Indigo to Overhaul 6 Flagships, Open 4 American Girl Stores

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PHOTO: URBANTORONTO.CA

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Toronto-based book and gift retailer Indigo will renovate, expand and re-brand six key Chapters/Indigo locations, as well as open four American Girl doll shops-in-stores. Initiatives are scheduled to be completed by this fall. 

Each store will see its book assortment bolstered by thousands of additional titles, and additional retail space will be allocated to home décor, gift, paper, fashion, kids toys and gourmet. According to Indigo, Chapters locations at 2505 Granville Street in Vancouver, Edmonton’s West Edmonton Mall, Calgary Chinook Centre, and Calgary at 5005 Dalhousie Drive N.W., will be re-branded as Indigo. These locations, as well as Indigo flagships at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre and Toronto Eaton Centre, will see substantial renovations. Both the West Edmonton Mall and Chinook Centre locations will also see 5,500 square foot additions. 

American Girl shops-in-stores will open at Indigo’s renovated Granville Street, Toronto Eaton Centre, Chinook Centre, and West Edmonton Mall locations. Each American girl boutique will measure between 1,400 and 1,800 square feet. When finished, Indigo will house six American Girl shops – Yorkdale and Ottawa Rideau Centre Indigo locations already house American Girl boutiques. 

PHOTO: CRAIG PATTERSON

Started 25 years ago as a line of dolls and books depicting pre-teen girls in historical times, American Girl is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mattel. Contemporary dolls have since been added. Its dolls are expensive, retailing at $125 for larger ones and $90 for its ‘Bitty Baby’ line, marketed to younger children. Doll clothing, books and movies are also available, as well as an in-store doll hair salon. Doll hairstyling costs between $5 and $25, while doll ear piercing costs $14. 

“Given our strong performance in Canada, we’re excited to partner with Indigo to open additional specialty boutiques,” said Jean McKenzie, president of American Girl. “These new locations will help us celebrate even more girls, and we look forward to creating a fabulous new opportunity for area families to shop and experience American Girl.”

Founded in Toronto in 1996, Indigo employs over 6,500 people across Canada. Indigo is a public company, traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol IDG. The company operates about 90 superstores (averaging 24,000 square feet) under the banners Chapters and Indigo, as well as 130 small format stores under the banners Coles, Indigo, Indigospirit, SmithBooks, and The Book Company. The Company also operates indigo.ca, offering millions of products including books, eBooks, toys, stationery, home décor, gourmet confections, CDs, DVDs, and more.

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