Iconic luxury brand Canada Goose has finalized a deal for its new Canadian headquarters, leasing 115,000 square feet over four floors at Menkes Developments’ 100 Queens Quay East in Toronto, according to real estate firm CBRE, which represented the building owner in the transaction.
Brendan Sullivan, Senior Vice President with CBRE and based in Toronto, said it’s one of the biggest office transactions Toronto has seen since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and it’s a huge vote of confidence in the future of office.
“Many landlords would like to have Canada Goose as part of their project. So we’re thrilled to welcome them to the new centre of gravity that Menkes is helping create along the Toronto waterfront,” he said.
“It’s a very significant signal to the market that there are organizations that are prioritizing great spaces for their employees in great communities that are amenity rich, that are focused on health and wellbeing. And that those opportunities are valued by the businesses across the country. A transaction like this is a signal of those values.”
In an email, a Canada Goose spokesperson said: “We have nothing to share at this time.”
Canada Goose will be shifting its office operations to the waterfront from the company’s existing location at its manufacturing facility near Caledonia Road and Eglinton Avenue north of Toronto. The offices at its factory will be converted to create additional manufacturing space, said CBRE.
The waterfront project is part of a larger mixed-use development called Sugar Wharf.
“It’s one of the largest developments in the history of the country. It is a city-shaping development. It is part of a larger community development on Toronto’s eastern waterfront called the East Bayfront. The East Bayfront would be considered the next great community in Toronto, being built really anew and from the ground up along the waterfront, along what many consider to be historically an under-utitlized waterfront,” explained Sullivan.
Sullivan said he and his team pursued Canada Goose with “gusto”, recognizing the importance of having a “nationally synonymous brand” become part of the innovation corridor Menkes is establishing in East Bayfront with 100 Queens Quay East and the Waterfront Innovation Centre at 125 Queens Quay East.
“It was a hand in glove fit between their brand and this development,” he said.
In addition to being among the biggest office leases inked in recent years, the Canada Goose deal is significant in that it represents a shift where larger users are making meaningful real estate decisions for the first time since the pandemic, added Sullivan.
“It signals an underlying confidence in the market and in the return to office,” he said.
Canada Goose will share rooftop signage at 100 Queens Quay East with LCBO, the anchor tenant.
“We needed to create the environment where the brand became visible and connected to the community,” said Sullivan.
The tenants at the two Menkes waterfront projects are:
100 Queens Quay East: LCBO, Canada Goose, Richardson Wealth, Toronto Region Board of Trade, Align Technology, NOKIA; and
Waterfront Innovation Centre: WPP, theScore, Gilbert’s LLP, MaRS.
“All of those companies, further with Canada Goose, have ingrained themselves into the fabric of this new community which is rising up along the waterfront,” said Sullivan.
“To have a brand like Canada Goose as part of this development is really critical for us in delivering this community to the city and to the country . . . We want the brands to connect to this community and there is great value in what Canada Goose represents for our country as a Canadian company and being able to have their brand so attached to this project is very important for it and for the community. The alignment for what Canada Goose represents was clearly aligned with what this project and this community represents as Canadians.”
Brian Porter, a Vice President with CBRE, noted that the Canada Goose deal is another example of flight to quality in the Toronto office market, with tenants looking for spaces in state of the art, amenity-rich buildings in top locations.
“And in this case, we’re talking about Toronto’s first true offices on the waterfront, which gives Canada Goose and all the other companies located here a clear advantage when it comes to enticing employees to join their organizations,” he said.
The Canada Goose deal brings 100 Queens Quay East to 92 per cent leased, with 50,000 square feet of inventory remaining. Waterfront Innovation Centre, directly across the street, has just under 40,000 square feet of space available for lease.
In a news release, Menkes said Canada Goose will occupy four floors within the 25-storey landmark building on Toronto’s waterfront and it is expected to move into its new home in 2023.
“This lease signals the continued flight to quality of leading companies to the best buildings,” said Peter Menkes, President, Commercial/Industrial. “The addition of Canada Goose to the building supports our strategy to attract premier tenants to the waterfront and reflects our positive outlook for the future of modern office space.”
Personally, Canada Goose moving to Sugar Warf in downtown Toronto, is a sure sign of arrogance and a total waste of shareholder funds. This move amazes so many of us!