors of the Canadian retail industry.
Michael Kehoe
“The Body Shop could be considered a legacy retailer in the health and beauty category with success in the Canadian marketplace over the past 40 years. This category is very competitive with several dominant retailers gobbling up market share and appealing to a younger demographic with significant discretionary spending power,” he said.
“I feel that the Body Shop brand is dated and somewhat stale but can be repositioned to regain its place in the market. The closure of 33 stores as part of the restructuring process is no surprise and most of these locations are considered prime and will be leased up quickly in the current robust leasing environment.”
David Ian Gray, Founder/Strategist with DIG360 Consulting, said The Body Shop was an original.
David Ian Gray
“It was one of the first bath and beauty specialty shops and more notably one of the first purpose-driven retailers and brands. However over the years more and more store and web based competition arrived and anti-cruelty and sustainability became ubiquitous plays in the space. The Body Shop lost its competitive advantages even as it relentlessly tried to be a global brand. It has been struggling for a number of years,” he said.
“It should be noted that the Canadian operation has been one of the global bright spots (along with the UK). The US has been an ongoing challenge. Canada and the US are run out of Toronto as separate corporate entities. This regional leadership of late has been making some bold, promising moves to drive sales. Their legs were cut out from under them when the PE firm pulled the plug in the UK without warning a couple of weeks ago, after having promised a turnaround when they bought the brand in November.
“It is said that there was deep discounting by Natura who ran the operation until after Holiday 2023, and that discounting compounded weak demand to bring in results much below expected globally and certainly in the UK.”
Retail is done best when in the hands of retailers, added Gray.
“L’Oreal then Natura are not retailers. In fact Natura admitted its lack of retail expertise was blocking its ability to revive the brand. The latest owner is a PE firm. This firm may well end up with the brand or at least valuable parts of it after bankruptcy plays out. One wonders if this was the plan all along. They claim it was not.
Canada will again lose a head office and the related opportunities for Canadian professionals to grow and develop.”
The Body Shop x Shoppers Drug Mart (Image: The Body Shop)
Last fall, The Body Shop began growing its retail presence in Canada with shop-in-shop locations at Shoppers Drug Mart stores.
In a December interview with Retail Insider, Jordan Searle, the company’s North American President, said the brand did not open any new locations in Canada in the past year but it has been undergoing renovations of existing locations.
“Obviously with 108 stores, we’re fairly well penetrated across Canada. So it’s really been a question of us upgrading our stores to our new workshop concept. The most notable of those would be our Yorkdale store which was back in August,” he said, adding that about nine stores have gone through the process.
“And more to come.”
The Body Shop International Limited (The Body Shop), a once pioneering beauty brand known for its cruelty free heritage and ethical beauty products was acquired from Natura & Co. by AURELIUS GROUP in December 2023.
Retail Insider is streamlining its Canadian retail news from around the web to include a handful of top news stories that can be viewed quickly during the day. Here are the top stories from the past 24 hours.
The retail podium of One Bloor East in downtown Toronto has been fully leased. New tenants will include a flagship Nike store, Spanish retailer Mango, and a flagship branch for Scotiabank. Previously announced tenants will include The Ballroom and AVANT by Altea Active.
The commercial podium, acquired after construction by First Capital REIT in 2016, is at the base of a mixed-use tower which includes a 75 floor residential tower. Previous retail tenants at One Bloor East included a 20,000 square foot basement-level McEwan grocery store which shut amid bankruptcy in late 2021, and a 39,000 square foot Nordstrom Rack store that closed last spring with the retailer’s Canadian exit.
Bowling concept The Ballroom is replacing the McEwan grocery store, and it appears that construction is nearly complete. The former Nordstrom Rack store will be split by its floors, with a luxury wellness and social club concept AVANT by Altea Active to open on the 30,000 square foot upper level of the former Nordstrom Rack space. The approximately 8,000 square foot main floor of the former Nordstrom Rack, directly at the southeast corner of Yonge and Bloor Streets, will become a flagship branch for Scotiabank. The bank is relocating from a site nearby because of a proposed tower redevelopment.
Preliminary Rendering of Scotiabank at One Bloor East – Note, Nordstrom Rack will not have a presence upstairs (Image Provided) Preliminary Rendering of Scotiabank at One Bloor East (Image Provided) The Ballroom Bowl at One Bloor East with tenant Chick Fil A to the left (Image: Craig Patterson)The Ballroom Bowl at One Bloor East will be opening soon (Image: Craig Patterson)
Israel-based conglomerate Fox Group has leased the rest of One Bloor East, which includes two glass-fronted levels facing Bloor Street. Two of Fox Group’s key brands, Nike and Mango, will be moving in and splitting up the space. The retail space next to the Bloor Street entrance to the building’s residential tower will become home to Spanish retailer Mango, which entered Canada in 2023 and has opened several stores in the Toronto area. This will be Mango’s first street-front store in Canada, spanning about 4,000 square feet.
Nike will occupy about 17,000 square feet of space over two levels at the eastern end of the One Bloor East podium, making it one of the larger Nike flagship stores in Canada. The Fox Group has been expanding the Nike brand in Canada with standalone stores for several years, including a mix of smaller and large flagship stores in major markets. This will be the second Nike flagship store in Toronto, following the summer 2021 opening of a 24,000 square foot Nike store at the Yorkdale Shopping Centre.
International firm SAJO is doing the design-build for the the Nike flagship as well as the general contracting work for Lululemon across the street.
One Bloor East, as viewed from the RBC bank across the street. Construction for an expanded subway interchange has begun, including a new station entrance to the left of this photo (Image: Craig Patterson) One Bloor East, as seen from in front of the soon-to-open Lululemon store at 2 Bloor St. W. (Image: Craig Patterson)
Eric Sherman, Head of National Operations at First Capital REIT, said that the new tenants at 1 Bloor Street East will be opening in late 2024 or early 2025.
Eric Sherman
“We are proud to share that we are fully leased at One Bloor East in over 80,000 SF of retail space spread over 3 levels,” said Sherman. “We are more proud though of the spectacular roster of tenants we will be welcoming to this iconic corner which includes a curated mix of F&B and entertainment, health & wellness, flagship fashion, and a financial institution, all of whom are of the best in their respective categories. The efficiency with which the team was able to backfill the Nordstrom Rack space is extremely impressive and should generate a lot of optimism in the market.”
The movement of Nike, in particular, to this stretch of Bloor Street spells confidence in the future of the intersection from a retail perspective. Nike will join other recently opened tenants directly east that include a Cafe Landwer restaurant and a flagship location for LensCrafters that was recently profiled in Retail Insider.
Cafe Landwer and Lenscrafters at 33 Bloor St. East (Image: Craig Patterson)Future lululemon at 2 Bloor St. West, opening in April (Image: Craig Patterson)
Diagonally across the street at 2 Bloor Street West, Vancouver-based Lululemon is preparing to open its multi-level flagship that will occupy the prominent corner, and tower development The One continues construction at the southwest corner. Apple had been the secured tenant for the base of The One at 1 Bloor Street West, but it appears after court proceedings that Apple has exited plans to open what would have been a massive location at the prominent corner. This week it was announced that Mizrahi is no longer the developer on The One project, which has struggled with debt and other issues.
The Apple store that could have been — 1 Bloor Street West, photo taken February 29, 2024. Mizrahi is no longer the developer on this project. Photo: Craig Patterson
Changes are planned for the former Hudson’s Bay Centre building at 44 Bloor Street East, which will include a mix of retail and office space in a shopping centre connected to Canada’s busiest subway interchange. And the subway interchange will be getting updates budgeted in excess of $1.5 billion, which includes new platforms and new entrances for the subway on the south side of Bloor Street East. New foot traffic from one new station entrance on Bloor could see thousands of pedestrians walk past the new Nike and Mango stores.
Hudson’s Bay Centre building at 44 Bloor Street East — the building will be seeing major updates after the exit of a 340,000 square foot Hudson’s Bay department store in May of 2022 (Image: Craig Patterson)
The entire Bloor-Yorkville appears to be undergoing a sort of transformation, which includes the addition of thousands of new residential units in new towers that are either being built or proposed. Some of the condominium units being sold are priced upwards of $10 million, which means that hundreds of wealthy households will be moving into the area over the next five years. That could have a major impact on spending patterns in the area, including supporting the luxury brand flagship stores that are populating the stretch of Bloor Street West between Bellair Street and Avenue Road. Various other high-end services are either already in the area or will be opening, as well as various restaurants and other businesses catering to the monied demographic.
The opening of major retailers such as Nike signals an expectation that the Yonge and Bloor intersection will only become busier with more foot traffic and shopping dollars. There are few other strong retail opportunities east of the new Nike store on the south side of Bloor Street, which means that the progression of new retail in the area could eventually be pushed south onto Yonge Street. The stretch of Yonge Street south of Bloor Street includes a collection of various older buildings with independent businesses, and in the coming years there could be demand for space from national and international brands. This could be expected as new developments take place on the street, and new residential buildings are being added nearby. Years ago, Yonge Street south of Bloor Street housed various retail offerings, including some larger footwear chains and even luxury retailer Alan Cherry. The coming years will be interesting as new retail demand continues in the Yonge and Bloor area.
One Bloor East (Image: Craig Patterson) One Bloor East (Image: Craig Patterson) One Bloor East (Image: Craig Patterson) One Bloor East (Image: Craig Patterson) The Ballroom Bowl at One Bloor East (Image: Craig Patterson)The Ballroom Bowl at One Bloor East (Image: Craig Patterson)
Ken Keelor has always been interested in products, branding and consumer behaviour.
Throughout his business career, particularly in the grocery sector, he was always a student of consumer behaviour. Why do people buy what they buy? How do they shop? What are their motivations?
As a student he did an MBA in marketing where he was fascinated by consumers. His first job was managing the Vicks VapoRub brand for Procter & Gamble.
“Very early, during my MBA I had an interest in advertising and products,” said Keelor, who today is CEO of Calgary Co-op, one of the largest retail co-operatives in North America with more than 460,000 members, 3,900 employees and annual sales of over $1 billion.
“As a retailer, you see the end products coming to you and I found that very, very exciting and of course I loved understanding consumers – how they shopped in the stores.”
Rexall Re-Launch 2013 (Image: Ken Keelor)
Keelor was born in the UK because his father was a fighter pilot in the Indian air force. But he was only there until the age of two and then was raised in India. He lived in about a dozen places there as his father kept getting posted in different places in the country.
He did a Bachelor’s degree in Physics at St. Stephen’s College in Delhi then an MBA in Marketing at Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies.
He realized with physics it would cost a lot of money to pursue further education in the field in the U.S.
“And we really didn’t have the cash. So instead I applied to a couple of MBA schools in India and luckily got into one where I happened to meet my wife (Antara) in the future,” said Keelor.
He worked for Procter and Gamble in India initially then moved to Bahrain in the Middle East for a couple of years, working for a food distributor.
“I used to go around the world looking for products, put them in a 40-foot container and bring them to Bahrain and sell them in the local market. I had a field force that I hired and my job really was to go scout for products, bring them in and with the field force I hired we would go and sell them into the local market. Maintaining relationships with the local supermarkets was key and of course maintaining relationships with suppliers around the world was key,” said Keelor.
Image: Ken Keelor
After two years, he and his wife decided to move elsewhere. Canada and Australia at that time were open to immigration and they applied to both countries.
“It just happened that the Australian papers came back. We didn’t have enough postage on them. The Canadian ones came back saying thumbs up. I had a cousin that lived in White Rock, BC and told me that was the place to come to Canada. It’s beautiful by the way so in 1995 my wife and I moved to White Rock, BC, and we both started with telemarketing. We didn’t have a job . . . My wife then began to do some work in retail and we both interviewed almost every day.
“I ended up joining Save-On Foods that had just moved their buying office from Calgary to Langley in BC. I worked for them for just over five years. The now President of Save-On Darrell Jones used to be my local White Rock Save-On Foods store manager.”
He joined the company in category management with a lot of buying, pricing, preparation of flyers, engaging suppliers.
In 2001, Sobeys recruited him and the couple moved to Toronto.
“It was easy for us to move. I moved around a lot in life and we had no kids, no pets and barely any potted plants which was always our policy, even before we got married. We said do we really want to have kids, nobody wants to stay home, we were both quite aggressive with our careers,” he said.
He initially worked in the national merchandising team with Sobeys, did a lot of contracts with suppliers, about 200 every year, and also created a new framework for engagement with suppliers. After several roles at Sobeys for more than 10 years, Keelor left to become Chief Merchandising Officer for Rexall. After a couple of years, he returned to Sobeys for about a year when they bought Safeway.
“I happened to find the ad for CEO for Calgary Co-op in a magazine called the Canadian Grocer. A hard copy of the magazine. Funny story. My wife and I were both sitting at our computers in our study in our pajamas and I had just moved back to Sobeys a year ago, everyone welcomed me back home as they called it and then I said I found this ad. She said well apply, we’re not going to move so who cares,” said Keelor.
Image: Ken Keelor
He came to Calgary and met the board. He had never been in a Calgary Co-op store before. He chatted with customers. Chatted with employees. Every time he would get a call from Co-op after that he would assume they were letting him know that he was not the person for the job. But each call they would say they wanted to go to the next step.
Finally in November 2014, he took on the new role as CEO of Calgary Co-op. Initially when he came to Calgary the price of oil was elevated but then collapsed. His strategy had to be adapted.
As a successful business executive, Keelor said he believes integrity and honesty are keys.
“This is a small business and a lot of people know each other and if nothing else then for that reason you have to be very careful to always maintain integrity. In other words, you don’t promise somebody something but you would never promise it to the other person kind of a thing. Integrity is really important in how you do contracts, how you do deals, how you even don’t do deals . . . Your integrity, your reputation is very crucial in this business,” said Keelor.
“Another crucial thing to remember is you only get one life to live. So you have to enjoy the ride. For me, that is a two-part process. Number one is finding the person you love in your life which I’ve been very lucky with a wife of 32 years and then second find a job you enjoy so you’ll never work again. Those are two key pieces. But it’s got to be fun, it’s got to be challenging, and I used to always tell my team that winning is fun. Nothing is less fun than losing.
“When you say have fun, well you’ve got to be winning. You can’t be not winning or losing. So winning is crucial and finding people to surround yourself with I would say that are smart and keeping them focused on the strategic goals. Building a strategy is very important so everyone is very focused on it and then getting out of their way so that they can execute on that strategy with all the expertise they bring. No one has all the expertise. So you have to rely on the people around you. I would say that’s key.
“I’ve always tried to be humble in terms of nobody succeeds by their own efforts alone. I’m very passionate in what I say and do but I also try to maintain the humility of the fact that I have succeeded on the shoulders of many, many other people. Many other mentors, many people that lifted me up and believed in me, and what I try to do in this stage of my life is I try to care about other people and invest my time with them to help and support their careers and especially those that believe in me, those that care about me.”
Image: Ken Keelor
Keelor does several things to relax. One is spending a lot of time with his wife in various activities. Secondly, he goes to the gym as a stress buster knowing that when he is feeling good physically he’s feeling better mentally. That involves kickboxing, spinning, yoga – different exercises during the week.
“And then third my source of energy other than those two activities comes from visiting my stores. I really love visiting stores, chatting with customers, chatting with team members. I know to everyone that may not sound like fun but to me it always has been.
“And I love traveling. Travel is a lot of fun for me as well.”
Image: Ken Keelor
People often ask him how he got to where he is today.
“I will say, I always put my hand up for the tough jobs. And in fact, I always put my hand up for any jobs, leave alone the toughest jobs. If you look back at my career at Sobeys and even at Calgary Co-op and Save-On, I always took on the toughest jobs that other people didn’t necessarily want to take on. If something would have been in a mess, they would say well put Keelor in, he’ll fix it, he’ll fix it fast. Because I got a lot of things done, a lot faster than others might have done it,” he said.
“There’s people that do a lot of talking and people who aim for perfection, I’ve been someone who has always aimed to get the job done so the company can move forward. And of course, raising my game each year was very crucial. So every year I would challenge myself to do even more, do even better. And I would challenge my team. Every year the bar goes up. A lot of hard work.”
Retail Insider is streamlining its Canadian retail news from around the web to include a handful of top news stories that can be viewed quickly during the day. Here are the top stories from the past three days.
Canadian retailers and brands have a remarkable opportunity to sell to consumers in China, which has a population of more than 1.4 billion people and a middle class that spends on international goods. China is the world’s largest online consumer market with nearly 50% of global transactions, creating a great opportunity for Canadian businesses.
Next month is a free seminar for retailers and brands interested in selling to Chinese consumers online. The Canada China Business Council, along with Alibaba and Tmall Global, are hosting an exclusive information session in downtown Vancouver on Tuesday, March 19 at the Sheraton Wall Centre Hotel. The seminar will provide invaluable insights into Chinese market trends and will explain and break down how convenient it can be to do business in China through Tmall Global and its comprehensive vendor support for Canadian businesses. A lawyer will also be on hand to discuss protecting intellectual property.
The opportunity to sell to Chinese consumers is massive. By 2025, McKinsey predicts that the number of upper-middle and high-income households in China could reach 200 million and by 2030, that number could reach 260 million. Continued urbanization and rising income levels are expected to drive consumption growth sustainably in the medium to long term, McKinsey said.
China’s consumer market is growing, and the population is demanding quality modern products in categories such as health food and supplements for the entire family (including pets) as well as beauty, fashion, and modern baby goods, among other categories. China’s population is also becoming pickier as consumers recalibrate spending with a focus on shopping for value and high-quality international products.
About a billion Chinese residents shop online, with a penetration rate much higher than in North America. Chinese consumers see shopping as an enjoyable pastime rather than a chore while going online for convenience and selection.
China’s consumer economy has an overall positive outlook for the coming years. McKinsey is predicting retail growth in China this year of about 5%, with similar predictions for the coming years. By 2027, this growth would translate into $1.4 trillion USD in retail sales in China.
Given the ongoing growth in China, the opportunity for Canadian retailers to do business in China is great. Tmall Global, China’s largest B2C cross-border platform, helps brands from around the world enter China via its massive online marketplace. With over 900 million monthly active users in the ecosystem, Tmall Global has over 46,000 brands from 90 countries and regions, in over 5,000 categories.
Livestreaming with commerce is an extremely effective and popular marketing tool for businesses selling in China, and new vendors joining platforms such as Tmall Global can take advantage of it. In China, livestreaming is now responsible for more than USD$600 billion in sales with a high growth rate and more than a billion residents on social media. The popular Single’s Day shopping event in November of each year utilizes livestreaming to sell products every second. Alibaba invented Single’s Day, where brands launch new key products and consumers rush to buy.
Tmall Global provides comprehensive support and a range of services to help Canadian retailers enter the Chinese e-commerce market, including consumer analytics, translation services, and marketing tools. Payments to vendors are convenient as well – Chinese consumers shopping on Tmall Global use AliPay and other mobile wallets to pay in their local currency, which is seamlessly converted to Canadian dollars for the local vendor.
Canadian retailers and brands interested in selling on Tmall Global to Chinese shoppers are encouraged to attend the free exclusive seminar in downtown Vancouver next month, hosted in conjunction with The Canada China Business Council and Tmall Global. It will be held on Tuesday, March 19 at the Sheraton Wall Centre Hotel at 1000 Burrard Street.
The seminar will provide invaluable insights into expanding one’s brand into the Chinese ecommerce market, leveraging the robust ecosystem provided by Tmall Global and its comprehensive support to help ensure retail success. All companies and manufacturers of retail and consumer brand goods are encouraged to attend, whether they intend to sell now or are curious about Chinese retail opportunities. The event will be especially beneficial for companies involved in health products, as experts from the Tmall Global Health Category Team, from Alibaba headquarters in Hangzhou, will be available to share their insights.
Modern Golf at First Canadian Place (Image: Modern Golf)
Toronto-based retailer Modern Golf continues to evolve its operations with plans to expand on its existing pop-up and open its first new indoor golf social experience in the heart of downtown Toronto at First Canadian Place.
Paul Fisher
Paul Fisher, Managing Partner of Modern Golf, said the concept has been in the works for a while.
“When we went to First Canadian Place initially it was really a test concept to see what the urban landscape would look like for us. The reality is we’ve long thought that there was an outstanding opportunity for our brand to evolve into more than just retail and club fitting and some of the things we’re known for,” he said.
“First Canadian Place initially was an opportunity to test the demand for corporate events and we’ve been studying the evolving social golf space in the US for over a year visiting different concepts and evaluating how the model translates to the Canadian urban core consumer. Part of the model is to certainly focus on core golfers coming in and enjoy the ability to play indoor golf and practice, but it’s the growth in the social side that really excites us. It truly attracts a completely different target audience and demographic. That’s something that we’ve long wanted to bring into the folds of our business. And we’ve seen it naturally evolve in that direction with the indoor golf and the lessons products we’ve added in our suburban locations.
“We’ve continued to cast wider nets of customers. It’s amazing. We call it our Modern Golf ecosystem. It continues to grow. The social side is really where the fastest growth in the sector is coming from and will come for the golf industry going forward.”
Image: Modern Golf
Fisher said the new concept will open by early November. The location is about 8,500 square feet. It will have more bays than any of Modern’s existing stores, multiple bars and lounge areas for members and events. Modern has contracted leading Toronto based design agency Denizens of Design to bring the space to market.
“We are building a beautiful modern space reflective of our brand that can be enjoyed whether it’s through an event, meetings with co-workers or collogues, or individual use. Expect great food and drinks, amazing music, and a lot of energy and laughter”
Fisher said the concept is partnering with Food Dudes for food and beverage.
“We’ll have a small exciting daily food menu and exceptional cocktails and mocktails curated by the Food Dudes team for our members and daily walk-in customers. Food Dudes is the perfect partner for corporate events, and we anticipate that corporate events are probably the largest part of this business model which ties into the location in the heart of Toronto’s finance district,” he said.
“We probably could have picked from multiple locations in the financial core. But it was important for us to align with Brookfield because they gave us the original opportunity to test the market and they’ve been such big supporters of ours. We feel that First Canadian Place initially is center ice in the financial core. The location is fantastic and given that this location is going to be highly predicated on corporate events and memberships this is the perfect partnership. Between the team at Brookfield, Modern Golf, Justin Curtis and Robert Weinberg from Oberfeld Snowcap representing the Landlord, this deal just felt right”.
“We have plans to expand this concept to multiple locations in Toronto and start adding more social offerings to existing stores across the country this year. It’s a huge part of our growth plan as a company.”
Modern Golf has contracted Toronto-based design agency Denizens of Design in collaboration with DS Studio to bring the space to market.
Modern Golf at First Canadian Place (Image: Modern Golf)
Modern Golf currently has 11 locations.
“The expansion at First Canadian Place and adding additional social offerings at our existing stores is the priority in 2024. But we have our eyes on a second location in Toronto and expect it will also come on board in early 2025,” said Fisher. “Retail is a tough industry right now. We are so excited to continue to diversify our offerings and expanding our reach, not every retailer has that opportunity to pivot, so we are incredibly lucky”.
