Birks Jewellers Unveils 2 Major Store Renovations in Downtown Calgary [Photos]

Montreal-based multi-brand jeweller Maison Birks has renovated two of its stores in downtown Calgary. That includes a large Birks store at The CORE as well as the Brinkhaus store located in a historic house nearby.

Maison Birks at The CORE

Renovations to the 5,465 square foot Birks store at The CORE shopping centre were completed over the summer. The space was designed by Aedifica and incorporates elements inspired by the Montreal and Toronto Maison Birks flagship stores which both have seen full renovations in recent years.

Brands carried at the store include Rolex, Breitling, Longines, Marco Bicego, Montblanc, Roberto Coin, TAG Heuer, Tudor, and Wolf. The recent renovations unveiled a new design concept for the store’s Rolex shop-in-shop which measures 1,210 square feet.

The CORE Birks store is the first location for the retailer to unveil an in-store Bijoux Birks shop-in-shop carrying Birks Group’s own extensive Bijoux Birks bridal and fine jewellery collections. The shop-in-shop spans about 1,500 square feet.

A new bridal bar in the store allows for interactive engagement ring and wedding band shopping, allowing for family and friends to join the couple. The bridal bar concept was first introduced to the Yorkdale Birks store in 2016. A pop-up section at the front of the store called the ‘Labo’ offers those walking past the store a glimpse of Birks’ latest collections.

As recently as the 1990s, the CORE Birks store spanned two levels with a curving staircase — Birks stores are now for the most part smaller than in decades past.

Brinkhaus

The Brinkhaus store located at 823 6 Ave SW also saw an overhaul that was revealed last week. Led by Optima Design, the three-story historical building that was once a house now features floating showcases, textured wood walls, and gold accents. The store features an expanded fine jewellery and Patek Philippe area.

The 1,950 square foot Brinkhaus store has existed in Calgary for 70 years. A Vancouver location on West Georgia Street near Burrard opened about a decade ago and in 2018, it was converted to retail spaces for Graff and Patek Philippe.

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Birks is said to be conceptualizing renovations to its downtown Vancouver flagship store located at the northeast corner of Granville and Hastings Streets. The store is contained in an historic bank building. It’s the last of the retailer’s three downtown flagships to see overhauls after the Bloor Street store in Toronto and Ste-Catherine Street flagship in Montreal saw significant upgrades as profiled in Retail Insider.

Jeff Berkowitz of Aurora Realty Consultants represents Birks in Canada in terms of real estate.

Birks Group operates 26 stores under the Maison Birks brand across Canada as well Brinkhaus in Calgary and the Graff and Patek Philippe storefronts downtown Vancouver. Bijoux Birks fine jewellery collections are also available through Mappin & Webb and Goldsmiths locations in the United Kingdom in addition to several jewellery retailers across North America. Saks Fifth Avenue features several shop-in-stores for Bijoux Birks including a new one at the CF Toronto Eaton Centre in downtown Toronto. Birks was founded in Montreal in 1879.