Canadian eLearning platform has partnered with Ontario-based non-profit to offer internships with Canadian retailers with a program called “Get Yo’ Life”.
The 20,630 square foot Metrotown store occupies two levels in the mall, facing onto the mall’s ‘Grand Court’. The store will annex an adjacent 6,200 square foot space formerly occupied by a Microsoft Store that shut last year on the ground level of the mall — Microsoft shut all of its stores globally last year.
UNIQLO’s Metrotown store includes a corner retail space formerly occupied by Ben Moss jewellers, as well as two adjacent spaces. UNIQLO’s lower level includes part of the space formerly occupied by Home Outfitters.
The return of the Canadian Football League after missing last season due to the COVID-19 pandemic will be a boon for teams selling their merchandise through their own stores and online as well as retail outlets throughout the country.
And one team, in particular, has been experiencing the sales boom – the newly-named Edmonton Elks, who this season changed their name from the long-standing Eskimos.
“There’s a rhythm to managing sports teams and it has to do from going season to season. You play a season and then there’s an off season and you have to put together all of your sponsorship, your tickets, all that kind of stuff. It’s the same in hockey . . . You get into a real rhythm. Everybody does but the pandemic blew that up big time,” said Allan Watt, Executive Director, Marketing for the CFL team in Edmonton.
“We’re starting a season, and really starting a league, for the first time in two years.”
Watt said the football club has been “unbelievably pleased” with the response to the brand change right from the beginning.
Image: Edmonton Elks
“We had merchandise on day one and it turned out to be a beautiful day. It really captivated everybody. It looks good on hats. It looks good on T-shirts. It looks good on hoodies and that’s our business. It looks good on golf-shirts and all down the line,” he said.
“There are at least 15 people all the time in our team store and of course online sales are more than mirroring that. As rebrands go for a sports team in Edmonton, maybe even in Canada, it’s been very successful.”
Watt said the retail aspect of the business is very important to the football club.
“The beautiful thing about the Canadian Football League is that it’s reliant on people to buy tickets and then when they buy tickets if they like your hats, your T-shirts, the uniform that you wear, then they’ll buy merchandise,” he said.
“And we’ve been very fortunate that way. There’s a lot of green and gold around Edmonton and our fans all over the place. So the merchandise component to what the Edmonton Elks do is very important and when we do our end-of-the-year locker room sale – just like any other retail location at the end of the season we have stuff that we can mark down – it’s so big we have to have it at the stadium.”
Like many CFL clubs, the Elks have a retail store at the stadium but on game day there are stores, and kiosks, throughout the stadium as well as mobile units outside the stadium.
“People are hungry for our product,” said Watt, explaining the demand in the market due primarily to the brand change.
“For us, the January to July period was more than we could have expected and in July to August numbers are very good. We’re very pleased with the way things have turned out and we haven’t played a game yet. When people see it, when they get here and some of them will not have been to a sporting event for two years, and I’m sure this is the same in Calgary, Winnipeg, Regina and elsewhere I think there will be a thirst that needs to be quenched and we’ve got the product to do it.”
The Saskatchewan Roughriders have a long history of retail success with fans across the country purchasing all sorts of things with the Rider colours and logo.
Image: Saskatchewan Roughriders
Mark Habicht, Director of Retail Operations and Licensing for the Riders, said game day is such a big component of the club’s retail operations.
“That was really the piece that hurt so much last year,” he said. “Quite easily it can be a fifth of our sales and sometimes even a quarter of our sales on game days alone especially when you lead in and come out of the game. We’re finding especially over the years that on a Friday game the Wednesday, Thursday, Friday lead up can be really, really strong and really important to that game.
“And of course if you win or have a really good showing, the next couple of days afterwards can be really important. So you really have that peak that is the game day where kind of the doors get blown off in terms of sales. But the lead in and lead out are so important and I think more so than ever. People are getting more organized, they’re getting more savvy and they’re doing their shopping a couple of days in advance. That was what was really missing last year.”
Because of the pandemic, the online store became so important in the past year, with more than half of the business online.
“It was an all-time record for us online and we’re certainly looking to keep that momentum going,” said Habicht.
The football team has its main store which is about 5,000 square feet at the stadium. But it also has a game day store in the south end zone and four kiosks around the stadium. There’s also a trailer used out front of the stadium for fans to walk up and buy. In the past, it’s also had a pre-game party in the park next to the stadium that houses an outdoor kiosk.
“Certainly we try and make it as easy as possible to knock down all the barriers on game day so people have opportunity to get what they need in time for the game or during the game,” he added.
Lawrence Berger, Co-Founder and Partner at Ames Watson and Chairman of FanzzLids Holdings which is the owner of sports retailer, Lids, said sales have been strong for the North American retailer as professional sports opens up with fans in attendance.
Lids at Avalon Mall – January 2021 (Photo Crombie REIT)
“We are hopeful that they will continue to be strong . . . People are just super excited to get out whether it’s to a concert or to a game or as we’ve been (used to) in the fall to tailgates and all that kind of stuff. That is going to drive a lot,” said Berger.
“If you’re returning to a hockey game or an NFL game and it’s been two years, and a college football game, people have real pent up demand. They want to buy new stuff. They want to buy new hats. They want to buy new jerseys. They want to buy sweatshirts and all that kind of stuff.
“The other part of what’s going on is I think our society has just become much more casual because of COVID. When I talk to my lawyer, or when I meet my lawyer, now he’s often wearing a hoodie with his favourite sports team on it. That didn’t happen before COVID. He was always wearing a suit. That general casualness with people wearing a hat on a Zoom call or just wearing jeans and a hoodie or T-shirt that also plays into the increased demand.”
While people have been engaged and sales have been strong, Berger said he doesn’t believe the retailer yet has a good sense of it. For the North American retailer, that important gauge of sales, will come when the National Football League starts up again.
“Football is the biggest sport in North America in terms of dollars. People go to stadiums. People tailgate. All that kind of stuff. That will be really interesting,” added Berger.
“I think we’re just at the very front end of fans rushing back into the arenas . . . I think the NFL as a league and anyone who is selling NFL stuff is anticipating it being very, very strong.”
RetailU, a Canadian eLearning platform has partnered with Ontario-based non-profit One Voice One Team to offer internships with Canadian retailers with a program called “Get Yo’ Life“.
Created in response to the current state of retail vacancies, the industry is facing a gap in part-time staff.
“We have never seen this many openings for part-time workers.” said April Sabral, Founder of Retailu. “Even more alarming is the pool of candidates that want to work in retail post covid. Usually, we would have students applying for their summer jobs, but unfortunately, this has not happened in 2021.”
“In addition, most retailers have not yet adopted an easier way to find candidates as the youth of today’s communication does not match the tech of sending in a resume and completing a lengthy application online,” Sabral shared. “This process is archaic at best, something has to be done. This is where retailu, in partnership with One Voice One Team, have stepped up to solve this pressing problem.”
“We felt it was paramount that we created something where youth were able to see possibilities and develop skills that will allow them to succeed in work and life, while offering retailers the opportunity to fill employment gaps within their companies,” said Founder of One Voice One Team (OVOT),Orlando Bowen.
Bowen shared that youth who complete the “Get Yo’ Life” program will walk away with valuable key principles like resiliency skills, prioritization skills and authentic leadership skills that will not just position them to secure an internship, but it will also position them to find success in developing a clear career path in life.
The One Voice One Team organization started as a summer camp in 2005 and was incorporated into a non-profit organization in 2008.
Sabral met with the team from OVOT in late 2020 with a common goal of connecting youth with opportunities in retail. The initial conversation has evolved into a program that provides retailers with the opportunity to sponsor youth to go through the OVOT program and then give the youth attending an internship with the retailer.
Ardene, the Montreal-based fashion brand, was the first retailer to get involved in sponsoring a “Get Yo’ Life” retail internship.
Ardene at CF Richmond Centre. Photo: Geetanjali Sharma
“We have partnered with OVOT and retailu on the Get Yo’ Life program because we have always had a culture of giving back.” An Ardene representative shared.”Helping build life skills such as goal setting, adaptability, mindfulness, and gratitude are all aligned with our values, and we are proud to support the OVOT team and retailu as they make this a reality for young people across Canada.”
The first group of approximately 45 youth in Ontario is being sponsored through the “Get Yo’ Life” program. After successful completion, selected participants will be offered an internship at an Ardene location.
“With 40 years of experience in the retail market, Ardene is no stranger to evolving alongside and supporting young people.” said the Ardene representative. “But with so many changes brought on by COVID, and with rising mental health issues, we know that more needs to be done.”
In addition to its head-to-toe offering of apparel, footwear and accessories for women and men, Ardene’s corporate culture has become known for its mental health advocacy. In 2018, Ardene launched its first mindfulness program for stores in partnership with Brain Spa, an innovative organization that seeks to bring mindfulness-based leadership to the workplace.
The “Mindful Moments” program has since grown significantly to include a suite of mental health and mindfulness trainings companywide, in partnership with the likes of LifeWorks and others.
Most recently, the company named its Head of People and Culture, Fil D’Urbano, as Chief Mindfulness Officer, and is a 2021 nominee for the Retail Council of Canada’s Excellence in Retailing Award for its Mindfulness programs.
The opportunity to partner with an organization like Ardene was important to Sabral, who has shared the story on how she started as a PT sales associate in her book ‘The Positive Effect’. After leading organizations like Banana Republic, Starbucks, Apple and as a Vice President of DAVIDsTEA, she created Retailu.
The organization features masterclass style on-demand courses from industry leaders like:
Thurston, former VP of Intermix;
Solange Strom, former CEO and Founder of L’Occitane in Canada;
Meghan Houle, Executive recruiter and
Darlene Huff, Former Country manager for David’s Bridal and Disney Store
For more information concerning the ways that your business can partner with Retailu for this program and provide opportunities, reach out to April @ info@retailu.ca
*Partner content. To work with Retail Insider, email: craig@retail-insider.com
Burberry was one of the first luxury brands to open in Yorkdale’s original ‘luxury wing’ that extends northward from the main entrance of Holt Renfrew. The Burberry store will see a refresh after seeing tens of millions of dollars in annual sales prior to the pandemic. The store is located between Tory Burch and a new Alexander McQueen storefront that will open later this year.
Burberry is temporarily housed in Yorkdale’s CONCEPT space and after Burberry moves back into its former space, there’s a possibility that CONCEPT could be converted to a Burberry children’s store according to a source familiar with the situation. At the moment, the temporary Burberry store features a unique forest-like facade and branding that is eye-catching.
Burberry also operates standalone stores in Vancouver, Calgary and in downtown Toronto, as well as concessions in Holt Renfrew stores and stock at Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom in Canada.
Burberry Pop-Up at Yorkdale Shopping Centre (July 2021) – Photo by Dustin Fuhs
The Amazing Brentwood location brings the Urban Outfitters store count in the metro Vancouver area up to four. The other three locations being on Granville Street, West 4th and Park Royal.
The chain has approximately 250 stores worldwide and was founded back in 1976. The retailer provides young adults a merchandise mix of women’s and men’s fashion apparel, footwear, beauty and wellness products.
Urban Outfitters is part of the URBN portfolio of brands, which includes Anthropologie, Free People, BHLDN, Terrain, Menus & Venues, and Nuuly.
Additional Photos from Urban Outfitters at The Amazing Brentwood
Urban Outfitters at The Amazing Brentwood – (Photo Credit: The Amazing Brentwood)Urban Outfitters at The Amazing Brentwood – (Photo Credit: The Amazing Brentwood)Urban Outfitters at The Amazing Brentwood – (Photo Credit: The Amazing Brentwood)Urban Outfitters at The Amazing Brentwood – (Photo Credit: The Amazing Brentwood)Urban Outfitters at The Amazing Brentwood – (Photo Credit: The Amazing Brentwood)Urban Outfitters at The Amazing Brentwood – (Photo Credit: The Amazing Brentwood)Urban Outfitters at The Amazing Brentwood – (Photo Credit: The Amazing Brentwood)
A Celine accessory boutique remains open on the main floor of Nordstrom Yorkdale for now — Retail Insider toured the mall last week and is providing updates.
The women’s floor at Nordstrom Yorkdale still has shop-in-stores for brands including Celine, Valentino, Burberry and Dries Van Noten. An Akris boutique also shut last year — when Nordstrom opened in October of 2016, the Yorkdale store boasted six luxury brand ready-to-wear boutiques.
The direct-to-consumer movement could result in more large-format multi-brand stores losing designer shop-in-stores as brands open their own spaces. Nordstrom, specifically, has said that it plans to expand its roster of concessions from about 5% of sales to about 30% which could result in a different customer experience in some Nordstrom stores in the future.
Celine accessory boutique at Nordstrom Yorkdale in July 2021. Photo: Craig Patterson Former Celine fashion boutique at Nordstrom Yorkdale. Photo: Dustin FuhsCeline Construction at Yorkdale – Photo by Dustin Fuhs
With the successful global rollout of vaccines and a subsequent steady decline in positive cases, it appears that the worst that the COVID-19 global pandemic had to offer is finally behind us. As a result, communities in countries the world over continue to remove social restrictions and protocols, allowing people to once again commune and for retailers and other businesses to begin approaching a return to full operations and the recommencement of the experiences they offer customers. As they do, they’ll be adjusting to a new normal, one that sees an entrenched omnichannel, or channel-agnostic, consumer at the heart of everything, and a need for merchants to accelerate their stores’ digital capabilities in order to keep up with their evolving and connected behaviour. To help small businesses compete in the increasingly digitized world, GetintheLoop – Canada’s largest shop local community – has been providing an easy and effective way to digitally attract and retain local customers for more than seven years. And, it’s community just became that much bigger with the announcement of its partnership with BenefitHub – the world’s largest employee lifestyle benefits company.
Expansion and strengthened position
Image: GetintheLoop App
Expanding initially into the United States, the partnership allows GetintheLoop access to BenefitHub’s 17 million global members, 10 million of which are located in the US. And, with plans to launch its innovative SaaS franchise in Nevada and Arizona this month, followed by what Matt Crowell, the company’s Founder and CEO, describes as “rapid and sprawling expansion” throughout the rest of the country, GetintheLoop is poised to play a critical role in the reopening of retail, complementing business’ omnichannel strategies. And, as Crowell points out, the partnership also helps to strengthen the company’s position even further, enabling it to help small businesses realize opportunities around a heightened desire among consumers to shop local and provide the digital tools necessary to connect and engage with them.
“In many ways, the pandemic has had a double-edged effect,” he says. “The pressures that came with it accelerated a number of trends that were already in play, and in turn forced a lot of innovation among retailers and other businesses. It resulted in an amazing show of resilience within the industry and a will to continue growing. While some businesses did not manage to survive, there are others that have only become stronger. They’ve done so by getting closer to the customer and developing a clearer understanding of the ways they are shopping today and aligning their offering to those behaviours. And people are showing a real appetite to shop local and find ways to support their community merchants. When the pandemic first hit, engagement within our app increased significantly, highlighting heightened consumer sentiment around connecting with local businesses.”
Innovative platform and service
Image: Matt Crowell
One of the most innovative digital tools available for retailers today, GetintheLoop complements digital offerings, supporting marketing and communications goals while driving increased engagement and sales. Serving as a platform to showcase content, promotions, special offers, incentives and rewards, it provides an easy-to-use solution for any business, with simple and seamless integration. In addition, GetintheLoop’s technology also generates useful analytics, informing retailer strategies concerning current and future marketing campaigns and offers. And, helping guide businesses through the data is a dedicated centralized support team that works with clients on a monthly basis, assisting in the execution of campaigns and increasing customer attraction and retention via digital means. Available as an app for consumers to download via the App Store and Google Play, it facilitates connections to their favourite brands, providing them with ever-expanding ways to explore, discover and shop within their local communities. And, as Crowell explains, the company’s partnership with BenefitHub allows it to help more businesses in more communities reach even more customers.
“This partnership means that GetintheLoop now has a truly national audience on both sides of the border, providing merchants with access to a huge pool of potential customers,” he says. “And, as retailers everywhere are focused on rebuilding and growing post-pandemic, our platform can really help accelerate business’ achievements with respect to their goals and objectives. Because our technology is affordable for any-sized business to adopt and implement, it’s allowing ‘Joe’s Coffee Shop’ access to the same software that the large multinationals use to market. And, because local businesses using our platform get to work with our centralized support team and local franchisee, the playing field is leveled even further through the availability of marketing resources, insights and ideas.”
Omnichannel support
Crowell recognizes that with the pandemic came an accelerated shift in consumer behaviour toward online purchases. And, although borne originally out of necessity, it seems as though the surge in ecommerce that the industry experienced with the onset of lockdowns and social restrictions is not likely to recede too dramatically in a post-pandemic environment. Combined with pent-up demand among people everywhere to explore, rediscover their neighbourhoods and enjoy exciting experiences, the past 18 months have yielded an entrenched omnichannel consumer who is going to shop and engage with brands in the ways they choose. It’s up to retailers to ensure that they present the means by which to do so. And, according to Crowell, it’s yet another way in which GetintheLoop helps bolster the offering of local businesses.
“Our platform and the services we provide can be a really crucial piece supporting the digital transformation that many retailers are currently undergoing, especially for the smaller operations” he asserts. “A true omnichannel offering is really hard to build. GetintheLoop allows retailers to automatically achieve this, connecting them to a local email database, push notifications, a social profile and a mobile app. As soon as a business signs up with us they’re cross-functional and available, offering an omnichannel experience for their customers. If a small business were to try to do this on their own, it would cost them thousands of dollars and they’d need to hire a full-time marketer. In the end, we’re just one component of any retailer’s digital strategy. But the ease and effectiveness of our solution provides a compelling tool for their digital toolkits.”
Continued growth and development
Image: GetintheLoop
There’s no arguing the fact that the past year-and-a-half have been incredibly challenging for those operating within the industry. Small businesses in particular have been forced to endure a prolonged period of uncertainty and turmoil. However, with a gradual reopening of retail stores in communities everywhere, a hope and excitement has been kindled ahead of what some are predicting to be a bit of a retail renaissance and boom in consumer spending. And, in its efforts to help local merchants realize the opportunities that will soon be abound in the months and years ahead, Crowell says that GetintheLoop is only getting started.
“We’ve been experiencing significant growth now for some time. There’s a lot of interest in our platform and service from local businesses and franchisees who want to work with us. And, consumer adoption of the app and engagement with brands available through it have exploded. We expect that within the next year, we’ll be present in every community throughout Canada and the United States. And, within three years, we expect to be in multiple countries. With respect to tools for retailers, we’ve got a pipeline full of add-ons to our current technology stack that will continue to help businesses evolve in a changing world. Although we’ve developed a relatively robust platform today, it’s still early days in terms of the kinds of products and services that we can include that will complement what businesses are trying to achieve, helping them to continue growing their audiences and enjoy even greater success.”
For more information concerning the ways GetintheLoop can help your business connect with shoppers and thrive within your local communities, visit getintheloop.ca/business
*Partner content. To work with Retail Insider, email: craig@retail-insider.com
Candyland, a new pop-up featuring New York candy lifestyle brand “by robynblair” has opened at Bayview Village in Toronto.
The exhibition will be animating a retail storefront in the luxury shopping centre from July 30th to December 2021.
“I’m very excited to be working with Bayview Village for my first Canadian collaboration and to connect with their loyal customer base,” says Robyn Blair Davidson, the artist behind the exhibition. “These one-of-a-kind BV prints were so much fun to make and I can’t wait to see them on display.”
Candyland at Bayview Village will feature a number of instagrammable experiences, including an eight-foot gumball walk-in photo-op, walls lined with gumball machines and a rainbow road of colourful candy boxes.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with ‘by robynblair’ to bring joyful moments through these haute pieces of art,” says Rachael Tang, Marketing Director, Bayview Village Shopping Centre. “BV is known for its one-of-a-kind experiences and this will be nothing short of sweet.”
