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Mercedes-Benz Opens Unique Immersive Experience on Toronto’s Bloor St. Luxury Run [Photos/Interview]

By
Shelby Hautala
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Maison Mercedes, a Mercedes-Benz signature storefront, will be open from November 18 to December 24, 2022 at 100 Bloor St. West in the heart of Yorkville, in Toronto. Shoppers at Maison Mercedes can purchase luxurious outerwear, jewelry, handbags, and premium accessories from Canadian fashion brands. (CNW Group/Mercedes-Benz Canada)

This holiday season, Mercedes-Benz has opened its doors for a short time to bring a new interactive concept retail to Toronto.

Located at 100 Bloor Street West in Toronto’s Bloor-Yorkville Neighbourhood, Mercedes-Benz has opened a luxury space with Maison Mercedes spanning 8,000 square feet. The storefront, once occupied by a Pottery Barn store, recently opened and is only open until December 24th.

“We built Maison Mercedes to immerse guests in the incomparable world of Mercedes-Benz luxury while highlighting three of our key specialty brands: Mercedes-Maybach, Mercedes-AMG, and G-Class. We are proud that Maison Mercedes brings together the world’s most desirable cars, Canadian fashion, and luxury retail under one roof,” says Nikhil Ondhia, the Vice President, Brand Marketing, and Digital Experience for Mercedes-Benz.

“Like a runway presentation by any tradition-rich fashion house, Maison Mercedes aims to transport its guests to another world; in our case, a luxurious world that is unmistakably Mercedes-Benz. Luxury has always been at the core of the Mercedes-Benz. With Maison Mercedes, we are inviting visitors to experience a sensorial exhibition of luxury, while interacting with the world’s most desirable cars this holiday season. Interactive Experience.”

Interactive Experiences

The MANUFAKTUR Marketplace, a highly interactive world inspired by the new MANUFAKTUR program from Mercedes-Benz, which allows customers to customize their vehicles with over a million possible combinations of high-end interior and exterior appointments. The MANUFAKTUR Marketplace includes luxury retail with small luxurious items from Mercedes-Benz and other fashion brands. (CNW Group/Mercedes-Benz Canada)

Maison Mercedes is featuring two interactive areas: the Haute Universe and the MANUFAKTUR Marketplace. The Haute Universe, inspired by the Mercedes-Maybach, is a “luxurious, dreamy, sensational world where minimalism feels like maximalism through the use of otherworldly shapes, textures, and colours.”

Nikhil Ondhia

The centrepiece for the Haute Universe can be viewed from the Maison Mercedes display window and is the Concept Mercedes-Maybach Voiture. The Haute Universe includes the Mercedes-Maybach S 580 Sedan where guests are allowed to get up close and experience the luxury car. There will also be a trained retail staff to provide a guided tour of the Mercedes-Maybach S 580.

In addition to the car, the space has a Dolby Atmos interactive installation, giving customers an immersive feel and audio experience – Dolby Atmos, as of 2022, will be in all Mercedes-Maybach models. “In the Mercedes-Maybach S-Class Sedan, 31 speakers, two amplifiers, and eight sound transducers place sound directionally in space, creating a 360-degree immersive listening experience.”

The Haute Universe, within Maison Mercedes, signifies a luxurious, dreamy, sensational world, inspired by the sophisticated luxury of Mercedes-Maybach. (CNW Group/Mercedes-Benz Canada)

“It features striking, fashion-inspired colour and material combinations reminiscent of the world of haute couture. The Concept Mercedes-Maybach Haute Voiture is making its Canadian debut within the Haute Universe. Maison Mercedes is not only a brand experience but a destination for retail luxury and the Haute Universe features selections from the Mercedes-Maybach Icons of Luxury collection and Canadian brands SENTALER, MAS, Hestia Jewels, and Alan Anderson.”

The second interactive space, MANUFAKTUR, is connected to the Haute Universe where guests can walk through an LED-lit tunnel where it offers a different experience. The MANUFAKTUR showcases the G-Class and Mercedes-AMG where customers have the option to customize their vehicles and decide on over a million interior and exterior options. The program is inspired by the new MANUFAKTUR program from Mercedes-Benz, creating the option to make the vehicle more personalized to what the customer wants.

The MANUFAKTUR Marketplace

Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)

Mercedes-Benz is mixing luxury cars with luxury retail offerings. While customers are taking a look at cars, they can also shop.

The space includes items from Mercedes-Benz and fashion brands such as Varsity Atelier and Luxury, Espelma Candles, Bankg & Olufsen, Cocobaby Silk Scarves, Jeffrey Levinson, Sarah Abaza, Sully & Son Co., Luxton, Thomasine, and the Toronto-based Mellis Chocolate.

One product that can be found is Varsity headwear, a Norwegian luxury brand, where costumes can continue the customization theme from their cars to deciding on details on their caps.

“Guests can choose from a range of premium and sustainable fabrics, rich colours, and unique fits. They will also be able to add a final touch of personalization at the diamond engraving station. The MANUFAKTUR Marketplace reminds us that fashion isn’t just about design, it is about elevating every detail to reflect a personal style. Customization, personalization, and self-expression are the core values and everyone is encouraged to be their own icon of Unique.”

Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)

Maison Mercedes has also partnered with the Canadian Arts and Fashion Awards to showcase Canadian design and for customers to shop Canadian brands such as SENTALER, Luxton, Sally & Son Co., Alan Womenswear Designer of the Year award, and LECAVALIER in the Maison Mercedes space.

“The relationship with CAFA helped us enrich our luxury retail offering at Maison Mercedes. To celebrate the opening of Maison Mercedes, Mercedes-Benz teamed up with CAFA to invite the Canadian fashion community into the space to enjoy a panel discussion that explored the relationship between a designer’s vision and an artisan’s craftsmanship in the pursuit to create luxurious rarities – whether that’s couture pieces of beautiful vehicles.

“We have seen consumers choosing Maison Mercedes this holiday season as a destination to explore the Canadian brands represented in the retail offering. Visitors will be transported to a luxurious world that surrounds them with the world’s most desirable cars, interactive installations, and lets them shop fashion and design brands from Canada and around the world.”

Related Retail Insider Articles

Additional Images from Maison Mercedes

Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Maison Mercedes at 100 Bloor St. West (Image: Dustin Fuhs)

Video Interview: Hunt On To Find Canada’s Favourite Local Business

By
Mario Toneguzzi
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Video Interview: Hunt On To Find Canada's Favourite Local Business

Colin Munro, Managing Director, Miconex, discusses a campaign currently on to find Canada’s favourite local business.

Munro talks about the details of the “Help Us Find Canada’s Favourite Local Business” campaign and why it was launched, the importance of supporting local business, what Miconex does, and its downtown gift card program.

The Video Interview Series by Retail Insider is available on YouTube.

Connect with Mario Toneguzzi, a veteran of the media industry for more than 40 years and named in 2021 a Top Ten Business Journalist in the world and the only Canadian – to learn how you can tell your story, share your message and amplify it to a wide audience. He is Senior News Editor with Retail Insider and owner of Mario Toneguzzi Communications Inc. and can be reached at mdtoneguzzi@gmail.com.

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Also check out the other series offered by Retail Insider, including The Weekly podcast and The Interview Series, which are both available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Podcasts, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Simplecast and other podcast players.

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Oxford Properties Launches Online Shopping Platform ‘StyList’ for Malls [Interview]

By
Mario Toneguzzi
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Image: StyList

Oxford Properties has launched StyList, an online shopping platform that allows consumers to search and shop from different stores with a single basket and single transaction. 

The unique initiative is available at the real estate company’s properties at the Yorkdale Shopping Centre in Toronto and the Square One Shopping Centre in Mississauga.

“We know that the customer journey begins online with customers searching before they buy a product. We designed StyList to let visitors make the most of their time at our centres beyond shopping, to enjoy dining and entertainment amenities,” said Lucia Connor, Vice President of Marketing, Oxford Properties.

 “By providing real-time live inventory from participating retailers, our customers can plan ahead before they shop in-mall or browse online and buy from multiple stores in a single transition. Our StyLists complete the transaction by shopping each store and packaging the items for in-mall or curbside pick-up at no additional charge for the service.” 

Image: StyList

In 2019, Oxford launched a platform called ShopNow. It wanted to expand the search capabilities on its website to meet the growing trend of people researching online before buying products.

“We understood that the way customers were shopping they don’t necessarily come to the mall to window shop like we used to . . . We wanted to get to a place where we could support our customers in bridging the gap between online search and physical stores,” said Connor. “We had ShopNow and what it was able to provide is a listing of products.”

Lucia Connor

The online platform made it possible for customers to search store products at all its malls as a way of nurturing property-specific loyalty and engagement. To enhance the ShopNow platform and make shopping seamless, Yorkdale and Square One evolved the platform, now launching as StyList, Oxford’s first omni-channel platform that allows consumers to search and shop inventory with a single basket and single transaction. Guests may pick up the parcels at Yorkdale Guest Services/Square One Guest Services or curbside at no additional charge for the service. 

“We were fine at search (with ShopNow) but after the pandemic we recognized that we really wanted to take it to the next level which is how can we further bridge the gap between our retailers and our actual stores that are available in our mall,” said Connor.

“So we’ve added the functionality of live inventory. StyList now has the capability to review products that are available in stores. A really great filtering opportunity for the customer . . . We’ve added a customer amenity on top of that and this amenity allows a customer to now bring in products from one or more stores and add it to a single basket and then they can actually shop Yorkdale or Square One with a single transaction.

“The order comes through to our Customer Service Desk, they receive the order and then they go shopping on behalf of the customer, they group all of the products together and the customer is alerted via text or email whatever the customer selects as a point of communication. And they can connect. If there’s a price difference, if the size isn’t there by the time they go pick it up, they have an opportunity to communicate. And the customer is alerted when the order is ready for pick-up. They can come into the mall at a central location and we even provide curbside pick-up at valet.”

Image: StyList on Yorkdale.com

StyList can be accessed via Yorkdale.com or ShopSquareOne.com. The platform also includes a Wishlist feature, for consumers to save their favourites to purchase at a later time or share with family and friends.  

Connor said there are about 65,000 products available at each of the malls.

She said the retailers need to have a live inventory capability in order to be part of the platform. 

Yorkdale and Square One are the largest shopping centres in Oxford’s portfolio. They were also the first properties that piloted the first iteration of the concept as well.

Here’s how it works:

  1. Search for your item of choice (for example, a black dress) 
  2. Narrow down your search by filtering by brand, store, colour, price and/or category. 
  3. Choose your desired item and add to your cart or wishlist (to be saved for later). 
  4. Checkout.  
  5. Wait for a pick-up confirmation email (within 48 hours), then pick up your items in-mall or curbside, at no charge. 
Image: StyList on shopsquareone.com

Connor said Oxford will roll out the concept to other properties in the future.

“This is a test for us. We’re doing a pilot and so we will have the opportunity to expand it across our other shopping centres. Our other shopping centres have the ability, we call this a Wishlist, they still have the ability to select products and they drop it into a Wishlist and that tool really helps and re-enforces the ability to plan your visit so you know when you’re coming in the products are available in-store and you’re not just searching for the store itself.”

Oxford Properties Group, established in 1960, manages approximately C$60 billion of assets across the globe on behalf of its co-owners and investment partners. Oxford’s portfolio encompasses office, retail, industrial, hotels and multifamily residential and spans more than 100 million square feet in global gateway cities across four continents. Oxford is owned by OMERS, the AAA credit rated defined benefit pension plan for Ontario’s municipal employees. 

Canadian Retail News From Around The Web For December 12th, 2022

By
Retail Insider
-
Canadian Retail News From Around The Web

News at a Glance

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.

Athleta Opens at West Edmonton Mall

By
Dustin Fuhs
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Athleta at West Edmonton Mall (Image: West Edmonton Mall)

Gap-owned performance lifestyle brand Athleta has opened a store in West Edmonton Mall as part of a Canadian expansion.

The brand opened in a 8,734 square foot Level Two, Phase II location that was formerly Abercrombie & Fitch.

Athleta expanded into the Canadian market with the launch of an ecommerce platform in August 2021 before opening the first company-operated stores outside of the US at Park Royal Shopping Centre in West Vancouver and in Yorkdale Shopping Centre.

Athleta at West Edmonton Mall (Image: WEM.ca)
Athleta at West Edmonton Mall (Image: West Edmonton Mall)

The brand shared with Retail Insider during a June 2022 interview that the Canadian market would see five new locations by the end of the year with a continued expansion of stores coming in 2023.

“The addition of five new stores this year is an extension of our entry strategy and launch success. Athleta’s Canadian business is a key contributor to long-term growth, and we believe our store fleet growth strategy will get us there as we see Canadians return to in-store shopping,” said Jenelle Sheridan, VP and GM Athleta Canada.

“We have learned a lot about the Canadian customer since launch – including where our online demand is coming from as well as what she is most interested in from our brand. We’ve leveraged these insights, combined with the 30+ years of experience our sister brands (Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic) have operating in the Canadian market, to help inform our location selection for these five new stores in Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia.”

  • Athleta at West Edmonton Mall (Image: West Edmonton Mall)
  • Athleta at West Edmonton Mall (Image: West Edmonton Mall)

“We’re committed to growing our Canada business, including opening additional new stores in the market in 2023. We have a plan to expand our brand steadily throughout the country from coast to coast,” added Sheridan.

The future expansion will include CF Toronto Eaton Centre, taking over the former Massimo Dutti store, which shuttered this past fall. Massimo Dutti also shuttered its First Canadian Place location, leaving Yorkdale as the remaining Canadian location.

Retail Insider will continue to follow the expansion of Athleta as it grows throughout the Canadian market.

Rock & Roll DTC Retail Concept ‘Clocks and Colours’ Opens 1st Storefront in Toronto [Photos/Interview]

By
Mario Toneguzzi
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Clocks + Colours Ossington (Image: Clocks + Colours)

Clocks and Colours caters to men interested in rock & roll, motorcycles, tattoos and barber shop cultures.

Originally designed as an online direct to consumer business, the retailer has opened a new storefront in Ossington in Toronto with plans to launch the brand as well into the United States.

Shane Vitaly Foran, CEO, said the concept began in 2013.

Shane Vitaly Foran

“I launched my first brand, Vitaly, 12 years ago. It quickly found a home in the techno / underground electronic music world and that was totally fine by me. My background was more in the rock & roll / metal tattoo world though. I decided to launch Clocks + Colours as a brand that lived in that universe. 

“At its core, Clocks + Colours is a rock & roll brand. I wanted to offer extremely high quality products that were price fairly. What I found at the time was either costume jewelry garbage or incredibly overpriced – I wanted to fill that gap. It was ridiculous – men were getting overlooked. I wanted to fill the gap.”

Clocks + Colours Ossington (Image: Clocks + Colours)

The company’s primary offering is mid-tier sterling silver jewelry that is hand-crafted in Bali. 

“We’ve got a couple of wholesale accounts but it’s never really been part of the business,” said Foran.

The new flagship is at 154 Ossington Avenue. 

“It’s basically exactly where I’ve always wanted to have a store for the brand. I think it’s the perfect home for Clocks and Colours. Ossington has kind of always been the street in Toronto that’s reflected my identity. It has cafes and the retail stores that I like, the restaurants and bars that I like. It just felt like the right home,” said Foran.

Clocks + Colours Ossington (Image: Clocks + Colours)
Clocks + Colours Ossington (Image: Clocks + Colours)

“It has that rock & roll sensibility but at the same time people are relatively well put together and are quite aware of fashion and style. It checked all the boxes for Clocks and Colours.

“Brick and mortar was always part of the roadmap but until recently we didn’t feel we had a big enough product offering. We knew a retail store would serve us well though because it’s often difficult to convey quality online – sometimes things need to be picked up and felt… Tangible. It’s important when you’re selling things that can be north of $2,000. We also wanted to have a home for our community – somewhere we can host our core audience and strengthen those relationships.” 

Foran said the retail store is very strategically set up. There’s a Harley Davidson in the front window, signaling its motorcycle background. There’s a photo gallery that is a huge part of the brand’s DNA. There’s also at the back an entire setup for a band with guitars, amps, showcasing its rock & roll DNA. And there’s a section for Peter McKinnon’s brand Pirate Life.

Clocks + Colours Ossington (Image: Clocks + Colours)

“We really wanted to have a space where we could tell that story and show people what we’re all about, host events so that people can come see what we’re actually like,” he said.

The Ossington store is about 1,200 square feet.

Foran said the retailer wants to open more stores. A goal is to look next south of the border at places like Los Angeles, Las Vegas, New York, potentially Austin.

“Those are all pretty serious considerations for us right now,” he added.

Decathlon Opens at CF Markville in Markham

By
Dustin Fuhs
-
Decathlon Markham at CF Markville (Image: Decathlon Canada)

Sports retailer Decathlon has opened its next part of the ongoing Canadian expansion, a flagship store in Markham’s CF Markville shopping centre.

The 35,000 sq. ft. location features a focus on products for badminton, tennis, hiking and classic Canadian winter sports.

“Deciding on opening a Decathlon location in CF Markville in Markham was a no-brainer for me,” said Bjorn Bosmans, Ontario Leader for Decathlon Canada. “It is another great community in the Greater Toronto Area where we can sustainably share the benefits and pleasures of practicing sport. We are looking forward to building strong ties with the community and showing them everything Decathlon has to offer.”

Decathlon Markham at CF Markville (Image: Decathlon Canada)

CF Markville and the community of Markham has been on the radar for the France-based retailer, as it checks all the boxes for prime expansion.

“It means we can continue our mission to make the pleasure and benefits of practicing sports accessible to the many customers in the GTA, “said Marie-Lou Blais, Communications Leader at Decathlon Canada. “With our new location in Markham, you only need to drive approximately 20 minutes to discover a Decathlon location within the GTA. The store is located close to the 401 Highway and therefore, makes it more accessible and convenient for the people of Markham.”

“Decathlon Markham is a larger location within the GTA with the purpose of providing a wider range of products to the community. With that being said, we look forward to creating solid ties within the community and have our products showcase what they can do with the incredible community partners we have met, and look forward to meeting. We have seen an enthusiastic response during our opening weekend about our multiple test zones and we feel this location has a strong potential to demonstrate the quality behind every product.” 

Decathlon Markham at CF Markville (Image: Decathlon Canada)

The store opened to the public on Black Friday, November 25th, 2022.

“Behind the scenes was a team of passionate Decathlon teammates who have been working for months upon months to bring life to Decathlon Markham. The store is in great hands under the leadership of Angela Henein, and ready for this upcoming gift giving season,” shared Blais.  

Decathlon Markham is the latest store to open in the GTA as part of the Decathlon Canada expansion, joining a list of locations that include Burlington, Vaughan, Brampton, Scarborough and the ‘Decathlon City’ location at Union Station in Downtown Toronto.

Decathlon Markham at CF Markville (Image: Decathlon Canada)

With this being the last opening for 2022, the brand looks to next year as an opportunity of growth within the Canadian retail market.

“We are ready to welcome and share our passion for sports this winter season. We are currently working on plans toward a 2023 expansion and further connecting with the GTA community,” said Blais.”

With more than 1,700 stores in over 60 countries around the world, Decathlon is a world-renowned brand that designs, manufactures, tests, and sells apparel and equipment for over 65 different sports. Decathlon teams provide a complete sports experience through in-store gyms, product test areas and sports classes, as well as physical and virtual activities for the community. 

Decathlon Canada, represented by real estate advisory firm Oberfeld Snowcap, has fourteen current Canadian locations.

Sephora Continues Ongoing Canadian Store Expansion with 100th Location [Interview/Photos]

By
Mario Toneguzzi
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Sephora Canada marked its milestone 100th opening with special in-store celebrations at Sephora Crossroads Station Shopping Centre

It’s been a year of growth for Sephora Canada with more aggressive expansion expected in the near future.

The retailer recently opened its 100th store location at the Crossroads Station Shopping Centre in Winnipeg. 

Since the opening of Sephora Canada’s first retail location in 2004, the leading omni-beauty retailer has rapidly expanded its brick-and-mortar presence across the country, with the goal of making its in-store experience accessible to the sprawling Canadian beauty community. In 2022 alone, the retailer opened 14 new stores in Canada, including flagship doors such as Sephora Toronto Union Station, the retailer’s first store inside a major Canadian transit hub.

On November 18th, Sephora Canada marked its milestone 100th store opening in Winnipeg, Manitoba at Crossroads Station Shopping Centre with a $100,000 donation to Native Women’s Association of Canada and celebrations from coast-to-coast

Thomas Haupt, the newly appointed General Manager of Sephora Canada, said the new Winnipeg store opening is an important milestone for the company.

Thomas Haupt, Country General Manager, Sephora Canada

“Expansion and getting a physical presentation in more communities across Canada has been the number one focus for the team,” he said. “What’s interesting is we learned through the pandemic our online business like many folks . . . grew tremendously. What we’re happy to share is that as we came out of the pandemic we’ve seen (online) business maintain and our store traffic and store sales really tremendously grow.

“What we’re learning through our (online) business is we have a lot of consumers in homes and cities where we don’t have stores. So as we look forward, we’ve yet to say to say a number, we want to stop at X number of stores, but at this time we’re going to continue at least with 15ish new stores a year in the upcoming years as we find the right deals and the right locations to make that work.”

Haupt described Canada as a very wide and vast territory and when the retailer launched here in 2004 it was focused on the “obvious” cities – Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal.

Sephora Crossroads Station Shopping Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba

“Over the last few years, the expansion focus has been reinforcing those markets as well. We have some work to do in Montreal. But getting outside of the major cities and outside what I would call the obvious malls,” he said.

“We’re now basically in every major, regional mall in every major city. We’re looking at the next level. Those suburb locations. We’re really interested in what we call a drive-on mall. So this is where you have, not an inside mall necessarily, it’s a line of stores or shops. You park out front. Sort of very convenient for you to run into your favourite store and set up stores.

“We’re finding great success in these drive-on mall locations that are in more of a neighbourhood setting and less of a big mall.”

Jeff Berkowitz of Aurora Realty Consultants represents Sephora for its real estate selection in Canada.

Beauty STUDIO at Beauty STUDIO at Sephora Crossroads Station Shopping Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba

Haupt said about 5,000 square feet of retail space is the retailer’s sweet spot. But it does have stores as large as 10,000 square feet. 

“We are exploring a new concept – a really smaller store concept that could be as small as 2,500 and 3,000 square feet,” he said, adding the intention is to get into more neighbourhoods.

“We have to be a bit more agile and flexible in what that looks like.”

He said the retailer is also interested in exploring more transit hubs after opening Union Station in Toronto this year which has been a “runaway hit.”

“We weren’t sure it was going to happen. We weren’t sure how the consumer who was clearly in transit would react to stopping at Sephora and interacting with us. It has been incredible. We have some work to do to refine the assortment as we learn what the client wants when they’re on the go a little more easily,” he said. “But even what surprised us is we have a very strong buy online, pick up in store . . . We didn’t think people in a transit mindset would have interest in that. It’s been incredible. They’ve absolutely embraced it.”

Union Station Sephora (Image: Arash Moallemi / Sephora Canada)

Haupt said there are a number of reasons why the retailer is resonating with Canadian consumers. First, 70 per cent of its brands are exclusive to it.

“That’s definitely I would say a competitive advantage to keep our loyal brand enthusiasts with us,” he said. “We also know a big driving reason to get into brick and mortar is the experience. So we hear from our clients all the time that they really appreciate what our beauty advisors, the folks that work in our stores, what they’re able to provide with expertise, with knowledge and with really directing. We really have two types of customers that come in. Those who are there and don’t necessarily want to be helped. They want to be part of that exploration process. I call it the hunt. They sort of walk in and as you see our stores, they’re a place where you can explore, and touch and feel and experiment.

“And then we have others who come in specifically looking for help . . . Since we’ve come back from COVID we’ve been recommitted to the welcoming greet at the door. What we hear from many clients because our store is so experiential and so grounded in you exploring, many people need help . . . Many people need some guidance. We have found that by having that sort of air traffic controller at the front not only does it help with the welcoming feeling . . . and it really has supported in giving clients great direction to head them towards where they might want to go.”

Canadian Retail News From Around The Web For December 9th, 2022

By
Retail Insider
-
Canadian Retail News From Around The Web

News at a Glance

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.

Podcast [Interview] Shopping Centre Redevelopments in Canada

By
Retail Insider
-
Podcast [Interview] Shopping Centre Redevelopments in Canada

In a special edition podcast, Craig interviews Rafael Lazer, CEO of Almadev. The discussion includes Almadev’s transformation of the Galleria Mall in Toronto into a complete community with housing, as well as a general discussion of why mall owners are intensifying sites amid a housing crisis in Canada.

The Interview Series podcast by Retail Insider Canada is available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players. Also check out our The Weekly podcast where Craig and Lee discuss popular content published on Retail Insider which is part of the The Retail Insider Podcast Network.

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Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!

Background Music Credit: Hard Boiled Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

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