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
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.
Interviewed this episode:
Rafael Lazer, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Almadev
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/
Canadian retailer Mark’s, part of the Canadian Tire Group of Companies, has launched a new shop-in-shop concept with Columbia Sportswear in stores across the country.
The SIS concept will open initially in eight Mark’s locations.
“Canadians work and play outside year-round through drastic weather conditions, and they need to be prepared for anything Mother Nature throws at them,” said PJ Czank, President of Mark’s. “Columbia is a leading brand in warm and cold weather apparel and footwear, and this partnership will help us meet our customers’ outdoor needs while providing a unique and tailored customer experience that compliments the communities we serve across Canada.”
Image: Mark’s
The Mark’s Shaughnessy location in southwest Calgary has opened in about 1,600 square feet and was chosen as the first SIS because of the city’s proximity to the Rocky Mountains and the active outdoor lifestyle of its local residents. In 2023, Mark’s will also launch seven other enhanced SIS locations in the following cities:
Langley, BC
Airdrie, AB
Edmonton
Saskatoon
Thunder Bay
Ottawa
Charlottetown, P.E.I.
Each SIS location will feature an expanded assortment of Columbia products including Columbia’s proprietary thermal reflective warmth technologies, along with a range of women’s, men’s and kid’s apparel, footwear and accessories. The shops will range in size from 800 to 1,600 square feet, with dedicated product experts on hand to help customers select the appropriate gear to suit their needs.
Image: Mark’s
“As part of our journey to expand the appeal of the Mark’s brand, there’s people who traditionally wouldn’t think of shopping at Mark’s,” said Czank, adding the retailer believed it could appeal to a broader spectrum of Canadians by offering certain partnerships with leading brands such as Levi’s and Columbia and Timberland.
“About two years ago we opened a shop-in-shop (location) in partnership with Levi’s and it’s been very successful. And this partnership with Columbia is basically our plan to take it to the next level.
“We’ll start with the eight first – the ones we’ve got planned – and then as we open new stores if the space allows we’ll look to do these shop-in-shop concepts with Columbia for one because it is a leading brand.
Image: Mark’s
“We’re getting into the kids’ apparel with Columbia because we think it will be another opportunity for us to expand the appeal of the brand. In this first shop, there’s an expanded kids’ assortment as well. So we’re pretty excited about that because it’s one of the businesses we haven’t traditionally gone into. Research shows us that customers who would want to shop at Mark’s would want to be able to get winter apparel for kids.”
Czank said the company’s mission is to keep Canadians warmer, dryer, safer and more comfortable. Columbia became a natural partner for Mark’s.
“We’ve been doing business with Columbia since 2014. This is just a natural extension. It’s a well-loved brand.”
Image: Mark’s
Mark’s currently operates 384 stores across the country.
“We’ve been pretty stable. We closed a few of the underperforming stores and we just consolidated them into bigger store formats. We’re looking to open about six new stores by the end of 2023. Two of them will be typical Mark’s stores and four of them we’re going to be trying out something new but it’s a little early to get into the specifics yet,” said Czank.
“As the colder weather settles into Calgary and other cities across Canada, it’s the perfect time for us to expand our relationship with Mark’s,” said Dave Brulé, General Manager at Columbia Sportswear Canada. “Led by our new Omni-HeatTM Infinity reflective technology, Columbia has built our reputation on developing new innovations in warmth, and we’re looking forward to ensuring that everyone can enjoy the outdoors this winter.”
Video Interview: Canadian Retail Foot Traffic On The Rise
Marie-France Benoit, Director, National Insight and Innovation, Avison Young, discusses the real estate company’s latest Vitality Index.
Benoit talks about how retail foot traffic was up in Canada during the Black Friday period, how Edmonton and Vancouver led major centres in the country, why foot traffic is increasing and what it means for the holiday shopping season.
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.
The brand, which is based in Kyoto, Japan, has 134 stores globally.
“We are extremely excited to enter the Canadian market. We have a deep love for Canada and anticipate Canadians will feel the same way about our coffee,” said Kenneth Shoji, founder of % Arabica, in a statement. “The opening of our first Canadian brick and mortar inside Yorkdale Shopping Centre marks the first of many openings across Canada. In 2023 we will be opening another Toronto location inside Union station. We’re also thrilled to announce we’ll expand to the West Coast with a location in Whistler, British Columbia.
“You’ll notice that we provide a one-of-a-kind experience from start to finish; the moment you enter % Arabica, you are transported into our world.”
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: % Arabica)
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: % Arabica)
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: % Arabica)
% Arabica was founded in 2013, and opened its global flagship store in Kyoto, Japan in 2014. It is now in 18 countries in North America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
Kobe Lee, Global Head Barista for the brand, said the equipment the coffee brand uses is the best in the world.
“All the beans, we roast in our stores,” he said. “The roasting machine comes from Japan.”
Lee said the Yorkdale site was chosen as the brand’s first location because it’s in Toronto and one of the top malls in the country.
“We chose a very special corner,” he said. “It’s important because the store’s shape is very different. It’s why we chose Yorkdale first.”
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: % Arabica)
Lee said the Union Station location will open early next year perhaps by March and Whistler after that in May or June. He said the brand could grow to about 10 to 20 locations in Canada eventually.
% Arabica sources largely from small farms, serving their unique blend, as well as single-origin beans from around the world. % Arabica is more than coffee, it is a lifestyle experience with a focus on design and simple pleasures. The brand’s love for coffee and design shines through its unique architecture and the one-of-a-kind coffee experience offered at each location, according to the company.
“Presenting a chic and minimalist interior and Japanese-inspired ambiance that’s reminiscent of Kyoto, % Arabica offers a carefully curated menu that spans espresso-based coffees, specialty lattes, drip coffees, matcha, and much more specialty offerings,” it said.
“% Arabica is about my love for coffee, design, and seeing the world.
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: % Arabica)
My story begins in Tokyo, Japan. Being raised by parents who were enthusiasts of a universal language called ‘’Esperanto”, we would travel abroad every summer to attend a “World Esperanto Congress” held in different countries. My father was the owner of a manufacturing and trading company, and together with his frequent business trips, they would take me overseas whenever possible – ultimately helping to inspire my love of multiculturalism, design, and architecture,” writes Shoji on the company’s website.
“Through experiencing different cultures, seeing rich and poor people, happy and unhappy people, I started to wonder who I was, and asked myself what kind of life I wanted to live? After my high school graduation, I moved to California for college. I settled into a snug apartment in Venice Beach and indulged myself in the unique fusion of beach hippie culture. It was during my college years that my love for coffee started. In 1990’s, Starbucks began to expand throughout the country, capturing me with their new coffee culture and serene atmosphere. I spent lots of my days at the Starbucks in Venice Beach, either talking with friends or studying.
“Upon graduating from college, I started work for a trading company, which allowed me to travel overseas for business. A lot was learned from working closely with business owners around the world; I gained valuable insights as per their mindset towards work and life. And although most of them were very wealthy, I found that some were happy and others were not.”
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: % Arabica)
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: % Arabica)
He said this caused him to keep asking the same two questions:
Who am I? What kind of life do I want to live?
On reflection his answers were: I want to live a simple and down-to-earth life. I only need the basics to be satisfied: food, clothing and a house. As my parents did for me, I also want to travel with my children and provide a higher standard of life for them.
“And my last answer was coffee. I truly need an amazing cup of coffee every day. This is why I founded % Arabica,” he writes.
“So to create the best coffee possible, I borrowed money and bought a coffee farm in Hawaii. I also started trading green beans from around the world and became the sole-exporter of a Japanese roasting machine along with the distributor of one of the best espresso machines in the world. Then in September 2014, I opened the flagship store in the beautiful historic city of Kyoto, Japan.
“Our dream is to grow % Arabica across unique lands and cultures of the world, so that we can “See the World Through Coffee.” We only live once, so let’s explore the world we live in, set goals, and enjoy our time together over an amazing cup of coffee.”
Additional Photos from Media Day at % Arabica Yorkdale
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)% Arabica at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: Dustin Fuhs)
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.
MEC's Western Distribution Centre at 19550 36 Ave in Surrey, BC (Image: MEC)
After being purchased by Los Angeles-based Kingswood Capital Management a couple of years ago through the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act, Canadian retailer Mountain Equipment Company (MEC) is in growth mode.
Eric Claus
The company’s plans for 2023 include a large, newly built Western Distribution Centre plus further retail expansion and renovations of several existing stores across the country.
“MEC is on a strong and sustainable growth trajectory, and we remain focused on the core foundations of the business – people, product innovation, DE&I and value for money,” said Eric Claus, CEO and Chair of MEC.
“A good example of our commitment to growth and innovation is implementing new systems that allow member experience improvements like our recently launched two-hour in store pickup window. This all means that we can continue to provide a best-in-class omni-channel experience that our members expect from Canada’s most trusted outdoor retailer.”
Mountain Equipment Company (Image: MEC)
In 2022, MEC added over 300 employees nationally, fuelled by investment in its in-house brand, MEC Label, and its partnership with Hudson’s Bay that saw the retailer open three premier shop-in-shops in the Greater Toronto Area. The company’s recruitment drive will continue, with further retail expansions and refurbishments slated for 2023.
MEC was first founded in 1971. The company has 21 standalone stores plus the three locations within Hudson’s Bay.
Peter Hlynsky
Peter Hlynsky, Chief Financial Officer, said the new distribution centre will be 212,000 square feet in Surrey, BC near its current facility, which will close with the opening of the new DC.
“It’s in an up and coming area called Campbell Heights that has a lot of distribution centres being built in it right now. We’re pretty excited. It’s close for all existing employees that we really value and it’s also a LEED certified building so it meets our criteria of reducing our carbon footprint. We’ll be reducing our energy by 20 per cent and it meets our scope to greenhouse gas emissions standards that we’re trying to hit,” said Hlynsky.
“The way we’re going to lay this thing out it gives us the flexibility to really grow. As we continue to expand, we’re going to have a larger square footage overall. We currently have about 70 people working in our distribution centre. We’re going to add between 30 and 40 people to the distribution centre.
MEC at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (Image: MEC)
“The layout and the configuration and hiring more people will really allow us to grow both from an ecomm perspective and from a store fulfillment perspective.”
The company said the new facility will improve speed to store and online delivery.
“It elevates the game,” he said.
“Right now we’re actually working with our broker to identify other new stores for us in addition to HBC. We have communication with HBC about new stores and then we’re looking for our own right across Canada. We have a list of call it 25 locations and we’re saying look if an opportunity comes up in one of those markets we’re going to jump on it, we’re going to move pretty quick.
“When we got here, we got to a business that had gone through bankruptcy. We weren’t quite sure what it was going to look like and we realized very quickly we had a very powerful business here. So we spent the last year kind of rebuilding the strategy of growth and that’s really where we’re focused right now. How do you grow the business? How do you expand? And for us really what we do is the expanded footprint really helps your online omni-channel experience because for us our customers buy from us online and then want to return in store or they want to buy online and they want to pick up in store. And they want to have that omni-channel experience. Being able to be in more locations across the country and not just in the locations of the cities in the markets we’re currently in, we view that as a real advantage to expanding our omni-channel footprint and really growing the business.”
MEC at Square One Shopping Centre (Image: MEC)
Recently, MEC opened three shop-in-shops at Bay stores in the Yorkdale and Square One Shopping Centres, and in the flagship store on Queen Street in Toronto.
“We anticipate working with the Bay to find other locations. They’ve been a very good partner to work with and it’s been a good relationship so far. The stores are doing very well,” said Hlynsky.
“We continue to work with them to identify locations and I would anticipate next year we would continue to open more in connection with them.”
Three unique vending machines – Giving Machines – have been launched at Calgary’s Southcentre Mall this holiday season – a first in Canada.
The Giving Machines are not your typical vending machine where you buy some junk food for yourself. But it’s an opportunity for people to give back directly to charities in the community through a simple vending machine transaction.
The Giving Machines are vending machines, but they contain items that will help those in need. And, 100 per cent of the funds for those items go directly to the charity of your choice. This year the Giving Machines will offer over 30 items to donate locally and globally. Items include goats and chickens, sports equipment and lessons, warm clothing and meals, hygiene and frost bite kits, and more.
“We are delighted to be hosting the Giving Machines as they make their Canadian debut,” said Alexandra Velosa, Marketing Manager at Southcentre Mall. “They offer such a wonderful and unique avenue for giving back and we look forward to making it as easy as possible for Calgarians to support both the local community and the broader global community through this tangible giving experience.”
“At KidSport Calgary and our Calgary Flames Sports Bank, we provide low income families with access to sport. We do that through registration fees and zero cost equipment. The giving machines are going to tie into that beautifully in terms of giving Calgarians an opportunity to gift the love of sport to someone that otherwise wouldn’t have it, and to be able to give them the confidence that comes with a new piece of equipment that they can join in with their peers and be part of the sporting community. That’s just so amazing for a child in their development and growth,” said Kevin Webster, CEO, KidSport/Calgary Flames SportBank.
“Calgarians are so quick to reach out a hand and to help those less fortunate step up and so part of this campaign, I think, is that natural expression of that generosity and that caring, because we know that when we have strong families, we have strong communities, and we all benefit from stronger communities,” said Heather Morley, Executive Director, Inn From The Cold.
Giving Machines at Southcentre Mall
Velosa said the machines are located in the Sporting Life Court area of the mall and will be in operation until December 31.
“When we were approached by the Giving Machines organizers, it was absolutely a perfect fit. Southcentre has been working with over 20 charities in the mall this year, giving them the opportunity to connect with our community,” she said. “We know that we have something important and it’s space and reach. We know that our role in the community in general is to serve as a connector and we try to embrace that by providing opportunities for people to connect with causes and issues that they care for.
“So when they approached us with the Giving Machines concept we thought it would be an amazing way to put the Southcentre community in touch with all these charities that they are supporting and be able to give back in an easy way. And this is the time of giving. Everyone is thinking about how can I give back.”
“The Giving Machines are accessible and we think it’s a fun way to give back.”
Image: Giving Machines at Southcentre Mall
The Giving Machines are part of Light the World, an annual Christmas initiative sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Richard Melchin, Calgary Co-Chair of the Giving Machines project, said the project is the first for Canada.
“We hope that if we’re successful we could persuade the powers that be that we could see other cities in Canada have them as well,” he said.
“There was a study quite some years ago in New York. A couple of sociologists put together a machine – one for giving and one for receiving. And the question was: would people rather give than receive and they found overwhelmingly that they would rather give. From that, someone in our Church at Salt Lake came up with the idea of well let’s make a Giving Machine. We’ve seen this come together and now there’s 28 installations of these machines around the world, most of them in the United States but we’re trying to expand that around the world.”
Image: Giving Machine
Image: Giving Machine
They are located as far away as Australia and Peru.
Melchin said Southcentre provided a very good space for the initiative which makes the Giving Machines great visibility.
“We are pleased to be the first city in Canada to host a Giving Machine where 100 per cent of the donations will go to charities of choice. I’m confident it will be a success given how generous Calgarians are. This is an incredible way to help make giving easier and add meaning to the holiday season for everyone,” said Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek.
The Pinterest Predicts 2023 Report has identified four key trends the platform expects to rise next year – fashion, home, celebrations and wellbeing.
Kristie Painting
Kristie Painting, Canada Country Manager of Pinterest, said the latest report is the ninth edition.
“Generally we find (the trends) start earlier, they last a little longer and they go a little deeper,” she said.
“As we think about the year ahead, Pinterest is a really intentional platform and so people, they come early and they stay longer and they come with a lot of commercial intent. It’s all about getting the inspiration and actually going and buying or creating or making or doing. There’s always an action that comes at the end of it which is great from an advertising perspective because it often results in a purchase and that’s really going to be a focus for us in the year ahead.
“It’s really enabling that commercial access. So as we think about how it’s going to develop this year, that commercial connection, making shopping easier from our platform, is a key focus for us.”
Pinterest Predicts 2023
Pinterest was initially launched in 2010 with an IPO in April 2019.
In Canada, there are 10.3 million monthly unique visitors, 6.2 million daily saved ideas and 238.4 million boards created.
Over 400 million people come to Pinterest each month to plan for the future.
Because people turn to Pinterest to look forward and get ideas, the platform is able to leverage this search data to gain early insights and identify what’s coming next in the culture before it actually starts trending. For its annual Pinterest Predicts report, Pinterest analyzed what people have been searching for on the platform to identify the top trends that Pinterest expects will emerge or continue to grow in 2023.
“Predicting what’s going to be big in 2023 isn’t guesswork. The report reflects multiple months of data, analysis and evaluation. The result is a comprehensive report of the soon-to-be global trends for 2023 that can’t be found anywhere else. And Pinterest continues to get it right: for the third year in a row, eight out of 10 trends the platform predicted came true,” said Pinterest, adding that its trends do much more than just look forward. They take off faster, last longer and inspire more across categories.
Here are the top themes and trends that Pinterest predicts will rise in 2023 and Painting’s thoughts on them:
Fashion
Pinterest Predicts
2023 fashion will be all about Airy styles as lace, tulle, ruffles and shimmer become increasingly popular, especially with Gen Z and Millennials. After two years of sweatpants and loungewear, the focus is now on body-baring silhouettes. What’s more? Move over, Barbiecore—there’s a new main character in fashion as Gen Z and Millennials romanticize their closets next year with slip dresses, tube tops, cargo pants and claw clips to channel that main character vibe. Introducing: Romcom Core.
“This year was all about bright colours, a lot of sequin and sparkle,” said Painting. “Next year it’s airy. It’s like a lot of very romantic, very lacy . . . There’s also a little bit of nostalgia in fashion.”
Home
Pinterest Predicts Mush-rooms
Boring homes are a thing of the past. In 2023, people will embrace the Hipstoric home trend and find new ways to honour beloved stuff in their homes combining vintage—often inherited—pieces with their modern styles. And people will bring creativity and eccentric vibes into their bedrooms with the Mush-rooms trend, a maximalist expression of “weirdcore” decor.
“There’s been a lot of major renos over the last few years and particularly backyard. There’s been a big focus on designing the back yard over the last few years. People have been confined to their spaces,” said Painting.
What’s trending will be upcycling and finding beauty in objects that people have inherited or come across.
“One of the trends is Hipstoric homes. The idea behind that is how do you take something that is vintage or antique and either upcycle it and give it a fresh face or find a way to integrate it into your own style. So you end up having this kind of eclectic mix of different styles living side by side within a single space,” she said.
What’s also going to be big is welcoming people into your home with a focus on entrances that are welcoming and appealing and beautiful.
Celebrations
Dog days are over! Time to throw a party. Gen X and Baby Boomers are turning their attention to their fur babies and substituting kid-oriented gatherings with Pool pawties. Dogs diving! Puppers paddling! Barking belly flops! In 2023, pool parties will be for the dogs.
“The celebrations (trend) is really interesting. We all love our animals and we have the Year of the Dog. Everyone’s companion as we stayed home more and more,” said Painting.
“Allowing your pets to get into the pool and get wet, which I think is really cute.”
Wellbeing
Pinterest Predicts Crown care
Wellbeing is a key category that has become even more important over the past few years. In 2023, people will trade their screens for stretches and their desks for tricep dips with searches around Primal movement. And it’s not just fitness getting the spotlight treatment: the postpartum period will become even more of a focus for both new parents and non-parents alike, as The Fourth Trimester.
“Self care is a huge category on Pinterest. We are a platform with a lot of purpose. We are a platform that really encourages people to take care of themselves. This is a really interesting one – Primal movement,” said Painting. “This isn’t about hard core (fitness). This is about how do you take care of your body in the way it’s supposed to be cared for.
“Primal movement is not about getting fit. It’s about stretching out your body and kind of creating that functional mobility. It’s really important for long life and healthy long life.”
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.
