Sustainability has become a key issue for consumers today as retailers adapt to shifting behaviours.
According to the IKEA Green Friday Survey, 78 per cent of Canadians say that retailers should sell second-hand options at a discount. Also 62 per cent of shoppers say that inflation has made buying second-hand furniture more appealing than before.
As well, 53 per cent of Gen Z shoppers in Canada see retailers as not sustainable if they do not have a way of buying back used products.
Image: IKEA Green Friday
During the recent Black Friday sales, IKEA Canada shifted the conversation from mass to considerate consumption by putting sustainability and circularity at the core of its offer, said Helene Loberg, Country Sustainability Manager, IKEA Canada.
Heléne Loberg
“By taking a stand on Black Friday and offering customers an opportunity to give pre-loved furniture a new home, we hope to contribute to a brighter future,” she said.
She said many consumers today want to know what they’re buying, where it’s coming from, what it’s made of. They want to make sure that they’re making good choices when they spend their money. Retailers like IKEA today are providing consumers more information when it comes to that.
On the recent Black Friday, IKEA asked customers to shop pre-loved furniture from its Circular Hub. IKEA Canada’s Circular Hub houses affordable pre-loved products, showroom displays and discontinued items.
Image: IKEA Canada
Until November 30, IKEA is providing an additional 25 per cent off gently used items found in the Circular Hub As-Is section. As a bonus, customers can also choose to sell back their own IKEA furniture for an extra incentive.
Loberg said the As-Is section in IKEA stores has been around for many years.
“Usually what happens is the customer is coming in and checking out what we have in the As-Is corner, the As-Is department. That’s where we are selling either furniture that has been returned, that we can’t put back on the shelf again or it could be displays that we have used in the store and when we do a lane change we take those displays down and we sell them for a discount in the As-Is section,” she said.
“Usually customers are checking that corner first just to see if they can find something that is a really affordable price and if they don’t then they would continue the shopping through the store.
“From a couple of years back, we are providing a sell back program so customers can sell back their IKEA furniture. And that is great. If you are thinking about buying something new, you can actually see if you have something that you can sell back then you get a store credit that you can use towards your new purchase.
“These are the options that we are offering currently and I think that is actually something I expect to expand. I see a bigger interest. And I think affordability is something that is driving that now. People are looking for more affordable products.”
She said the As-Is area is part of IKEA’s approach to sustainability.
“We don’t want to throw away anything. So when people are returning furniture that for some reason they do not want or maybe it was a wrong choice, if there is some sort of damage and we can’t put it back and sell it then we will sell it in the As-Is section,” added Loberg.
She said the company is working on assessing every single product to see how it can make those products live a longer life. It has a number of sustainability criteria it is using when it is assessing the products.
IKEA.ca Cyber Monday
IKEA’s Green Friday Survey also found:
68 per cent of Gen Z shoppers said that buying back and reselling furniture is something that furniture retailers should be doing;
74 per cent cent of Gen Z consumers think it’s important for retailers to keep their products from ending up in landfills;
81 per cent of Canadians own second-hand furniture, with the majority (72 per cent) having received furniture from family and friends;
65 per cent plan to pass it on to family and friends when they are finished with it;
66 per cent say buying second-hand furniture helps them stay in budget, and 62 per cent say inflation has made buying second-hand furniture more appealing than it was before;
Buying second-hand makes Canadians feel responsible with their money (61 per cent) and less likely to make impulse purchases (43 per cent);
79 per cent agree that purchasing second-hand furniture is good for the environment;
54 per cent say they would rather repair an imperfect piece of furniture than replace it;
41 per cent say they enjoy upcycling or customizing second-hand furniture. 59 per cent believe second-hand furniture tends to have more of a story than new furniture;
Canadians overwhelmingly believe that it’s important for retailers to work to keep their products from ending up in landfills, while many also state retailers should sell second-hand options at a discount (76 per cent and 78 per cent respectively.)
Video Interview: Was Black Friday/Cyber Monday in Canada All It Was Cracked Up To Be?
David Ian Gray, Founder/Strategist with DIG360 Consulting, discusses the expectations this year around this busy holiday shopping season.
Gray talks about how the dynamic around Black Friday has changed over the years, the changing consumer behaviour and how the shopping sale period has been extended.
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.
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.
Renowned Canadian jewelry designer Dean Davidson is celebrating his 15th anniversary by opening his first Canadian store in Toronto.
The 1,000-square-foot store in Cabbagetown South in downtown Toronto, located on 145 Berkeley Street at Queen St East, features a commissioned sculpture by Taiwanese-Canadian artist Dennis Lin, utilizing the same brass that Davidson uses in his jewelry.
Internationally recognized, Dean Davidson has been seen on celebrities like Oprah, Jennifer Lopez, Sophie Gregoire-Trudeau and the Duchess of Sussex, Meaghan Markle.
Dean Davidson (Image: Erin Leydon)
Dean Davidson specializes in brushed gold jewelry, silver and custom semi-precious gemstones.
Dean Davidson
“I’ve lived in this neighbourhood for around 10 years. We love the area. It’s very up and coming. Lots of great changes happening in the neighbourhood and I actually fell in love with this building many years ago. There was a men’s clothing store here called Haven and I thought I would love to have a boutique here one day. And one day I came across the listing and it ended up there was a great office component on the second floor so we decided it was time. We felt like it was the perfect spot,” said Davidson.
“And we feel like too that it’s a destination for our customers. We weren’t looking for the foot traffic as much.”
The location includes retail space on the main floor and a design studio and office space on the second floor.
“It’s really beautiful. It’s all glass. Windows all around,” he said.
“We’re so grateful to all of our loyal customers who have helped fuel our growth. We’ve seen a lot of growth over the last few years and we just felt it was the right time (to open a physical store). We have a large wholesale business and ecomm business. We wanted to give our customers the opportunity to be immersed in the brand and really for them to experience the full collection in one place. They’ve seen the product online and in stores like part of the collection but now they’re going to get a full appreciation for what the brand is. I just really felt that it was the right time to introduce a retail component.”
Dean Davidson (Image: Erin Leydon)
Dean Davidson (Image: Erin Leydon)
The brand is sold in about 250 boutiques worldwide including Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom and Harvey Nichols in Hong Kong among others. About 50 per cent of the business is online.
Davidson said a goal is to open more of its own stores in the future. There are no current concrete plans yet.
“I worked in agriculture for a number of years. I ended up designing jewelry for Paul Hardy who is from Calgary. He’s a women’s wear designer. I worked with him for three years and then silversmithing classes at ACAD (Alberta University of the Arts) in Calgary and then ended up designing my own collection. That’s 15 years ago now,” he said.
“I launched my first collection 15 years ago. Holt Renfrew picked up that first collection and it just kind of flourished from there.”
Travel is at the very heart of the Dean Davidson brand. Balinese basket weaving, the bamboo forest of Kyoto, and Brazil’s otherworldly sand dunes have all served as inspiration for DD collections, resulting in pieces that transcend time and geographical borders. Fully immersing himself in every place he visits, his perspective as a designer is continually broadened. With each piece, he hopes to encapsulate the wonder and reverence gained from his experiences around the world and share it with the wearer.
Dean Davidson at 145 Berkley (Image: Dustin Fuhs)Dean Davidson at 145 Berkley (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
Davidson chose to partner with a family-owned workshop of artisans early on in the brand’s foundation. Located in Jaipur, India, the multigenerational workshop cuts every gemstone by hand according to Davidson’s original designs, marrying time-honoured tradition with forward-thinking aesthetics.
Davidson was named the 2019 Canadian Arts & Fashion Awards’ Accessory Designer of the Year.
Davidson said the retailer is known as a demi-fine jewelry brand. The focus is on quality and the look of fine jewelry but at an affordable price point.
“All of our gemstones are hand picked in India. We use better quality metals as well and we’ve worked really hard to create a product that is really long-lasting.”
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.
Podcast: Discussing the Apple Flagship Store that Just Opened in Downtown Vancouver
Craig and Lee discuss the new flagship Apple Store that opened last week at CF Pacific Centre in Vancouver, marking the first of its kind for Canada. Lee also discusses the media event prior and his opinion on what went on.
The Weekly 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 ourThe Interview Seriespodcast where Craig interviews guests from across the Canadian retail landscape as part of theThe Retail Insider Podcast Network.
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/
Estée Lauder-owned fragrance brand Le Labo has opened a new storefront in Toronto’s Bloor-Yorkville area, marking the third location for the brand in Canada and the second for Toronto.
The store is located in an historic building at 15 Hazelton Avenue, measuring about 1,000 square feet. The store includes an interior that was made to look rustic and historic, as with other Le Labo locations, featuring distressed elements including walls and flooring and signage in the store that looks like it is on old newsprint.
Contained within is a range of popular Le Labo fragrances as well as candles and home goods, room sprays, products for the body, and various grooming items.
Le Labo at 15 Hazelton Ave (Image: Dustin Fuhs)Le Labo at 15 Hazelton Ave (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
The Hazelton Avenue store follows two other Le Labo locations that opened before the pandemic. Le Labo’s first Canadian store opened in the spring of 2017 at 876 Queen Street West in Toronto’s trendy ‘West Queen West’ area. A second Canadian location opened in early 2019 at 225 Carrall Street in Vancouver’s historic Gastown area, measuring about 750 square feet.
The pricey Le Labo brand was founded in New York City in 2006 as a collection of 10 fragrances by Fabrice Penot and Edouard Roschi. The number in the fragrance name indicates the number of notes in its composition and the name of material (Vetiver, Jasmin, Labdanum) refers to the main ingredient or principal essence. The brand now features 19 perfumes, with its most recent (Thé Matcha 26) having been created in 2021. Prices generally range between $100 and over $500 for fragrances and related products. A 500 ml bottle of some fragrances costs over $1,000. Le Labo was acquired by New York City-based beauty conglomerate Estée Lauder in 2014.
Le Labo currently operates dozens of stores internationally, as well as shop-in-stores in leading retailers. Le Labo stores are often located in ‘trendy’ shopping areas as opposed to major malls or typical downtown commercial areas. It’s not yet known if more Le Labo locations will open in Canada, and Montreal is noticeably absent for the brand in terms of a standalone store.
Le Labo at 15 Hazelton Ave (Image: Dustin Fuhs)Le Labo at 15 Hazelton Ave (Image: Dustin Fuhs)On the wall in the store. Photo: Craig Patterson
Toronto’s Bloor-Yorkville is seeing new leasing activity as retailers see the area as a desirable place to do business. Hazelton Avenue, specifically, recently saw the opening of custom menswear brand Atelier Munro, located a coupe of doors away from the new Le Labo. Other nearby businesses include custom suit brand SuitSupply, luxury women’s retailer George C., several pricey art galleries, and around the corner of Scollard Street Miami-based multi-brand retailer The Webster opened about a year ago.
North Vancouver’s Capilano Mall has added a local pizzeria concept to its tenant roster with the opening of Captain’s Oven Pizza — the first location on the North Shore and the first in-mall location for the brand.
“Given that our customer profile spotlights young families, Capilano Mall is the perfect fit for us. The best part of this location is our North Shore customers will no longer need to cross over to Vancouver to grab their favourite pie from one of the best pizzerias in the Lower Mainland,” said Nevin Fernandes, Co-Owner of Captain’s Oven Pizza.
The pizzeria has opened in 1,127 square feet of space across from the BC Liquor Store near the Third Street Entrance.
It specializes in authentic Neapolitan-style pizzas in over 40 varieties — ranging from meat to vegetarian to specialty options — plus the capability to customize one’s own pizza. The team at Captain’s Oven Pizza bakes top-quality pizzas in a three-ton, handmade stone brick oven shipped directly from Italy. Also on offer is a variety of appetizers, salads, and pastas.
“Given the local pizzeria’s popularity in both downtown Vancouver and Surrey, we are absolutely thrilled to welcome Captain’s Oven Pizza to Capilano Mall,” said Chrystal Burns, Senior Vice President, Retail, QuadReal Property Group, which operates the mall. “This addition solidifies Capilano Mall as the best and most convenient destination on the North Shore for customers to pick up their everyday this and that, including fresh-out-the-oven pizza. We are also looking forward to welcoming Captain’s Oven Pizza to Willowbrook Shopping Centre as part of The Courtyard expansion.”
Image: Captain’s Oven Pizza
Image: Captain’s Oven Pizza
Captain’s Oven Pizza at Capilano Mall
Founded in 2019, Captain’s Oven Pizza is a family-owned pizza restaurant with locations in Surrey, Vancouver, and North Vancouver with two more locations on the horizon in Langley and Burnaby.
Located along the busy Marine Drive corridor and anchored by the only Walmart on the North Shore, Capilano Mall is the preferred value and convenience mall serving both West and North Vancouver communities.
Elroy Fernandes, who manages Captain’s Oven Pizza, said the company is scheduled to open a new location at Willowbrook Shopping Centre in Langley in January.
Capilano Mall (Image: QuadReal)
Image: Captain’s Oven Pizza
Image: Captain’s Oven Pizza
The Courtyard at Willowbrook (Image: QuadReal)
The company is also negotiating to open a new location in the future at Station Square in Burnaby.
“We’re looking to expand into 15 locations in BC. Once we expand to 15 locations in BC, then we are looking at branching into Alberta and Ontario,” he said.
“We’re an authentic Neapolitan brand and what makes us unique is we source everything locally where we can and we also export everything from Italy. What really sets us apart is we try to cater to every single group. We try to cater to different ethnicities. So for example we have a concept called Pizzas Around the World. We try to reach out to the palette of different nationalities. We have Brazilian flavours, we have Asian flavours, we have Indian flavours, we have a Middle Eastern touch to it.”
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.
Canadian consumers learned last year that shopping in person or buying online and picking up in store is a very efficient and guaranteed way to get what you want during the holiday season.
Jane Domenico
And that trend is continuing this year, said Jane Domenico, Senior Vice President and National Lead, Retail Services with commercial real estate firm Colliers.
“Going into holiday shopping, the malls are back. If you look at the apparel sales and you look at inflation-adjusted sales, it’s a big winner this year. It makes sense to me. A lot of us lived in clothes that you may not go outside in,” said Domenico.
Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
But people are back to having a social life and taking part in entertainment activities as well as heading into the office.
“Malls, the traffic is exceeding last year and in a lot of malls it’s meeting or exceeding 2019 traffic,” she said. “One of our assets is 30 per cent higher than 2019 traffic. I don’t believe it sometimes.”
That may appear to be contradictory to what’s happening out there as some surveys these days are showing that consumers may be pulling back on holiday shopping due to inflation and rising prices for goods.
But Domenico said when you look at the inflation impact it’s the daily essentials that are affected. Food and gas.
“When you actually look at the sales . . . you have to first start looking at inflation-adjusted sales, not just base sales. We haven’t had to deal with inflation in a very long time,” she said. “So, people are concerned because they’re seeing the impact every day but I think when they take a step back and they look at their pocketbook and their savings accounts, we’re seeing continued high savings rates from the previous high that we had in 2015,” she added.
“We’re still above 2015 savings rates in Canada. I think it’s a more thoughtful consumer and it’s not like a party and throwing caution to the wind. I think consumers are smarter today than they were 25 years ago because of the internet, because of information. They know what they want, they know what they need and are executing on their choices.”
CF Toronto Eaton Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
With news of inflation every day, consumers are looking more closely at their discretionary and non-essential purchases.
“But apparel is way up. Traffic is way up in the enclosed malls. That’s telling us people are out and shopping. Yes, we are just coming off Halloween where we’re focusing on our shopper experiences like never before but overall the consumer is more positive than I think the headlines would indicate,” said Domenico.
She said consumers are shopping again this year earlier in the holiday shopping season.
“I think the satisfaction level when you click and collect or buy online and pick up in store for the shopper is higher,” added Domenico.
The Tenor at Yonge Dundas Square (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
“We’re seeing a lot of retailers actually expand. We’re seeing an investment by our retailers. From a national point of view, I think the national and regional retailers are in very good shape financially. They have a finger on their sales. They know what they’re doing.
“Our concern is the local and the restaurant sector – inflation, labour shortages are hitting their category the most. Even though regular sales when you look at food and beverage from StatsCanada, it looks like it’s doing really well, when you pull back the inflation on it, it’s flat. But if you just look at sales, it looks like it’s 12 per cent up. But when you look at the sales that are adjusted, it’s flat which is hard to reconcile. And those numbers are only where we were in 2019.
“The other thing about the small business owner is they received a lot of the COVID assistance from the government and a lot of them took on debt and that debt is more expensive today than it was when they first took it on in 2019, 2020, 2021. So how their capital stack is able to withstand these interest rates, that’s another reason why we’re somewhat concerned.”
Domenico said ecommerce sales are showing a natural growth projection. We’re back to where we were if COVID hadn’t happened. It will remain a strong and important channel for retailers and consumers but it’s very expensive for retailers to do. It’s not green for retailers and for the industry as a whole. And it’s much more efficient to buy online and pick up in store.
“The big thing I’m going to be watching in 2023 is consumer confidence. The global situation is a test. We haven’t had the pressures in Europe and other places to the same extent and how that’s going to impact the global economy which does have an impact on consumers’ confidence and the inflation,” she said.
Arc'Teryx Kitsilano Storefront during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Vancouver-based technical high-performance apparel and equipment brand Arc’teryx has relocated its highly successful Kitsilano store, which opened in 2013, over a couple city blocks into a larger 4,504 sq ft hybrid retail and ReBIRD service centre.
The fifth Arc’teryx brand store within Metro Vancouver, the location is the first of the brand’s “pinnacle” format which Delaney Schweitzer, Chief Commercial Officer, explained further during the media launch this week.
Delaney Schweitzer, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Arc’teryx Equipment
‘Pinnacle’ Store Concept
“This is our first new Pinnacle retail brand store. It opened last Saturday [November 19, 2022] and I am excited to talk about the elements for the store and the location. With our former store nearby being the epicentre of being outdoors, we wanted our first Pinnacle store to be here”.
“We have been working on the concept for a year and a half. When we started our transformation from a wholesale company to focusing on our D2C strategy, we knew we wanted to create a new expression of Arc’teryx. This is the best expression of our brand. We wanted to tie in the luxury, the beauty and the thoughtfulness of our product into the design of the store”.
Purposeful Zones Within the ‘Pinnacle’ Store Concept
Schweitzer continued into a more thorough description of the new store’s footprint as there were several areas/zones. “At the front of the store is our footwear area. It’s fairly new for Arc’teryx and we are working through what that assortment looks like for us while focusing on the mountain athlete. What we solved there is a beautiful design, a white background, and behind the shoe display is our ‘back of house’ so we can almost create our own shop-in-shop inside the store”.
“We have our concept zone in the front where we will be putting our latest innovations. We had the LiTRIC Pack there for opening, so new products we are displaying and new technologies will go into its space”.
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Concept zone (in front of entrance) during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee RivettArc’teryx Kitsilano Footwear area during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Moving forward from the front section of the new ‘pinnacle’ store format, Schweitzer came to the midpoint of the retail floor where “our seasonal products would rotate throughout the year. So our ski and snowboarding items would be out now”. The largest section of the retail floor was “the back half of the store which we term it as the jacket destination – men and women”. Learning from the challenges from the old Kitsilano store, Schweitzer remarked on how “it was hard for guests to find what they were looking for in jackets at our old store. Jackets are displayed from the most severe to the lightest weight. We developed the drawer system below for back stock on the floor. One of the things we found was that our product guys were running to the back for sizes and now a larger selection is available right on the floor”.
With a couple unique items on the retail floor, Schweitzer brought the attention to two unique tables on the retail floor which served a purpose for guest experience:
The Maker’s Table: “We were inspired by our designers at ARC’One. We are producing our product in New Westminster and they use a similar table. We tied this back as we consider ourselves a design house and see how the lighting will show the product. The other great thing is when we start to think about your next adventure on the mountain, you lay everything out. What socks will I wear, what is my base layer, what is my insulation layer, what’s my outer shell. So they can grab each of these to show all the details and functions of the jacket as well as laying out your gear for the mountain”.
The Map Table: “We have a community area as it’s a major part of our D2C strategy. Our map table is a focal point as well as different types of gear. The community area is where you come to learn about our local trails, learn about the local mountains”.
Schweitzer continued in explaining the area around the Map Table having “a projector for mountain safety classes. We take groups out in the summer for trail running. We really wanted to bring the community to the mountains”.
Delaney Schweitzer at “Maker’s Table” on retail floor at Arc’teryx Kitsilano during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Retail Floor during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Retail Floor during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx Retail Strategy
As one of the most unique aspects of the new ‘pinnacle’ store format is the “ReBIRD Service Centre”, Schweitzer continued with discussing this second-to-Canada component. “Dominique will show us the care and repair. The second in Canada and first in Vancouver. This is the biggest Canadian expression that we have for ReBIRD. When we thought about what we were best in the world at in terms of building quality, our products live a lifetime. We needed to create a solution for care and repair. We started talking about it like getting your tires changed. Its a personal goal of mine to keep products in use and out of the landfill. Its beautiful jackets and products that we wanted to keep things sustainable”.
“We have six care and repair centers globally and we intend to have one in every major market. As far as the retail strategy, Arc’teryx was a wholesale driven company and it is a big part today. We wouldn’t be where we are today without them. As part of our D2C, we did exit some wholesale partners and focused on key partners that aligned to our core values. In 2022, we are opening nine stores. Four in the next two weeks. In 2023, we are planning 16 in North America and Europe. We aren’t exiting wholesale for D2C, but looking at each market that we are in to decide if we want a brand store, where do we want wholesale, how do we deepen our wholesale relationships, and then eCommerce to pick up the rest. We look at each market that way”.
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Retail Floor during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Retail Floor during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Retail Floor during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx Community Focus Strategy
Most Canadians know Arc’teryx as a household name; however, more from the wholesale aspect. Schweitzer highlighted “a big part of D2C strategy is a desire to be closer to our guests. When there is someone between you and your guest, you don’t get feedback or build a relationship. We wanted to be able to develop a guest relationship. I have never seen this level of detail in the design of a jacket. In my past, a pattern may have been 20 pieces and one Arc’teryx jacket has 368 pieces. It takes so much care and time that we needed to be able to share that story behind our product with our guests. Guest education is such an important part of our vertical strategy. Also getting the feedback on what is and is not working to bring back to the design team”.
While being close to the guests is a key focus, Schweitzer elaborated as “another focus is around our community. We have done community events with our wholesale partners but being able to lead our community in the mountains is a big part of our commitment for getting people on the mountain, showing these beautiful trails and the mountains really give us our answers. It’s about bringing back the roots of climbing. For areas that don’t have easy access to mountains like Vancouver, connecting in climbing gyms and different academies to do different activities like climb, trail or run”.
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Retail Floor during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Retail Floor during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Retail Floor during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx Kitsilano Retail Floor during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
“Our community is our people. My goal was to be able to hire more people to work at Arc’teryx embedded in our purpose. Through not only the products they get to test, but being part of a broader community. It’s really about our people and being able to live great lives while working in a retail store with a long career. We have a goal for store managers being here for at least five years and be able to run great businesses as part of our strategy” Schweitzer said.
In conclusion, Schweitzer emphasized that “we will continue the wholesale component in the right way. We will continue to open stores with our wholesale partners. We will continue to do community events to drive more people to our brand stores through eCommerce. So it’s really a holistic approach”.
ReBIRD service centre at Arc’teryx Kitsilano during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Arc’teryx ReBIRD service centre
Schweitzer handed the media event over to Dominique Showers, VP of ReBIRD, to delve deeper into the second-to-Canada service centre. The ReBIRD service centre in the new ‘pinnacle’ store format was next to the cash desk, which a washing/laundry centre was located behind. An overview of the ReBIRD services being offered at the new ‘pinnacle’ store location included:
Product assessment: in-store after-sales assessment, including GORE-TEX leak testing.
In-store washing: technical wash and DWR-reapplication.
In-store care & education: hands-on education about product care.
In-store repair: zipper repair services including slider, pull cord, pull and bottom box replacement; cord ends, cord locks, and buckle replacement; as well as adhesive patches and heat pressed internal patches.
Expert repair: colour choices are offered for GORE-TEX fabric replacement or full zipper replacement for repairs offsite.
Showers began by explaining “ReBIRD is our sustainability commitment. Really thinking about durability, and extending the lifespan of our products. We always offered servicing in our store as a fundamental part of who we are on our journey. ReBIRD really showcases this to have it being a full circle of the experience inside of Arc’teryx. From beginning to end, when you are thinking about purchasing you are getting product education on how to care for the garment, extend the life of them. If you need service for your garment then its right here, front and center. We will offer product care education but also do DWR re-applications and garment washing onsite. There are light touch repairs onsite”.
Dominique Showers
“Where this is all rooted, durability and service as a whole has been a pillar for our brand. Ten years ago, we started looking at our material infrastructure to find materials that would last and our impact on the environment. Four years ago, we launched with a resale partner in the USA called “Trove” which was our resale. All these initiatives bubbled up the passion of people in Arc’teryx that didn’t want to see anything go to waste. Though they were disjointed. Last year, we put everything under our circularity and ReBIRD”.
As the sustainability initiatives expanded, Showers explained that there were three programs:
ReCUT: The third is up/down cycling taking end/used materials and repurposing them into something new.
She expanded further by saying, “this platform enables us the opportunity to extend beyond these programs and look into the future. We are looking at the design innovation on how we can design for circularity, design for durability, design for disassembling/tailoring, and that is all happening upstream with our design teams. Downstream includes thinking about textile recycling as a whole. Everything from packs to footwear to jackets. These centres are starting points for us but they will continue to evolve”.
When asked about the start of ReBird, Showers said, “the first service center was launched in Manhattan on Broadway to see what we could potentially learn from bringing service to the forefront. It was when COVID was starting to wrap up. It took off. We were able to resolve 3/4 of the cases onsite for the guest. This translates to a better guest experience, getting back on the mountain faster and learning how to take care of the products. It was an amazing experience for us and we decided to open more. We opened the CF Toronto Eaton Centre ReBIRD location this past summer. Shortly after, we opened a larger expression in Boulder, Colorado. Even internationally, there is one in Tokyo and another in Beijing. We want one in every key epicentre”.
ReBIRD service centre Jacket Repair Demonstration at Arc’teryx Kitsilano during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
ReBIRD service centre Jacket Repair Demonstration at Arc’teryx Kitsilano during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
ReBIRD service centre Jacket Repair Demonstration at Arc’teryx Kitsilano during Media Event on November 22, 2022. Photo: Lee Rivett
Tying the concepts back to Schweitzer’s highlights on the repair aspects of Arc’teryx, Showers confirmed that “all major repairs for North America happen in New Westminster at ARC’One” and elaborated that “if you were able to see our design suite in North Vancouver, you’d see the similar tools there that would be in our ReBIRD store which are used for repairs. Beyond those, we have washer/dryers behind the cash drawers. We also use guppy bags when we wash to reduce the impact on our water usage. It takes about three days to turn around a garment”.
She continued that “there are replacement parts, head press machines, testing areas to see exactly what is wrong with it right in front of the guest. Zipper sliders, holes in the garment can be repaired. Anything larger would need to be sent back to New Westminster and brought back. Many people think that a jacket when a zipper breaks, cuff gets ripped or otherwise, most people would think your jacket is done. Full panels can be replaced. Seams can be retaped. The easiest repair that takes five minutes is a zipper repair. One of the things we have been doing with ReBIRD is recapturing materials that may not have the best first condition when they were first created. Everything that comes into our stream is warranty write offs, returns with damage, voluntary trade in for refund, and quality control issues to bring back and be able to resell it”.
As the media event wrapped up, the Arc’teryx crew continued to bustle around with opening day activities and provided a couple additional details about the new Arc’teryx ‘pinnacle’ store format:
This launch follows other ReBIRD Service Center openings in New York, Toronto, Boulder, Tokyo and Beijing.
Arc’teryx Kitsilano by numbers:
4,504 sq ft store size including 500 sq ft ReBIRD™ Service Center
Second ReBIRD™ Service Center in Canada
Brand’s first Pinnacle store, offering the widest selection of Arc’teryx products
