Upscale German women’s fashion brand Marc Cain has launched a Canadian e-commerce website as part of its expansion in the country, and the retailer is also relocating its physical storefront at West Edmonton Mall.
The new Canadian e-commerce site uses geo-tagging to direct local shoppers to the Canadian website according to Stephen Belfer, Managing Director for Marc Cain in North America. The website includes Canadian pricing and content, and product orders are fulfilled from a Canadian distribution centre. Belfer noted that items on the website are currently in stock and that new product is regularly updated on the website.
At press time, the Marc Cain website featured a buzzy red theme with female models of a range of ages and backgrounds. Tabs on the website include ‘New Arrivals’ and ‘Shop’ where consumers can find the latest styles from the brand. The tab marked ‘Inspiration’ includes a range of specials as well as a celebration of diversity and a ‘Premium Knit’ capsule collection. There’s also a Marc Cain magazine with content celebrating women as part of a push for the brand. The website is in both English and French.
The website comes at a time when consumers are increasingly shopping online. At the same time, following pandemic lockdowns, consumers are also shopping in physical stores similar to what was seen prior to the pandemic. With that, Marc Cain operates a network of standalone stores in Canada while also maintaining wholesale accounts at several dozen multi-brand retailers.
One of Marc Cain’s Canadian stores is at West Edmonton Mall — until recently the store was housed in a space near Tiffany & Co. across from H&M. The store will be relocating near Harry Rosen in Phase I of the mall according to Belfer with an opening date set for early next month.
Marc Cain’s first Canadian corporate stores opened in October of 2015. That included locations at CF Carrefour Laval near Montreal, Place Ste-Foy in Quebec City and CF Chinook Center in Calgary. In 2016 locations in Toronto opened at CF Toronto Eaton Centre and at Square One in Mississauga. Stores subsequently opened at CF Pacific Centre in Vancouver and at CF Rideau Centre in Ottawa.
Luc Lavigne of Oberfeld Snowcap handles real estate for Marc Cain in Canada and negotiates leases/renewals on behalf of the retailer.
Belfer said that future Marc Cain stores could open in two highly anticipated developments in Canada if leases are negotiated. One potential location is Royalmount in Montreal although nothing is confirmed as of yet. And in 2017, Marc Cain opened a successful store at Oakridge Centre in Vancouver and it could return following the centre’s complete redevelopment that will be completed in 2024.
In the United States, Belfer noted that Marc Cain recently opened two stores in New Jersey, including in Cherry Hills and Short Hills. The brand also has a store at The Westchester in affluent White Plains, north of New York City.
