Salesforce Industries Summit showcases how the customer relationship management company is delivering innovative, purpose-built solutions to help companies go digital fast. Now, Salesforce is rolling out a new industries-specific product portfolio to its customers, focused on delivering value, ROI, and speed. On October 14, get on your path to growth with retail and consumer goods-specific innovations
Join the virtual Retail & Consumer Goods Channel. You’ll get an in-depth look at how retail & consumer goods organizations are designing digital-first experiences, reimagining best-in-class customer service, and leveraging the latest technologies to achieve faster time-to-value.
It will feature four 30 minute episodes highlighting dynamic speakers and compelling customer stories including:
A fireside chat with PepsiCo’s Dan Moisan, Chief Commercial Officer, PepsiCo Latin America
Consumer Goods Clouds’ newest innovations
How RMDY Growth Corp accelerated distribution growth across channels by going digital
Reimagine the customer experience for today’s digital shopper
Bring your questions to the live ‘Ask the Expert’ sessions, where you’ll join product and industry experts to get answers to your most relevant product adoption, best-practices, and how-to questions.
Get on the fastest path to digital transformation for the retail & consumer goods industry.
Upscale home furnishings retailer ELTE is looking to hire a sales associate in Toronto. The highly respected retailer operates a store and café at 80 Ronald Avenue in Toronto’s Castlefield and Caledonia area. To apply for the position, please contact Suzanne Sears of Luxury Careers Canada at: best-retail-jobs@live.ca.
Retailers looking to post positions with Luxury Careers Canada may also contact Suzanne Sears or Craig Patterson at: craig@retail-insider.com
For over 100 years, our mission has been to inspire our customers’ through beautiful product and design. At ELTE, we look for individuals who are excited to continue our family tradition of creating beautiful spaces in our customers’ homes while providing them with an excellent in-store experience.
WHO YOU ARE:
You have the entrepreneur spirit and an eye for design. You believe in building strong, lasting relationships with others, and much of your success has come from your ability to connect with people through your work experience waitressing, serving, in customer service, or in sales.
You are looking for a full time work opportunity. Providing excellent customer service is your passion. Work life balance is important to you and something you value in your next role. When people speak about you, they make special mention about your exceptional grit and gumption. You love to win, you thrive in a team environment and You are always looking to grow.
ATTRIBUTES OF THE PERFECT SALES ASSOCIATE
Passionate about our products
People person with a customer service, serving industry or sales background
Polished and professional with an understanding of our clients and high-end Luxury
Problem solver with high standards of customer service
Promotes and embodies the Elte brand
Proficient communication skills
Projects enthusiasm and energy
Personal style, fashionable
WHAT YOU DO (among other things)
Quality sale over quick sale, thorough engagements with customers
Consistently walk the showroom floor actively engaging with clients
Provide an elevated service experience for each client by identifying needs, providing information and quick follow up for a seamless interaction
Create quotes and sales orders reflecting the wants of the customer
Foster client relationships for repeat business and to develop a self-sustaining network of clients
Insatiable desire to learn so you can improve on the sales floor
Maintain a high level of store maintenance
WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU?
Excellent earning potential
Amazing Hours & Work/Life Balance
Comprehensive group benefits
Beautiful Work Environment
Opportunity for growth and development
If you are interested in this career opportunity, we’d love to hear from you. ELTE thanks all applicants who apply, but also those candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.
In accordance with the Ontario Human Rights Code, Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, and ELTE Accommodation Policy, accommodation will be provided in all parts of the hiring process. Applicants need to make their needs known in advance.
*Retail Insider has partnered with Luxury Careers Canada to support the industry. For more information, contact Craig Patterson at: craig@retail-insider.com
It’s often been described by those who have experienced it as a feeling of drowning. Its effects can be debilitating, rendering some completely and utterly helpless, skewing perspective, and sending senses and faculties of mind whirling uncontrollably. It’s a leading cause of disability in Canada. And yet, our understanding of mental illness, the anguish endured by those who suffer from any of its many forms, and the triggers in society that cause the hurt in so many is still not well understood by the general public. For this reason — to help support the mental health of all Canadians and continue to expel the stigma of mental illness — Henry’s Foundation is bringing the issue into focus through its dedicated work and the launch of its #uncapturedmoments campaign.
Founded in 2019 by the Stein family, and supported proudly by fourth generation family-owned and-operated creative retailer Henry’s, the Henry’s Foundation is a Canadian registered charity with a mandate to raise awareness around the issues and impacts of mental illness and, through charitable donations, help to support the efforts and initiatives of its national and regional partners aimed at addressing and improving the mental health of Canadians.
“Mental illness is something that touches everyone, either directly or indirectly,” says Amy Stein, Executive Director of Henry’s Foundation, adding that the issue of mental health is something she and her family feels passionately about. “It might be a neighbour who’s affected, a friend, co-worker or a family member. The statistics related to mental illness and the number of Canadians negatively affected by it are staggering. We want to make a positive impact on those who are suffering and help to lessen the severity of its effects and repercussions. Our objective is to continue advancing our work so that the positive impact that we make for those suffering from mental illness is long lasting and to expand its understanding with all Canadians.”
Making a Difference
The statistics related to mental illness that Stein refers to are, indeed, staggering. According to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), it’s estimated that in any given year about one in five Canadians experience the effects of mental illness. And, as individuals grow older, those numbers only increase, with at least 1 in every 2 people in the country having experienced a mental illness at least once in their life by the age of 40. What’s more, the many forms of the disorder do not discriminate, impacting everyone of all ages and backgrounds.
One of the ways in which Henry’s Foundation is already making its intended impact is through the many partnerships that it’s formed with mental health organizations across the country, including Kids Help Phone and Jack.org, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto, VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation in Vancouver, Douglas Foundation in Quebec, and the Mental Health Foundation of Nova Scotia. By way of charitable donations, Henry’s Foundation helps to support the initiatives and programs offered by its partners, helping to forge a community of assistance and support for those in need, and a unified voice around the obligation to provide them with the proper help.
“Our wonderful partners are critical in providing mental health services and support across Canada,” says Stein. “They are partnerships that have been deliberately and purposefully formed. These organizations are leaders in the areas of their focus, providing Henry’s Foundation with a great cross-section of partners offering services, research, and programs that empower at all ages across Canada. These partnerships are so important to what we do and helps us realize our goal to reach as many Canadians as possible.”
Breaking the Stigma
Mental illness, which can be seen by the unenlightened as an inconvenience of society, can manifest itself in numerous ways, resulting in complications that can lead to family conflicts, relationship issues, social isolation, discontented life, challenges with addiction, legal and financial problems, poverty and homelessness, amongst many other challenges. It also rears its ugliness through physical reactions that can result in a range of ailments, from a weakened immune system to heart disease and other medical conditions and, in worst case scenarios when the proper care is not provided, self-harm and harm to others, including suicide or homicide.
The presence of mental illness can be caused by a multitude of conditions and factors and be contributed to in a number of different ways, including those that are brought on and impacted by feelings of social anxiety and marginalization. And, despite all of the wonders of communication that social media platforms have bestowed upon us, the false representation of perfection in an imperfect world that the medium has helped cultivate and personify has bred a feeling of inadequacy and failure in many, lending to a demoralization of self.
“People generally only post the highlights of their lives on social media,” recognizes Stein. “But there is much more going on in the background of everyone’s ‘real’ life that nobody gets to see because those things never get posted. Everyone has a tough time getting out of bed some mornings. Everyone experiences difficulties maintaining friendships and relationships from time to time. Everyone struggles. Life isn’t perfect and has its ups and downs. We saw this as an opportunity to leverage social media to build a community with the message that ‘it’s ok NOT to be ok’ and to encourage the sharing of real moments that may not be our best.”
The Henry’s Foundation #uncapturedmoments campaign, launched in alignment with Canadian Mental Illness Awareness Week and World Mental Health Day, challenges people to use their photographic creativity to share their everyday moments, unfiltered, in an effort to shift the narrative and shatter the illusion of perfection that’s infiltrated social media. By uploading images of “uncaptured moments” to the Henry’s Foundation website, or by sharing them on Instagram with the hashtag #uncapturedmoments, anyone can participate in helping to eradicate the stigma of mental illness and show others that they are not alone. In addition, the campaign, which runs until Saturday, October 10, will generate a donation of 25 cents from Henry’s Camera for tags, comments or images submitted, with proceeds of the campaign going toward support of the services of its mental health organization partners. Donations can also be made online at henrysfoundation.com or by visiting any Henry’s retail location. A selection of images can be found on www.henrysfoundation.com/moments
Impact of Global Pandemic
Stein, who worked for Henry’s for 19 years serving in various roles on the corporate side of the company before starting Henry’s Foundation, also recognizes the ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted mental health and the need to provide the right support for those affected. Mandatory health measures and precautions, which have been directed toward advising people to stay home and avoid contact with others when possible, have resulted in increased feelings of anxiety and stress for many. In fact, 50% of Canadians have reported that the current pandemic situation has negatively impacted their mental health with an alarming 80% of the country’s workforce reporting the same, exacerbating an already prevalent and widespread issue.
“The pandemic has significantly impacted everybody’s mental health to some degree,” says Stein. “I think that’s the understatement of the year. Disruptions to our families and daily lives, the economy, the way we work and interact with people, has impacted everyone. And I think the things we’ve all been going through collectively have really emphasized the importance of our mental health and the fact that it needs to be made a priority now and moving forward, perhaps more than ever before.”
The critical role retailers and businesses play in supporting the health of their employees is also something that Stein addresses, pointing out their responsibility to do so.
“All businesses need to take it upon themselves to support the mental health of their employees. Those working in frontline customer service roles are experiencing a lot of anxiety. Some of them might be dealing with personal issues that employers may not be aware of. Employers need to listen to their employees, building relationships with them that are authentic, ensuring that they maintain regular communication, providing access to support resources. As leaders, we need to set an example, making sure that our employees feel supported and appreciated, giving back to the people and communities who have always supported us as a business”
Stein admits that it’s always been a part of the Henry’s Camera philosophy to give back to the communities it serves, and that the work being done by Henry’s Foundation is just another representation of the company’s vision. However, it seems to serve as an extremely important extension of its philosophy and vision, filling a vital role in a time of dire need. And, listening to the Foundation’s Executive Director vocalize her plans for the future, it seems the role Henry’s plays in supporting mental health will only continue to grow in significance
“We want to continue supporting our employees and their families across the country. And we want to continue to integrate and nurture a culture of mental health into the day-to-day operations at Henry’s, making it a priority in everything that we do as a company. But we also want to take our work and the positive change that we can influence beyond retail to reach every Canadian in need, and to continue working with our partners to help amplify the amazing work that they do in an effort to support the mental health of everyone from coast-to-coast across the country.”
It’s no secret that the retail industry around the globe is currently experiencing one of the biggest challenges in its history, caused by COVID-19 and the subsequent economic downturn that is challenging businesses’ cashflows and ultimately their existence. In order to prepare for the future and ensure survival, some companies began to innovate and adjust to the micro and macro-economic shocks that reshape the already competitive retail space.
A retailer of tomorrow must not only be connected with its customers and key stakeholders, it should also be agile and quick to adapt to the challenges and new regulations that are imposed industry-wide. From the booming e-commerce industry and shifting generational trends, to AI and machine learning CRM solutions, a successful retailer must be aware of the opportunities that those changes create.
Retail Insider has in the past reported on a Concord based premium retailer, OriginalLuxury Inc., that currently carries a number of extravagant brands that were not widely available in Canada in the past including a notoriously rebellious Philipp Plein from Switzerland, a classic and chic Zilli from France, and highly-popular and growing Slowear group of brands. In order to learn more about the company’s success and its approach to maneuver through these difficult times, we spoke with Husan Aripov, managing partner of OriginalLuxury, to see what tools and tactics could be employed by other Canadian retailers facing the same issues.
OriginalLuxury Inc. is a premium retailer of exclusive (mainly European) brands that was founded in 2018 to cater to the Canadian market. In a short period of time, the company became an official distributor for a number of high profile brands, including Artioli, Faliero Sarti, Billionaire, Philipp Plein, Barba Napoli, Incotex, Zilli, and more. It is worth noting that some of those brands were not present in Canada before, or were represented in very small variety. Zilli, for example, is one of the oldest and most sought-after ultra-premium menswear brands, that caters to the most affluent clientele. This approach of targeting niche brands allowed OriginalLuxury to position itself among premium retailers very well, without directly competing with them.
Although the company is mainly focusing on e-commerce sales through its own platform, this year it has opened a “by appointment-only” showroom for OriginalLuxury clients to be able to see and try the products on before making a purchase. “We strongly believe that COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way individuals eat, go out, and most importantly shop” says Aripov. “You do not want to go to a crowded mall, or a store during a pandemic – simply because the associated risks outweigh one’s desire to go shopping. As a result, customers are shifting towards online shopping across all product segments, which puts even more emphasis on ensuring quick and high-quality production of content for e-commerce platforms”. OriginalLuxury was lucky enough to create its own subsidiary, Stylephotos.ca, that acts as an in-house photography and videography studio.
StylePhotos helps other retailers across Canada to create outstanding photo and video content at a reasonable price, something that is so needed in today’s economy. Retailers are always stuck in a “loop” of buying new collections three or four times a year, and the faster their order gets online the faster they will make money. “At StylePhotos we were able to create a system that allows for consistent and streamlined process to take place — something that never existed in product photography before,” said Husan.
Being in e-commerce industry themselves, allowed the young and innovative start-up to tailor their service offering specifically for every client. “Our photo-studio is not managed by photographers,” said Aripov, “it is run by business-minded individuals who look at cost-saving for clients first”. We believe that this mindset is the key factor that allowed StylePhotos to partner with the largest Canadian retailers, while offering the same service to small companies and individual entrepreneurs.
For OriginalLuxury, staying focused on customer service, having a limited and carefully-curated brand portfolio, and constant innovation allowed the company to survive the ravaging effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. These factors are also relevant to other retailers, who are looking not only to survive, but to succeed at a time, where odds are not in their favour.
EXTERIOR OF NEW LOUIS VUITTON FLAGSHIP AT YORKDALE SHOPPING CENTRE. PHOTO: MICHAEL MURAZ
LVMH-owned French luxury brand Louis Vuitton opened a flagship store at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre on Friday of last week. The impressive store spanning nearly 10,000 square feet features a first-in-Canada LED facade that changes colour as well as artwork and a unique selection of Louis Vuitton product for women and men. The standalone store is part of a bigger investment by Louis Vuitton in the Canadian market as the company continues to open standalone stores.
The Yorkdale Louis Vuitton spans 9,800 square feet, with an interior retail space spanning about 6,500 square feet, according to the company. The store is located in a prominent corner location in the mall near several other luxury brands. The Yorkdale flagship houses ready-to-wear clothing for men and women as well as bags, accessories, jewellery, travel items, fragrances, and footwear.
YORKDALE LOUIS VUITTON WILL FEATURE EXCLUSIVE PRODUCT & PRE-LAUNCHES OF UPCOMING COLLECTIONS
Given the clustering of luxury brands at Yorkdale which brings in high-end shoppers, the Louis Vuitton store will feature exclusive product and pre-launches of upcoming collections and capsules.
Louis Vuitton’s first ‘high jewellery’ collection pre-launched in the Yorkdale store around ‘Vivienne’, Louis Vuitton’s house mascot. Other luxury retailers at Yorkdale were said to be showcasing their own pricey jewellery collections after seeing what Louis Vuitton was showcasing in its store over the weekend. On its opening day, the Yorkdale Louis Vuitton store is said to have run up nearly $500,000 in sales — an impressive sum given the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other collections in the Yorkdale Louis Vuitton store include the women’s ready-to-wear ‘SINCE 1854’ capsule collection, the men’s Louis Vuitton LVÇ capsule collection in collaboration with Japanese artist Nigo®, and the unisex LV Volt jewelry collection.
LOUIS VUITTON WOMEN’S ACCESSORY AND BAG DISPLAY. PHOTOS: MICHAEL MURAZ
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A bespoke offering at the Yorkdale store includes a selection of Louis Vuitton’s most exceptional hand-crafted hard-sided trunks, exotic leather goods, and pieces from the Louis Vuitton Objets Nomades collection. Customization and personalization is also an important part of the store experience, including an on-site hotstamping service which offers clients the opportunity to personalize a variety of leather goods, and a fragrance engraving service which allows for the customization of an assortment of fragrance bottles within the Les Parfums Louis Vuitton collection.
The Yorkdale Louis Vuitton store is hard to miss for those passing by. A grand facade is wrapped with an illuminated two-storey LED screen that feature animations of Louis Vuitton’s monogram flower motif in ever-changing colours. The facade is punctuated with dramatic double-height display windows which showcase product from the store in a busy area of the mall. The facade alone is said to have cost in excess of $1-million to build.
LOUIS VUITTON FLAGSHIP MEN’S READY-TO-WEAR. PHOTOS: MICHAEL MURAZ
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Louis Vuitton Yorkdale - Toronto, ON
Louis Vuitton Yorkdale - Toronto, ON
Louis Vuitton Yorkdale - Toronto, ON
Louis Vuitton Yorkdale - Toronto, ON
The store is split up into men’s and women’s areas, with two separate entrances. The women’s entrance at the corner of the store features a double-height atrium with a skylight and canopy of Concertina Shades by Raw Edges from the Louis Vuitton Objets Nomades collection which hangs over the top. The men’s entrance at the south end of the store facing into the mall features a sweeping wooden ceiling leading into the more masculine space. The men’s and women’s sections are separated by a retail space including the ‘travel room’ which is decorated with a luggage-tag wall in locally inspired colours, as well as a watches and jewelry display featuring a backlit mesh screen.
Columns throughout the store are wrapped in emblematic Louis Vuitton leathers with stitching, while floors are finished in limestone and oak wood.
Local artists created pieces for the new store. Canadian artist Rebecca Bayer created a bespoke ceramic tile art piece, with wall art inspired by Toronto-based street artist BirdO. Sculptural tables were created by Floris Wubben, rounded chairs were created by Pierre Paulin, petrified wood tables were designed by Andrianna Shamaris, and a display table was created by Carlo Mollino, and seating from the House’s archival collection.
LOUIS VUITTON FLAGSHIP FACADE LIT UP IN AN ARRAY OF COLOURS CREATED BY LED SCREEN. PHOTOS: MICH...
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Louis Vuitton Yorkdale - Toronto, ON
Louis Vuitton Yorkdale - Toronto. Image by Michael Muraz
Louis Vuitton Yorkdale - Toronto, ON
A large sculpture of cherries by Japanese artist and Louis Vuitton collaborator Takashi Murakami serves as a whimsical centerpiece, while a Tiles La Samaritaine art piece adorns the space as well. Seating in the store is from Louis Vuitton’s archival collection.
Toronto-based dkstudio designed the Yorkdale Louis Vuitton store.
OTHER RETAILERS MOVED TO MAKE ROOM FOR LOUIS VUITTON AT YORKDALE
To make room for Louis Vuitton, retailers at Yorkdale such as Tumi, Spring, and Indochino relocated while Thomas Sabo shut its Yorkdale store several months ago. Italian luxury brand Mr. and Mrs. Italy is located next door, and across from the new Louis Vuitton is Ladurée, Sephora, and Zara. Other nearby luxury retailers include Saint Laurent and Richemont Group’s clustering of jewellery and watch brands. The hall southward, toward the recently opened Furla store, will also be positioned to house luxury retailers, according to sources at Yorkdale’s landlord Oxford Properties. Already, hoarding is up for Canada’s first standalone Thom Browne store and an Italian brand will soon be announced for the space next to Louis Vuitton’s men’s entryway. Recently the former Links of London space across from the new Louis Vuitton was leased to a luxury beauty and fragrance brand which will open its first Canadian storefront next year.
RED ARROW INDICATES THE LOCATION OF LOUIS VUITTON FLAGSHIP IN YORKDALE
Louis Vuitton has operated a 4,000-square-foot concession at Yorkdale’s Holt Renfrew store for about a decade, and the boutique will remain open. Sources say that the Yorkdale Holt Renfrew Louis Vuitton concession was the highest-selling Louis Vuitton location in Canada last year with sales “well above $40 million a year”, outperforming larger standalone Louis Vuitton ‘Maisons’ on Bloor Street in downtown Toronto as well as on Burrard Street in downtown Vancouver. Holt Renfrew will likely see less revenue in 2020 and 2021 at Yorkdale given the expansive assortment in the standalone unit in the mall — part of Holt Renfrew’s business model is to provide leased space to luxury brands while collecting a percentage of sales as rent.
LOUIS VUITTON YORKDALE FLAGSHIP WOMEN’S ENTRANCE. PHOTO: MICHAEL MURAZ
LOUIS VUITTON YORKDALE FLAGSHIP WOMEN’S AREA. PHOTO: MICHAEL MURAZ
CHANGING ROOM. PHOTO: MICHAEL MURAZ
CHANGING ROOM. PHOTO: MICHAEL MURAZ
Louis Vuitton also recently made a major investments in Vancouver where it operates a 10,000-square-foot ‘Maison’ flagship at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver facing onto Burrard Street. At the nearby Holt Renfrew store, Louis Vuitton expanded the men’s concession to house ready-to-wear clothing as well as footwear, bags, and accessories. A women’s ready-to-wear boutique was added on the third floor of Vancouver’s Holt Renfrew store several months ago — both are firsts for Canada for Louis Vuitton and Holt Renfrew. A Vuitton bag and accessory concession on the main level luxury hall at Holts is also quite large and last year was said to sell more bags than the standalone Vuitton flagship with a 730 Burrard Street address.
In Montreal, Louis Vuitton opened a replacement store at Holt Renfrew Ogilvy in the spring. The concession is located in a corner space on the main floor of Holt Renfrew Ogilvy, facing both Ste-Catherine Street West as well as Rue de la Montagne. In Toronto, Louis Vuitton opened a 2,650-square-foot accessory concession on the main level of Holt Renfrew’s 50 Bloor Street West store in November of 2018, replacing a smaller location nearby within the flagship store. It was part of an overhaul of the main floor of Holts, which has become something of a luxury brand mall with several significant luxury boutiques operating within. Nearby at 150 Bloor Street West, Louis Vuitton operates an 18,000-square-foot ‘Maison’ which spans two levels.
Louis Vuitton once operated a 2,500-square-foot boutique at the Cascade Plaza shopping centre in downtown Banff, Alberta. The boutique opened in 1996 and closed in May 2011.
Louis Vuitton is one of the world’s top-selling luxury brands, with sales well surpassing $10 billion annually. Top rivals include Chanel and Gucci, with Hermes also seeing billions of dollars a year in sales. At least one more standalone Louis Vuitton store is said to be coming to a major Canadian city and we’ll update readers when more details are available.
EXTERIOR OF HAMMAM SPA ON THE CORNER OF KING STREET AND PORTLAND STREET, DOWNTOWN TORONTO.
Less than a year after adding a brand-new 13,000-square-foot location to its lineup, Hammam Spa has renovated its original King Street West location.
Despite the recent COVID-19 closures, Hammam Spa went ahead with its scheduled refurbishments — totally overhauling the King and Portland hotspot.
The 7,000-square-foot spa has been in business for almost 15 years and, pre-COVID, serviced roughly 900 guests a week. The spa sits just below ground level on the busy downtown Toronto corner. Upon entering, you are greeted with a staircase that leads you down to the front desk and the spa retail offerings. The area is warm and cozy — a not-so-subtle hint for what’s to come.
Hammam Spa is designed to be a modern interpretation of traditional Turkish bath. It seamlessly transports you to Eastern Europe with soft music, aromatic smells, a cozy tea room (with treats such as baklava, Turkish delight, and dried fruit), and full-service, Turkish-inspired treatments. Guests are given robes and sandals to enjoy while they spend time relaxing in the various parts of the spa. Under normal circumstances the steam room would be available, however, due to COVID-19, it is closed temporarily.
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RECEPTION ENTRY AND RETAIL OFFERINGS IN NEWLY-RENOVATED KING STREET HAMMAM SPA. PHOTO: HAMMAM SPA
MANICURE STATION AT NEWLY-RENOVATED KING STREET HAMMAM SPA. PHOTO: HAMMAM SPA
TURKISH BATH SUITE AT NEWLY-RENOVATED KING STREET HAMMAM SPA. PHOTO: HAMMAM SPA
COUPLES MASSAGE ROOM WITH BATH AT NEWLY-RENOVATED KING STREET HAMMAM SPA. PHOTO: HAMMAM SPA
BATHROOM DECOR AT NEWLY-RENOVATED KING STREET HAMMAM SPA. PHOTO: HAMMAM SPA
CHANGING ROOMS AT NEWLY-RENOVATED KING STREET HAMMAM SPA. PHOTO: HAMMAM SPA
Hammam’s website invites you to “discover a place where ancient traditions create a modern retreat, where nature’s beauty works in harmony with your own, and where renewal and growth are elementary”. Hammam is designed to host and indulge guests in a range of transformative treatments inspired by age-old rituals, with services ranging from intensive facials — many of which use the SkinCeutical skincare line — to luxury massages, high-end manicures and pedicures, a variety of detoxifying wraps, and lavish Turkish baths.
Hammam uses its own, in-house brand, Céla, in many of its treatments. Céla — which launched in 2017 — was born of Hammam Founder, Celine Tadrissi’s, love of skincare and natural ingredients. Céla came to be in the back room of the King Street spa and was largely a product of trial and error — created with Hammam clients in mind and perfected due to their feedback. “I played around with ingredients and guests would give me feedback on the different concoctions. Finally I developed the perfect blend of ingredients to service my clients’ needs,” says Tadrissi. The range of oils, creams, and scrubs pays homage to Canada and the extensive abundance of northern botanicals housed within its borders. Today Céla is available for purchase in both Hammam locations.
In addition to Hammam’s traditional services, the newly renovated King Street location will be offering its full Hammam Medical Aesthetics menu. In partnership with SkinCeuticals, Hammam will offer medical-grade facials, potent chemical peels, and injectable options, all with the gilded polish that has become synonymous with Hammam Spa.
RANGE OF CÉLA PRODUCTS. PHOTO: CÉLA
The Hammam tea room provides an opportunity for the relaxation to perpetuate after a treatment. Designed with hand-painted murals on the walls and intricate wooden bucket chairs that envelop you as you sit, Hammam’s tea room is always stocked with tea and Turkish treats. The colour palette of deep greens, navy blues, greys, and burnt oranges create a tranquil space to lounge in. Hammam’s tea room was created to provide a space for people to rest either before or after their treatment and it is the perfect space for silent reflection or group interaction, says Tadrissi.
The space — similarly to Hammam Spa in Bayview Village — was designed by Antonio Tadrissi, Celine’s husband and the President of Prototype Design Lab. Antonio is an internationally celebrated artist, recognized for his work in architecture, interior design, and industrial designs. Prototype Design Lab is a multi-platform design studio and workshop based in Toronto.
Hammam has navigated the COVID-19 pandemic to the best of its ability and was more than ready to be reunited with clients once Ontario spas were allowed to reopen to the public. With all mandated rules and regulations being followed diligently within the spa, Hammam is a safe space for those who wish to relieve some of the inevitable 2020 stress.
“Rising consumer real estate vacancy levels in the age of COVID-19 are providing opportunities for retailers and foodservice professionals to test-drive new product and menu offerings on a short-term basis in a low-risk commercial environment. Proactive and creative landlords and building owners are seeking out pop-up tenants to keep their storefronts activated and incubate new long-term tenants. ‘Necessity is the mother of invention’ once said Thomas Edison,” said Kehoe.
EXPERT SAYS THERE IS SIGNIFICANT GROWTH FOR POP-UP RETAIL STORES AND RESTAURANTS
Linda Farha, Founder and Chief Connector at Toronto-based pop-up go, said when the initiative started close to four years ago it was about people who wanted to do activations to either get business intelligence, test a specific location for a long-term opportunity, or maybe even to test a product or a new concept. It was experiential.
“That process or that rationale for doing a pop-up versus today’s rationale is very different. And also I would say back then, and over time, and up until pre-pandemic, the tendency was to do a pop-up in many cases in a mall and sometimes street locations. But it wasn’t like specifically one or the other,” said Farha.
“We’re seeing a shift and we started seeing it beforehand. A lot of the things that are happening today COVID exponentially made those things happen faster. We were already starting to see a tendency toward pop-ups that were non-fashion related, non-mall related. But now we’re seeing exactly that. A lot of the pop-ups are food, accessories, things that fall into the categories of what people are actually purchasing now because of COVID. So if you’re buying lounge wear and pajamas and sweat pants and whatever else people are doing pop-ups in those particular categories that follow that trend.
“Of course, they’re doing it to get visibility in a brick and mortar environment to supplement their visibility online. And they’re also doing it to just create brand awareness but really in most cases not with the intentions of being a permanent store. Secondly, we’re seeing a lot more of a transition from interest in mall locations to outdoor and/or storefront locations.”
For example, parking lots are being used for pop-up locations. Restaurants are also creating outdoor pop-up locations.
Whether it is for a few hours or a few months, pop-up go provides organizations across North America with a range of available spaces for pop-up activations. The initiative helps make the connection by providing an online ‘meeting place’ that brings together diverse organizations who want to host or execute pop-ups and locate appropriate spaces for them. The concept connects a landlord and a seeker of space.
“About 30 percent of the inquiries I’m getting are from Alberta and I don’t know why that is,” said Farha. “It’s really strange. In the past month or so, Alberta seems to be where people are trying to do pop-ups.
“In some cases people are coming to us for tech-related. They’re not as much experiential as they had been in the past because of COVID. Malls have always been difficult with pop-ups. They never really wanted to do it. Then they started focusing on it. And now I think they’re realizing we need to. But I’m getting push back from a lot of people who are saying ‘you know we’re concerned about having a pop-up for a short-term in our mall because we want to make sure they comply with COVID regulations and it’s too complicated so it’s not worth it. So we’d rather have vacancies than have to worry about a non-compliant tenant who is going to mess things up basically for our mall’.”
POP UP GO LAUNCHES ONLINE MARKETPLACE ‘PROJEX’ DUE TO COVID-19
The concept is creating a new initiative called projeX which is an online marketplace for people who want to do pop-ups or experiential type things.
“The projeX website is going to be for those who want to start off with an online experiential pop-up and then transfer it to a physical one when they’re ready,” explained Farha.
In this day and age with the challenges of COVID and the struggling economy, retailers are looking for shorter leases to make sure they can test out their concepts and survive.
“Five years in the world that we live in today is so long. The world changes so rapidly and demand changes so rapidly and consumers are so fickle. What’s really hot today is not hot tomorrow, and it happens extremely quickly,” said Farha. “There is a lot of concern for these brands that are doing these pop-ups that may have the intention of being in a permanent scenario to kind of commit for that long. And that long being maybe even more than a year.
“What this has created is that the landlord community has to kind of change, pivot tremendously. This trend is getting more tight or more restricted. They had to shift from 10 years to five years. Now they have to shift to potentially one year leases. It makes it more complicated for them and obviously more work for them but it’s also a little shift in terms of the mindset.”
With hockey season upon us across the country, North America’s largest hockey specialty goods retailer, Source for Sports, has been busy meeting the consumer demand for equipment even in a pandemic world.
The retailer was obviously impacted at the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis like everyone else as stores were shut down and certain sports activities were initially restricted.
SOURCE FOR SPORTS SEES SHIFT IN CONSUMER DEMAND AMID COVID-19 PANDEMIC
But as stores opened up, Source For Sports President, Brad Hause, said the retailer noticed a shift in consumer demand as people were buying at home training aids, running footwear, and inline skates.
“People were looking to get out and get active,” he said. “We started selling mostly through online in the early stages and as we were able to reopen our stores. We were very well prepared to reopen with the proper signage, the proper cleaning protocols, and the proper equipment for the local staff and the customer to be able to have a safe experience. Some of which was being done through appointments. There was also a virtual sell where you could do a FaceTime kind of walk through the store helping people.”
CLEVE’S SOURCE FOR SPORTS IN MONCTON, NEW BRUNSWICK. PHOTO: YELP
As time went on, the retailer saw a big surge in bicycles.
“We’ve gotten a little bit more into our traditional stuff now. We’re now in the thick of hockey selling season. So that’s been relatively normal. It was delayed as far as when the peak started because there was still a lot of uncertainty. There’s been a lot of pent-up excitement to get back to normalcy. So we’ve seen a strong interest in hockey for sure,” said Hause.
“We’ve re-merchandised the store to create better flow or more openness to make sure that people have space. That’s the first thing we did. That continued on. Now when somebody’s coming in for skate fitting, the sales person who is helping them will be wearing usually a protective mask or a protective shield. There’s one customer on the bench at one time. Make sure we obviously have distancing. So there’s a lot of appointments being made in order to ensure we have proper spacing because the skate fitting process is pretty involved from both the assessment of the foot, the fitting of the skate, the moulding of the skate, the blade contouring. All of that takes time.
“In order to have a proper experience and to make sure you don’t have a surge of people at one time we are doing a lot of appointments.”
The retailer, which launched in 1972, is headquartered in Burlington, Ontario with 194 locations coast to coast in Canada and 65 in the United States.
“We’re in essence a member owned buying group. All of the stores are independently owned businesses. They’re not franchisees. They’re independent stores that became part of this group. So collectively we buy together and we market together,” said Hause.
“So every store is hyper local. Very much tuned into the needs of their local market. So the mix can vary. You can have stores that can be purely 100 per cent hockey only or you can have stores in smaller communities that would carry a very broad selection of sports because then they can service the market as they could be the only game in town if you will.
“The common thread is we’re all about very good service because all of our store owners have been at this for decades. And most of their staff have been at it for decades. You get exceptional service within our stores. We’d like to say that we fit your game which is really making sure that we tailor the right products for what you need for your level of game whether you’re a beginner, intermediate, advanced level of play we’ve got the right product and know how to fit it better than anyone else.”
SOURCE FOR SPORTS IS ADAPTING AMID PANDEMIC & LOOKING AT U.S. EXPANSION
The industry has also adapted product to meet the challenges of today’s pandemic world. New hockey masks, for example, have been developed that are designed to help contain the moisture, so there are less droplets being released from people, and to mitigate the problem of fogging.
From a store count, Hause said the retailer isn’t really in expansion mode in Canada but definitely it is looking to grow further in the U.S. market.
“In Canada we’re saturated, candidly. But in the U.S. we’re much younger there. We only went down there five years ago and so therefore we’ve had lots of opportunity to bring on stores, existing stores, into our group,” he said.
An off-schedule podcast touring the Oakridge Shopping Centre in Vancouver, British Columbia, in September 2020, prior to its shutdown for an incredible redevelopment. Craig and Lee discuss what’s happening at Oakridge in a tour showcasing what’s open and what has closed recently in preparation for the construction.
Shopping Centre Video Tour:
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.
(Note: Hudson’s Bay announced that it had closed this location permanently on November 30, 2020)
The Hudson’s Bay Company will shutter its downtown Winnipeg Hudson’s Bay flagship store early next year, marking the end of an era for the city. The Winnipeg Hudson’s Bay store was the company’s Canadian flagship between 1926 and 1974, and the loss of the store will mark the last department store for downtown Winnipeg.
The store will be shutting in February of 2021 and when it closes, about 60 employees will be out of work. In decades past when the store operated on all seven retail levels, more than thirty times that number of people would have worked there. Over the past decade, the 675,000 square foot store has been downsized to just two floors of retail space and in 2013 a Zellers store operating in the basement shuttered.
For years, the Hudson’s Bay Company has been trying to determine what to do with the massive 675,000 building in downtown Winnipeg. In 2013 the retailer attempted to transfer ownership to the Manitoba government for tax benefits, and more recently the University of Manitoba was approached to take over the building. Last year the building was assessed at $0, and even less given a tax bill of more than $300,000 annually. The cost of renovating the massive complex was said to be cost-prohibitive — each floor plate spans more than 80,000 square feet with no interior light well, creating challenges to convert the building to office space for example.
THE WINNIPEG STORE TODAY. IMAGE: GOOGLE MAPSCLICK IMAGE FOR INTERACTIVE GOOGLE MAP
Downtown Winnipeg’s first Hudson’s Bay store opened in 1881 at the corner of Main Street and York Avenue. In 1911 a larger fireproof store opened across the street where the general offices of the Hudson’s Bay Company were located as well as the wholesale, land and fur trade departments — the building was called Hudson’s Bay House.
HUDSON’S BAY HOUSE IN WINNIPEG IN 1925 BEFORE THE NEW STORE OPENING. PHOTO: HBC ARCHIVES
When the commercial centre of Winnipeg shifted to Portage Avenue, Hudson’s Bay sought out a new location where in 1926, the gigantic new flagship store was constructed. The current Winnipeg Hudson’s Bay store opened November 18, 1926, and cost about $5 million to build. About 50,000 people visited the store on the first day despite just the ground floor, second level and basement being open at that time. A whopping 2,000 people worked in the building. When it opened, some women’s dresses were priced as high as $125, which translates into about $1,900 in today’s dollars.
THE STORE UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN 1925. MANITOBA ARCHIVES
Construction of the new Winnipeg Bay store took over a year with 1,000 workers needed to complete the project. About 300 workers, 120 teams of horses, 20 trucks and two steam shovels were needed to excavate about 150,000 tons of earth to lay the foundation for the store. A total of 151 concrete pillars were driven by hand down 52 feet to the bedrock to support the building. Two million feet of lumber, 100,000 tons of concrete, and 125,000 cubic feet of Tyndall limestone were used in the building’s construction. At the time it was the largest reinforced concrete building in Canada spanning about 15 acres of floor space.
The modern structure utilized three massive coal-powered boilers in a power plant located 45 feet below street level to provide steam heat and hot water. Steam was diverted to turbines to generate electricity for lighting and elevators in the store. Three air conditioning units processed over 68,000 cubic feet of air per minute each. More than 32 km of pipes and 8,000 sprinkler heads provided fire protection. A 600 foot deep well, the deepest in Canada, was used for air conditioning and water for toilets. Gigantic refrigeration rooms held food for public sale as well as for in-store restaurants. The largest fur storage in Westin Canada housed 12,000 garments.
Twelve elevators were installed in two banks of six each facing each other in a concave arrangement with lobbies decrorated with immense murals depicting the early history of the Hudson’s Bay Company. Escalators were eventually installed in the store and some elevators and murals were eventually removed.
The store featured a wide range of services including a beauty parlour, public telephones, a post office, and a library. Later additions included an auditorium with its own orchestra and in 1930, the first of a series of aerial navigation beacons installed in western Canada. Previous in-store restaurants included the Jolly Canuck café in the basement, the Georgian Room, which opened in August of 1926 and the popular Paddlewheel, which opened in 1954 and was closed in January of 2013.
INSIDE THE WINNIPEG HUDSON’S BAY STORE IN 1926. PHOTO: HBC ARCHIVES
The first liquor outlet in a department store opened on the store’s mezzanine in 1971 and in 1975, a CIBC branch opened where it remained until 1978.
A $4 million renovation between 1986 and 1987 saw updates to the main, second and third floors. An additional $200,000 was invested to update the sixth floor and $700,000 for the basement and fourth floor. The basement was converted to a 67,000 square foot Zellers store (then owned by Hudson’s Bay) which shut in March of 2013.
The Winnipeg Hudson’s Bay store was the company’s flagship between 1926 and 1974. Technically the headquarters of Hudson’s Bay was in London UK until 1970. In 1974, the company shifted the flagship status to a new 340,000 square foot Bay store at the northeast corner of Yonge and Bloor Streets. The 935,000 square foot Simpson’s building in downtown Toronto replaced the Bloor Street store as the company’s flagship in 1991 — prior to that, the Winnipeg store was the largest in the chain.
The downtown Winnipeg Hudson’s Bay store was one of the company’s original downtown flagships. Other downtown Bay flagships in the early 1900s included the 650,000 square foot Vancouver Hudson’s Bay store which was built in phases beginning in 1893, the 500,000 square foot downtown Calgary Hudson’s Bay store which was built in phases starting in 1891, and the downtown Edmonton store (no longer occupied by Hudson’s Bay) which spanned 470,000 square feet and was finished in 1939. Smaller downtown stores were also located in Victoria, Regina and Saskatoon. Hudson’s Bay acquired Montreal-based Morgan’s in 1968 and converted the 655,000 square foot Montreal flagship store to the Bay banner in 1972. The large Freiman’s store in Ottawa was converted to the Bay in 1973, and the Simpson’s store on Queen Street in Toronto was converted to the Hudson’s Bay’s flagship in 1991.
INSIDE THE WINNIPEG HUDSON’S BAY STORE IN 2017. IMAGE VIA GOOGLE MAPSA RECENT PHOTO OF THE STORE’S ELEVATORS AND MURALS VIA GOOGLE IMAGES
In decades past, the Winnipeg store was profitable and was one of three department stores in Winnipeg’s downtown core. Remarkably, the store once even had luxury brands. A newspaper article from 1973 noted that a Givenchy Nouvelle boutique was being added to ‘The Mirror Room’ department of the Winnipeg Hudson’s Bay as well as to Bay flagships in Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal and in 1974, in the new downtown Toronto store on Bloor Street.
Despite recent developments, downtown Winnipeg has been on the decline for years from a retail perspective. Eaton’s once operated an 885,000 square foot store nearby (demolished in 2003 and replaced by a stadium), while Holt Renfrew operated a 40,000 square foot store on Portage Avenue which relocated within the Portage Place shopping complex in 1987. Eaton’s shuttered the massive Winnipeg store in 1999 and Holt Renfrew exited Winnipeg in 2013.
The suburbanization of Winnipeg is partly to blame for the demise of the Hudson’s Bay store. The CF Polo Park shopping centre, located about 3.5 km west of the downtown Bay store, is one of the most productive malls in Canada in terms of annual sales per square foot. It also has free and ample parking. The CF Polo Park Hudson’s Bay store, which opened in the mall in 2003, is one of the company’s top performers. Hudson’s Bay also operates a store at the St. Vital Centre in Winnipeg and the retailer also once had a store at the suburban Kildonan Place which opened in 1980 as well as the former Unicity Mall which opened in 1975 and shuttered in 2000.
INSIDE THE WINNIPEG HUDSON’S BAY STORE IN 2018. IMAGE VIA GOOGLE MAPSEXTERIOR OF THE WINNIPEG HUDSON’S BAY STORE IN 2019. WITH THE MANITOBA LEGISLATURE IN THE BACKGROUND. IMAGE VIA GOOGLE MAPS
Parking and a perceived lack of safety are said to be blamed for challenges downtown. At the same time, downtown Winnipeg is seeing positive growth including the addition of the True North Square project which includes a food hall and gourmet grocery store.
Nevertheless, Winnipeg joins Edmonton as the second major city in Canada to have no downtown department stores. The 168,000 square foot downtown Edmonton Hudson’s Bay store, located in the Edmonton Centre shopping complex, will be closing soon as was announced several months ago.
It’s likely that the heritage-protected Hudson’s Bay building will sit vacant for years, creating a blight in downtown Winnipeg. This became an issue in Vancouver when the 700,000 square foot downtown Woodward’s store shut in 1993. The building became home to squatters until it was demolished for a redevelopment in 2006.
Montreal-based La Presse reported last month that the downtown Montreal Hudson’s Bay store is for sale and that its retail space could be reduced to just 250,000 square feet on three levels, with the remaining 400,000 square feet being repurposed into office space with a proposed 300-foot tower also potentially part of the plans. The downtown Vancouver Bay flagship store is also said to be for sale again. Hudson’s Bay is also said to be looking to convert departments to a concession model to be run by other providers.
We’ll follow up on this story when the Winnipeg store closes next February.
