Hudson’s Bay continues to add pricey brands as it becomes more upscale, with some labels formerly only available at Holt Renfrew. Brands have recently been added to the store’s accessories, footwear and men’s and women’s ready-to-wear departments, competing directly with similar selections at Nordstrom, Holt’s, and other upscale retailers.
Various Hudson’s Bay stores across Canada have recently added shops for Kate Spade and Marc by Marc Jacobs accessories, joining an ever increasingly upscale selection of leathergoods. Pricey footwear brands such as Sophia Webster, Melissa by Vivienne Westwood, Hugo Boss, Loeffler Randall, Diane von Furstenberg, and Ron White have been added to several Hudson’s Bay locations. Hudson’s Bay’s best flagships now carry men’s and women’s fashion collections such as The Kooples, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Vince and Theory — all of which are also carried at Holt Renfrew locations across Canada. Furthermore, Nordstrom’s Canadian stores will also carry many of these brands, as evidenced by the brand mix at its new Calgary location.
In the late 1990’s, Holt Renfrew became the exclusive Canadian distributor for Kate Spade bags and accessories. Until recently, Kate Spade handbags were only available at Holt Renfrew and at Kate Spade’s free-standing Canadian stores, the first of which opened in the fall of 2012 at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre. In September, several Hudson’s Bay stores saw the introduction of purpose-built Kate Spade ‘soft shops’, profiling the brand’s expanded accessories collection.
Until recently, as well, Marc by Marc Jacobs‘ Canadian distribution was primarily through Holt Renfrew. Last month, the popular designer/blogger Beckerman Sisters launched the Marc by Marc Jacobs’ line at Hudson’s Bay, making personal appearances at its flagship Toronto and Vancouver stores. Several Hudson’s Bay stores now feature purpose-built Marc by Marc Jacobs soft-shops, carrying a variety of the brand’s upscale accessories. Hudson’s Bay flagships in Toronto and Vancouver also carry the Marc line of men’s and women’s ready-to-wear fashion, while a handful of locations also carry the brand’s footwear.
Popular French brand The Kooples was recently introduced to Hudson’s Bay flagships. At the same time, four Kooples concessions opened this month at Holt Renfrew’s Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver locations. It’s interesting to see that both Hudson’s Bay and Holt Renfrew now carry upscale collections by Vince, Theory, McQ by Alexander McQueen, Hugo Boss, Eileen Fisher, Helmut Lang, Opening Ceremony, and others. Surprisingly, Hudson’s Bay managed to secure concession rights to popular and pricey French brands Sandro and Maje, and we’re told that these brands are doing so well that they’re considering opening free-standing Canadian stores.
Hudson’s Bay’s move towards becoming more upscale took off in 2008 when then-President Bonnie Brooks added about 250 new brands to the retail chain, after dropping about 800 underperforming labels. In late 2009, the 22,000 square foot luxury women’s department ‘The Room‘ was added to its Toronto flagship, featuring top international clothing and accessories brands priced into the thousands. A 20,000 square foot Vancouver ‘Room’ location opened about two years later. Various Hudson’s Bay’s accessory departments also saw upscale designers added, including the likes of Botkier, Love Moschino, Furla, Z Spoke Zac Posen, Halson Heritage and the inclusion of several Coach shops-in-stores. The world’s second-largest Coach shop-in-store was located within Vancouver’s flagship Hudson’s Bay, though its 3,200 square foot space was recently reduced to house the new Marc by Marc Jacobs shop.
Hudson’s Bay may continue to add more top brands, now that its parent company owns American luxury retailer Saks Fifth Avenue. Saks has strong relationships with some of the world’s top brands, possibly giving Hudson’s Bay access to some Saks labels. At the same time, with Saks Fifth Avenue’s intention to open as many as eight Canadian stores, it remains to be seen if their parent company will continue to position Hudson’s Bay as more upscale. If it does, Hudson’s Bay will see substantial competition from Nordstrom, which currently positions itself between Saks Fifth Avenue and Hudson’s Bay in terms of pricing. Nordstrom plans to open as many as 10 Canadian stores and could be fierce competition for Hudson’s Bay, especially as Nordstrom’s Canadian stores will feature fresh interiors and focus on superior customer service.
Do we really need more Kate Spade and Marc Jacobs???? Seriously. There are thousands of brand names to chose from!
Sean, I agree. Here in the states… Kate Spade and Marc Jacobs as a common as cold. They both can be bought (along with the ever dreadful brand Coach) at any Lord & Taylor, Dillard’s or Macy’s. To call them upscale or luxury is a bit of a stretch.
We’d consider these brands to be upscale, despite their wide distribution. We certainly wouldn’t refer to them as luxury brands, however.
We’ll follow up this article with one describing why Hudson’s Bay’s brand mix is now far superior to that of Macy’s. Macy’s recently eliminated many of the luxury designers that it carried in its top women’s departments, including its Oval Room at Macy’s in Minneapolis. Hudson’s Bay, conversely, carries various luxury brands in ‘The Room’, though its future is uncertain now that Saks will occupy much of the 3rd floor of Hudson’s Bay’s Toronto flagship.
I love the way they have curated "The Room" and the labels are very avant-garde. The events with famous fashionistas and fashion designers are dead on, I do hope they continue to create this vibe. They are very fashion forward and current what they are doing, it reminds me of New York and Toronto needs this badly. I think selling generic labels is over rated, it’s about the experience and feeling current with the times and exploring the future, not being stagnant I feel. They need to be different in order to succeed. I can’t wait to see what they will do with Saks in Canada.
LOL…Thanks!
Although Macy’s did omit the Oval Room in some of it’s locations, they did add luxury shops in some of their key locations. There is a Burberry, Louis Vuitton, and Gucci shop at their flagship Herald square location, which we will never see at Hudson Bay. There is nothing innovative about the room, and the service is terrible. A $6000 Jason Wu gown hanging on the floor is a real shame. I think they have a long way to go if they hope to compete with anyone. I feel your analyses on brand superiority is slightly off.
Besides the Manhattan and Chicago flagships, which Macy’s locations feature luxury shops, and luxury women’s ready-to-wear departments?
Roosevelt field….Can only confirm New York area stores… however that is a huge step up than Hudson Bay.
Does Roosevelt Field include designer womenswear? I’m aware that it’s got a Louis Vuitton shop, though that’s all I know of – I’ve never been to that Macy’s location. Vuitton is something that Hudson’s Bay certainly lacks.
Cashiers would actually be nice in stores. Vancouver locations especially suburban. No staff to be found anywhere.
Is there a menswear equivalent to "The Room" in Vancouver? The sixth floor renovations of the menswear floor of the downtown Vancouver Hudson’s Bay flagship is wonderful, but there could be a greater differentiation in the way they merchandise and show off their higher end fashion lines.
Hudson’s Bay’s men’s selection isn’t nearly as upscale as its womenswear department ‘The Room’. At the top end, Hudson’s Bay carries the likes of Strellson, Z Zegna, Surface-to-Air, Hugo Boss, Vince, Theory, and a few edgier, pricey designers in its Toronto Eaton Centre flagship. Though some collections have pieces priced in excess of $1,000 in Hudson’s Bay’s men’s department, nothing comes close to the pricing and luxury brand selection available for women in The Room.
For reference, top men’s brands in Vancouver’s Hudson’s Bay are located in the northwestern section of the store’s sixth floor, under and near the former Georgian Room skylight.