Exterior of Scarborough Walmart Supercentre. Photo: Walmart
Walmart Canada is accelerating its e-commerce business as construction has started on its first fully-automated market fulfilment centre inside the Scarborough West Supercentre (1900 Eglinton Ave E.).
The retailer said the 22,000-square-foot space will automate online grocery picking and dispensing with picking speeds up to six-times faster than manual store picking and the new space will also feature a first for a big grocery retailer in Canada: automated kiosks that serve as vending machines for online grocery orders and can serve up to five customers simultaneously.
Horacio Barbeito
“We are on a journey to be the number one e-commerce retailer in Canada. Our customers want choice of service and we see the demand for online shopping continuing. We are ramping up our e-commerce offering with a focus on speed, accuracy and service,” said Horacio Barbeito, President and CEO at Walmart Canada, in a statement.
The company said customers will be able to drive up to a dedicated parking spot, enter a code and ordered items will appear in less than two minutes, ready to load into their cars. The new space, a partnership with intelligent automation provider, Dematic, will open later this year.
Walmart will be expanding grocery pickup service to 60 more stores this year, which will mean that 85 percent of Walmart Canada stores will offer grocery pickup services.
“Innovation is not a department, it’s a mindset and one everyone at Walmart Canada takes very seriously because that’s what our customers want. We are a business that is focused on innovation so we can stay at the forefront and deliver for our customers every single time they choose Walmart,” said Sam Wankowski, Chief Operations Officer at Walmart Canada
Interior of Walmart’s new fulfillment centre in Scarborough’s Walmart Supercentre. Photo: Walmart
In Quebec and Vancouver Walmart recently launched grocery delivery where products are picked by Walmart staff — this concept will be expanding to Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton, and Winnipeg later this year. It is also expanding partnerships with third party partners such as Cornershop and Instacart to serve more customers and increase fulfillment speed.
Sam Wankowski
It is offering an expanded assortment of general merchandise and apparel available for customers to shop online for on-demand fulfillment at the same everyday low prices (as much as 20 percent increase in items).
Piloting “ring scanner” technology will be in stores, allowing associates to pick and scan items faster by working handsfree.
It is also doubling the number of stores offering “ship from store” to 30 locations. These stores ship items directly to customer homes from a store – not from a fulfilment centre, speeding up the delivery for customers.
The company said its acceleration of e-commerce is part of its $3.5 billion investment over the next five years to make the online and in-store shopping experience simpler, faster, and more convenient for Walmart’s customers.
Saeed Anslow, Senior Director OMNI Channel & Online Grocery for Walmart Canada, said 2020 was an interesting year with a big acceleration of the e-commerce business.
Saeed Anslow
“We’re really trying to build on the momentum that we saw in 2020 and accelerate our plans for this year. We know the customer is going in this direction and we really want to be there for the customer,” said Anslow.
“We really see the store as the real competitive advantage for us and we really want to use the store footprint. We will have lots of different models and versions out there depending on the particular market the store is in.”
Dematic Account Manager, Christoph Buchmann, who has been working closely with Walmart on this project, said Walmart is a market leader, and in many ways paves the path of innovation for retailers by demonstrating what the future will look like in the industry.
“It is a privilege to partner and work with the company as we share their vision for the future of retail. Micro-fulfilment is a paradigm shift and Walmart has its eyes set on the future,” he said
“Micro-fulfilment focuses on the customer experience. With Dematic’s technology, Walmart will be able to create a new and enhanced customer experience for online grocery shopping, providing unrivaled levels of convenience, speed, and customization. With Dematic’s micro-fulfilment solution, they also will be able to provide a whole new curbside pick up experience to customers, which will be unique in Canada. By leveraging automation within their omni-channel strategy Walmart will boost productivity and reduce the cost of order fulfilment.”
Aldo, Vans (1334 Saint-Catherine St W), Steve Madden. PHOTO: MAXIME FRECHETTE
There’s no sugar coating the situation when it comes to the Montreal retail real estate market.
“It’s depressed,” said Tony Flanz, President of Montreal-based Think Retail, which consults and represents international, national, and regional retail chains. It also specializes in tenant representation with some landlord mandates.
“If you look 12 months ago, there was a recent article in the Montreal Gazette talking about downtown Montreal a year ago and how it was still vibrant. And today as they look downtown the population has diminished significantly because certainly the offices are not populated. The universities are stay at home and work from home. There were so many stores that were closed that there certainly was no activity.
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Browns (1191 Sainte-Catherine St. W.) Photo: Maxime Frechette
Former ERNEST Clothing Store (1199 Sainte-Catherine St. W.) Photo: Maxime Frechette
Brandy Melville (1188 Saint-Catherine St W), 1192 former Magasin Vidéotron, 1194 soon to come lease. PHOTO: MAXIME FRECHETTE
Steve Madden (1021 Sainte-Catherine Street West), Rogers and Lacoste. PHOTO: MAXIME FRECHETTE
Jean Coutu, SQDC, Moores (966 Sainte-Catherine St. W.) and former BCBG. Photo: Maxime Frechette
“And the policy of the Mayor here who has greatly impacted the circulation of the downtown roads has made it very difficult for people to even get downtown. So the Montreal market over the last 12 months has been deeply impacted by COVID and it’s really being Montreal and Toronto as the two largest markets in the country as having been closed.
“There’s so many mandated closures in those markets that there’s a lack of liquidity amongst retailers and that deeply impacts expansion plans for those retailers who want to open additional stores here.”
Retailers in Montreal are also having issues with stock and getting it from Asia. That has delayed certain top line opportunities for different retailers and it has become a major concern as people don’t know how much to order because they’re not sure how they will compare against last year’s lower levels.
“So there’s many unknowns and we haven’t been graced with many retail openings in the last 12 months in this province,” said Flanz, adding there is some growth in the retail market but not in those categories that facilitated expansion previously.
Old Holt Renfrew store on Sherbrooke St. PHOTO: MAXIME FRECHETTE
“The apparel category is not at this point expanding other than to do pop ups. Our home wear clients are doing fantastic. They’re comping up from the previous year. But the overall market is very depressed at this point. And landlords in the regional malls are becoming a lot more creative when it comes to deal terms to try and fill their spaces because there’s a lot of empty spaces now in Montreal.
“Those landlords who have open air centres have good demand. So it’s almost a dichotomy. A tale of two cities. You have the regional malls where the landlords are being incredibly creative and you have the open air centre landlords who have maintained demand.”
Flanz said it’s a tough time to be in real estate in Quebec right now because there’s not the pipeline in retail at the moment to backfill the empty spaces.
“We have clients from Europe who are now waiting for the borders to open and they’re ready to open stores in Canada and they’re targeting fourth quarter now for these openings,” he said. “I’m not permitted to mention names but we have a client base in Australia, a client base in the UK, making their Canadian market entries later this year subject to the borders opening.
La Baie d’Hudson 585 Saint-Catherine St W. PHOTO: MAXIME FRECHETTE
“There is some good news and the more that the retail outlets are open, the better that is for the economy.”
Flanz noted that there are some “really great” residential projects in Montreal as well as The Bay’s redevelopment.
“We will have some very good successes in the mid-term which I think will really rejuvenate the downtown core but unfortunately it’s short-term pain for long-term gain.”
Exterior of Psycho Bunny store in the US. Photo: Psycho Bunny
Edgy New York City-based mens fashion brand Psycho Bunny is looking to enter the Canadian market by opening physical stores. The retailer has retained a brokerage to spearhead the expansion, which is good news in terms of the outlook for brick-and-mortar retail at a challenging time for the retail industry.
The brand was founded in 2005 by Robert Godley and Robert Goldman, and is known for its hand-finished polo shirts with mother of pearl buttons that are made in Peru. Clothing is adorned with the Psycho Bunny logo which consists of a maniacal-looking rabbit over a skull and bones insignia.
Psycho Bunny’s colourful stores house an assortment of fashions including t-shirts (priced at $45-$65 USD typically), polo shirts (priced $85-$125 USD), jackets ($135-$220 USD), pants ($105-$155 USD), and other categories including accessories and footwear. Styles are preppy but with an edge.
Pop up in Miami
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Popup Psycho Bunny store in Miami. Photo: Psycho Bunny
Popup Psycho Bunny store in Miami. Photo: Psycho Bunny
Popup Psycho Bunny store in Miami. Photo: Psycho Bunny
Psycho Bunny is seeking retail spaces in the range of 1,000 to 2,000 square feet and is targeting shopping centres, high streets, and lifestyle centres in Canada. New storefronts incorporate a prism store window composed of dichroic glass panels along with storefront panels in transparent film which allows visual access from the outside. Inside, a neon bunny sign is integrated into a merchandise gallery wall and an LED wall which displays branded content from behind the cash wrap.
In the United States, Psycho Bunny operates 10 stores in Atlanta (Lenox Square), Dallas (NorthPark Mall), Las Vegas (Forum Shops at Caesars), Hollywood, Florida (Hardrock Hotel/Casino), Miami (Aventura Mall), and has outlet stores in Riverhead NY and in Orlando FL. In November, Psycho Bunny picked up the pace of its expansion in California by opening a 1,250-square-foot storefront at Westfield Century City in Los Angeles, a 1,200-square-foot location at South Coast Plaza in Orange County, as well as at Westfield Valley Fair in San Jose. This quarter, the brand is expanding further by opening new stores in San Francisco and in Paramus, New Jersey.
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Exterior of Psycho Bunny store in the US. Photo: Psycho Bunny
Interior of Psycho Bunny store at Lenox Square in Atlanta. Photo: Psycho Bunny
Interior of Psycho Bunny store at Lenox Square in Atlanta. Photo: Psycho Bunny
It’s not yet known where in Canada Psycho Bunny may look to open stores. In the United States, the brand appears to have opened in leading shopping centres and in high-traffic locations like casinos. One might expect top malls such as the Yorkdale Shopping Centre in Toronto and CF Pacific Centre in Vancouver to be targets for Psycho Bunny locations, for example.
Psycho Bunny already has wholesale distribution in Canada through unique independent retailers. Those include Gotstyle and The Coop Ink. in Toronto, Jeff’s Guy Shop in Burlington, Club Uomo and Alton Gray in Montreal, and at Mangos in Victoria. The brand was carried at Nordstrom in Canada in years past. The direct-to-consumer store expansion will grow Psycho Bunny’s presence in Canada and it’s unknown what wholesale distribution the brand will have in the country as standalone stores begin opening.
'Hot Boss' Rhylan Streloff and Madicyn Dobie. Photo: Abbotsford News
A small clothing retailer in Trail, B.C., is setting the social media world on fire as a clear example of how to think outside of the box and grow business through a strong digital presence.
JJ’s Fashions, which has been operating since 1973, has amassed a stunning just shy of 1.5 million followers on TikTok with its “Hot Boss” segments with female employees swooning over their boss Rhylan Streloff, who manages the store, which is about 1,800 square feet at 1330 Cedar Avenue.
“It basically started as a one-off spoof. We were basically brainstorming ideas on how to grow our Instagram account. Our Instagram is shopable, linked directly to our website. We were trying to figure out ways to drive traffic to our Instagram page and one of the young girls that worked here told me that TikTok would be a great way to do that. So she started a TikTok account for us and then started making videos,” said Streloff.
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Screenshot from Rhylan Streloff' Instagram page
Screenshot from Rhylan Streloff' Instagram page
“The videos are not related to selling anything really. They’re more around the idea of me being the hot boss and the relationship my employee and I have and how she reacts to her boss being hot. So it’s a little awkward but it’s more along the entertainment side of things.”
JJ’s has 28.6 million Likes. Views on videos are well over 100 million. On the Instagram account, it has 73,000 followers. Streloff’s personal Instagram account has 180,000 followers. Employee Madicyn Dobie’s Instagram account has about 25,000 followers.
“The reach is pretty staggering. This is all within four months. That’s the crazy part of TikTok. It’s dumb luck a lot of it to be honest with you but we found something that people liked and we’re just always trying to learn from the videos that get views, what people like, and trying to figure out what the algorithm likes,” said Streloff.
“Our first video was definitely a fluke but we pay attention to it closely and kind of figure out what works for us and what doesn’t and I think we’ve kind of found a weird little niche that’s working. The reach is just astounding. It’s crazy for me because when I started trying to develop our Instagram account it was an absolute grind — the following, the Likes and Commenting, trying to build your following organically through Instagram with hashtags is a very slow and tedious process. TikTok is wild just how fast it will grow. I’ve seen my account jump 30,000 followers in a couple of days when we have a good video that goes viral.”
Streloff’s grandparents first established the retail store as Kootenay Clothes Closet. His father took it over for awhile as well as his uncle.
Exterior of JJ’s Fashion store. Photo: Google Images
“We’re just like a standard retail clothing store. We do women’s and men’s. We have everything from sportswear, accessories, and menswear — men’s casual, men’s formal. We kind of try to hit everything from the young crowd of anywhere from 14 all the way up to the older crowd. I’d say our main customer base is from 20 to 45,” said Streloff.
He said social media is a great tool for retailers to grow their business.
“We’re having a lot of fun. There’s a lot of energy behind it. A lot of momentum. It’s really exciting to see. It’s a life changing thing. We were all of a sudden able to turn this tiny little business that was struggling to keep the lights on into something that is limitless. There’s a lot of room for growth here and it’s just really exciting to be part of,” added Streloff.
David Nagy, founder of eCommerce Canada, said TikTok, and other social platforms, offers a “level playing field” for small brands like JJ’s Fashions to compete with large brands that have deep pockets for marketing.
“TikTok stands out as a content creation platform, perhaps more so than any other social channel. It is fundamentally entertainment and you need to think about that when you create content for it,” he said.
“Creativity and storytelling are at the core of any great brand initiative and JJ’s has nailed this. They aren’t pitching, they aren’t selling. They’ve created a story related to the day-to-day existence in the shop – and it resonates because it’s real, it’s funny and it entertains us.
“Does that mean this is easy? Heck no! Creativity is hard. You have to be in the moment and recognize when something has a good feel to it that others will enjoy. Executing that vision is the next challenge. I actually don’t believe that this is the domain of marketers. I think a good TikTok ‘marketer’ is a really creative person who uses the platform a lot and understands it’s toolkit. TikTok and platforms like SnapChat aren’t really something that you can conceive material for if you don’t use them regularly.”
Does an example like JJ’s Clothing turn into commerce? Well, it’s possible, but that shouldn’t really be the purpose of this type of concept, explained Nagy.
“What they should hope to achieve is a big bump in awareness that translates into an increase in trust and affinity of their brand. It’ll be important to piggyback off of the traction they’re getting today and ensure there’s a next step in this concept to continue to develop that customer journey. Without some semblance of an ongoing engagement strategy, a brand’s success can be pretty short-lived and amount to ‘five minutes of fame’,” said Nagy.
“Eventually, the transition to a place where you can nurture and track a customer relationship is still important. Your email list, your website, even brand searches on Google. These are still places where you can better control the conversation and nurture your relationships because you have more access to data and better ability to affect the User Experience.
“So, while TikTok is a wonderful place to create top-of-funnel awareness, always consider how you can progress that customer journey by leveraging that awareness into visits to other social channels, your website or even your physical storefront. One day soon, platforms like TikTok may become commerce behemoths, but today your focus should be about creating entertaining and authentic experiences that help you be discovered by new people and existing audiences alike.”
Rendering of 1140 Yonge Street. Designed by Audax for Devron Developments. Rendering: Urban Toronto
A landmark mixed-use project in an affluent part of Toronto will involve redeveloping a retail space most recently occupied by a Staples store. Proposed to replace it includes a stunning luxury condominium apartment building that will feature commercial space at its base.
A proposed 13-storey residential building with 66 condominium apartment units at 1140 Yonge Street will include three luxury townhouses facing Marlborough Avenue. It will be built above the facade of a commercial space that was originally constructed as a showroom for luxury automobile maker Pierce-Arrow.
The vision for 1140 Yonge’s commercial podium, according to the developers, is to serve as a “front porch” for the Summerhill and Rosedale communities. A restaurant space is proposed at street-level with high, arched windows — a patio space on Marlborough Avenue will create a transition from Yonge Street to the adjacent low-rise neighbourhood. The goal is to reanimate the streetscape and provide a more vibrant pedestrian experience compared to the current big-box store format that has operated for years.
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Looking south along Yonge street at 1140 Yonge. Designed by Audax for Devron Developments. Rendering: Urban Toronto
Looking north along Yonge street at 1140 Yonge. Designed by Audax for Devron Developments. Rendering: Urban Toronto
Yonge Street Facade. Designed by Audax for Devron Developments. Rendering: Urban Toronto
Yonge Street Facade. Designed by Audax for Devron Developments. Rendering: Urban Toronto
Looking east along Marlborough Avenue. Designed by Audax for Devron Developments. Rendering: Urban Toronto
The developers say that 1140 Yonge will be “one of the most iconic buildings in the city, at one of the most iconic intersections in the city; one that will celebrate and enrich the property’s heritage, reach for the highest sustainability standards”. It will become the first Passive House condominium in Toronto.
The architecture of the residential building will be inspired by the heritage facade at its base. A stone facade will create a sense of prominence and prestige for the building which would feature apartment condominium units ranging from one-bedroom and spanning about 1,000 square feet to two massive penthouses at the top of the building.
Across the street is a unique retail property referred to as the ‘Five Thieves’, featuring several upscale businesses in restored heritage buildings. A block north is a stunning LCBO store that was once a train station.
Map of the surrounding area. Image: 1140Yonge
The project is a good sign for the area. Prices for the condominium units are expected to be in the millions of dollars. Other nearby projects with pricey units further solidify the desirability of the area which also includes neighbourhoods with substantial houses and townhomes. The historic and wealthy Rosedale neighbourhood is located on the east side of Yonge Street while the upscale Summerhill neighbourhood spans westward.
The Pierce-Arrow showroom was built at 1140 Yonge Street in 1930 and the retail space remained operational until the Pierce-Arrow brand was discontinued in 1938.
The building’s history is interesting. After being used as a showroom for luxury vehicles, 1140 Yonge Street became a warehouse after World War II until it was acquired by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) in 1954. TV shows produced here include North America’s longest running television quiz show, Front Page Challenge (1957-1995), the Wayne and Shuster Show, the Tommy Hunter Show, and children’s TV show Mr. Dressup, among others. The CBC made alterations to the exterior of the building to facilitate filming. In 1991 after CBC relocated to a single downtown production facility, retailer ‘The Business Depot’ moved into the space that was later rebranded as Staples.
Part of the existing Staples store building is being marketed for lease for up to a two-year term. The southern half of the former store, spanning about 8,000 square feet on one level, features 35-foot ceilings facing Yonge Street and a 14-foot ceiling further in. A total of 20 parking spaces are available, as well as a loading dock. The northern half of the existing building will become a sales centre for the proposed condominium building. The south retail space is being marketed by brokerage DWSV under the direction of David Wedemire, Stan Vyriotes ,and Vanessa Lynch.
Jack Nathan Health, operating in Walmart stores across Canada, is expanding the types of services that their medical practitioners can offer patients with the recent acquisition of two Redeem MediSpa clinics.
MediSpa offers a complete range of both surgical and non-surgical treatments for conditions such as Botox, migraines, laser therapy, anti-aging, face and body skin tightening, PRP therapies, hair loss, and joint pain.
“This transaction is in lock-step with Jack Nathan Health’s mission to provide patients with accessible, convenient and quality healthcare by expanding the range of services and treatment options available to both practitioners and patients,” said George Bakart, CEO and Chairman of Jack Nathan Health, which operates in 76 Walmart Canada locations.
“Bringing MediSpa under the Jack Nathan Health banner will drive both immediate revenue and the long-term growth trajectory as we work first to integrate these two locations and then open additional locations in the coming months.”
Redeem MediSpa inside a Walmart Canada. Photo: Walmart
The first two locations are in southern Ontario — inside JNH medical walk-in clinics in Maple (Vaughan) and Brampton.
The integration of MediSpa will be led by Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Glenn Copeland, who brings expertise in building and leading multidisciplinary healthcare operations to this initiative.
“The acquisition of MediSpa provides a unique opportunity to further entrench Jack Nathan Health as a full-service provider of quality services, deepening our ability to close the circle of care for each patient by attending to their unique needs,” said Copeland. “I look forward to driving this integration forward as we expand our range of services, including the expansion of our digital footprint through the addition of an e-commerce platform and retail product offerings.”
Jack Nathan Health was established in 2006 and continues to expand its international footprint, delivering state-of-the-art, turn-key medical centres in 76 Walmart locations across Canada including British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec, as well as 11 locations in Mexico.
Sam Hamam, Senior Director of Licensees for Walmart Canada, said the retailer is “excited about the potential to partner with Jack Nathan Health to expand their services to include MediSpa to help our customers live better”.
Barakat said one of Walmart’s key demographics is the aging population with one in four people being over the age of 65 within 10 years.
“So healthcare, notwithstanding Jack Nathan Health, is a prime directive of I believe all retailers, not just Walmart,” he said.
“We thought it would be an excellent alignment considering MediSpas are moving more to provider care or provider supervision. So for us coming out of COVID, notwithstanding where the world is going, we believe that because we have the right doctors in place and the MediSpas within our medical locations this would be an excellent opportunity for us to complete that circle of healthcare or add to that circle of healthcare and potentially taking care of patients through MediSpa from the outside in.
Jack Nathan MediSpa in the Walmart Supercentre in Thornhill. Photo: Peterborough Examiner
“MediSpa provides surgical and non-surgical treatments, it expands the stickiness of Jack Nathan Health clients as we’re able to offer expanded service offerings relevant to their wellbeing, potentially to help them live their best lives. We thought this was a very strategic acquisition to expand forward. In the next 12 to 18 months we’ve already put in plans to open eight new locations for MediSpa and I believe that’s just the tip of the iceberg. I can see MediSpa expanding into most of our footprint.”
Barakat said Jack Nathan Health locations range in size from 1,500 square feet to the location in Vaughan that is 8,200 square feet.
He said the company believes it is going to revolutionize healthcare by providing a patient first experience both in-clinic and virtually.
“We approached healthcare, in partnership with Walmart, of bringing the clinic to the patient. Now we’ve evolved that into a digital experience to complement our brick and mortar experience. We keep that always at the top of mind — how can we improve better patient outcomes, always putting front and centre the patient first. And more importantly moving forward, how do we further co-locate specialist services to complement our physician services so that we can help everybody nationally and internationally —and their families — live their best lives by providing availability in the community for healthcare through Jack Nathan Health.”
Barakat said the company is looking at several locations in Canada for the expansion of Jack Nathan Health.
“We’re looking at quite a few locations for Walmart Mexico. We received another 50 locations for Walmart Mexico. We have a couple of locations already for this year for Walmart Canada. We believe that we’re going to be expanding our footprint quite rapidly within Canada as well.”
