The following is a list of 33 retailers which are either new to Canada, or expanding their operations nationally. Although some of these retailers have recently been discussed in Retail Insider, many are new and haven’t been mentioned until now.
The list is sponsored by Vancouver-based Peregrine, which custom designs and fabricates retail, display, furniture and architectural features for some of the country’s top retailers.
| STORE NAME | LOCATIONS TO OPEN IN CANADA | NEW OR EXPANDING? | ESTIMATED # OF LOCATIONS POST-EXPANSION |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aesop | Montreal (2), Toronto, Vancouver (2nd locations in each) | New, now expanding | 6+ |
| Abercrombie & Fitch | Vancouver (Pacific Centre, opening soon) | Expanding | 5 |
| Ashley Furniture HomeStore | Alberta, Ontario (about 16 locations in total) | Expanding | Unknown |
| Bass Pro Shops | Dieppe (Moncton) NB (fall 2015), Tsawwassen BC (spring 2016) | Expanding | 5+ |
| Breitling | Toronto (Bloor Street East, details TBD) | New | Unknown |
| Brunello Cucinelli | Vancouver (Fall 2015/Winter 2016), Toronto site search ongoing | New | 2+ |
| Cabela’s | Abbotsford BC (fall 2016), Calgary (fall 2015), Moncton NB (May 28, 2015), Ottawa (Spring 2016) | Expanding | 11+ |
| Choices Market | Abbotsford BC | Expanding | 10+ |
| Christian Dior | Toronto (details TBA), Vancouver (now open) | New/Expanding | 2+ |
| De Beers | Toronto (fall 2015) | Expanding | 2+ |
| Detox Market, The | Toronto (2nd location now open) | Expanding | 2+ |
| Dollarama | Canada-wide (another ~450 locations) | Expanding | 1,400+ |
| Dollar Tree | Canada-wide (another ~700-750 locations) | Expanding | 1,000+ |
| DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse | Sherwood Park AB, Victoria BC, Moncton NB, Barrie ON, Toronto, London ON (all fall 2015) | Expanding | 40-50 |
| F21 Red by Forever 21 | Ottawa (Place d’Orleans), Windsor ON (Devonshire Mall) both fall 2015. National location search continues. | New | Unknown |
| Gerry Weber | Calgary (Chinook Centre), Western Canadian store search ongoing, 8 GTA locations now open, as are 4 franchised stores nationally. | Expanding | 15+ |
| Gulf (Gas Stations) | Nationwide | New | 100+ |
| Indochino | Vancouver (Yaletown, replacing Water St. flagship), possibly Calgary, Ottawa, 2nd Toronto location | Expanding | Unknown |
| iStore | Edmonton (West Edmonton Mall), Toronto (Scarborough Town Centre) – both opening this fall, more locations to follow. | Expanding | Unknown |
| Jaeger Le-Coultre | Toronto (Yorkdale Shopping Centre, opening soon), Vancouver (1012 Alberni St., fall 2015) | New | 2+ |
| Judith & Charles | Toronto: Yorkville Village (formerly Hazelton Lanes), Sherway Gardens – both fall 2015 | Expanding | Unknown |
| Kate Spade | Calgary (Chinook Centre, fall 2015) | Expanding | 7+ |
| La Maison Simons | Gatineau QC (August, 2015), West Vancouver BC (Park Royal, October 2015), Mississauga ON (Square One, March 2016), Ottawa (Rideau Centre, August 2016), Calgary (CORE, 2017) Edmonton (Londonderry Mall, 2017), Toronto, ON (Scarborough Town Centre 2018, Yorkdale Shopping Centre 2019), Richmond BC (date TBA), potentially Winnipeg, Saskatchewan & Halifax locations, according to CEO. | Expanding | 25-30 |
| Longo’s | Toronto (Imperial Plaza, St. Clair Avenue) | Expanding | 28+ |
| MEC | Kelowna BC (spring 2016), Toronto (North York, summer 2016), Toronto (replacement location, Queen Street West, fall 2017) | Expanding | 19+ |
| Microsoft Store | Vancouver (Pacific Centre, August 6 2015) | Expanding | 7+ |
| Moncler | Vancouver (748 Thurlow Street, opening fall 2015) | Expanding | 2+ |
| Neal’s Yard Remedies | Calgary (Southcentre, November 2015), possibly Toronto, Vancouver, and 3rd Calgary store | Expanding | 10+ |
| Prada | Vancouver (1098 Alberni St., early 2016), Toronto Bloor St. W. Expansion (early 2016), Mississauga ON (Square One, concession, spring 2016) | Expanding | 8+ |
| Rudsak | Calgary (Market Mall, fall 2015), Ontario, Quebec. Ultimately looking to open a further 20-25 locations nationwide. | Expanding | 50+ |
| RYU | Vancouver (September, 2015), Toronto (2016) | New | Unknown |
| Save-on-Foods (Overwaitea Group) | Saskatchewan, Manitoba | Expanding | ~40 |
| THECloset YVR (theclosetyvr.com) | Vancouver (360 Carrall Street in Gastown, August 22, 2015) | New | Unknown |
Some additional expansions to consider are expansion of Lowe’s Canada’s 13 stores, Walmart 29 Superstore expansions, and Mark’s 5-10 stores each year.
We’ve only listed 33 above – there are literally hundreds of retailers expanding at the moment, including the ones you’ve mentioned. These lists are by no means comprehensive and as Stephen mentioned below, Giant Tiger is expanding as well.
What About Giant Tiger?
One of the strongest Canadian omni-channel Footwear retailers SoftMoc is continuing a steady expansion into almost every major shopping destination in Canada. SoftMoc and SoftMoc ShoeRack locations can be found in every province, with most major cities seeing multiple locations within primer Shopping Centers. SoftMoc’s National offering is nicely rounded off by one of the best online sites SoftMoc.com.
Marshal’s in Ottawa?
I would love to know why retailers continue to open stores in London before larger urban centers like KW?