Alo Yoga to Enter New Markets and Open Several More Stores in Canada

Los Angeles-based Alo Yoga will be opening more stores in Canada this year after entering the country with two stores in Toronto. The Toronto market will soon become home to four Alo Yoga locations while cities such as Edmonton and Calgary are up next for stores as well. 

Construction is now underway for a new Alo Yoga store at CF Toronto Eaton Centre in Toronto in a 6,100 square foot retail space recently vacated by Victoria’s Secret Pink. The store will be located on Level 2 of the shopping centre in a strategic location that has exposure from other levels in the mall. Remarkably, Alo Yoga will be located directly below competitor Lululemon, as per the photos below. A source with the company told Retail Insider that a location at CF Sherway Gardens is also on the way for later this year.

Sources in the know told Retail Insider that Alo Yoga will open a 6,100 square foot store at West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton. It will replace three smaller retailers next to Canada Goose. The retailers that Alo Yoga will replace include Untuckit, Call it Spring and AB Co. The three tenants in the units it’s replacing are all being relocated within the mall.

In Calgary, Alo Yoga is hiring for positions for a store at CF Chinook Centre. It’s not yet known where in the mall it will be located, and there are a handful of options in terms of guesses.

Given the extensiveness of the expansion, it’s expected that Alo Yoga will look to open at least one larger store in the Vancouver market if not more, and brokers have said that downtown Montreal is also a target for Alo Yoga on Ste-Catherine Street West. It’s not known if larger cities such as Ottawa might be in line for an Alo Yoga location and if it were the case, CF Rideau Centre would be a best guess given where other stores are opening in Canadian urban centres.

Alo Yoga will particularly compete with Vancouver-based Lululemon which has gained significant market share for athleisure in Canada with almost 70 stores. Both brands are known for quality and offer similarly-priced goods. The West Edmonton Mall Lululemon store is among the top in the chain and it could see a hit to sales if consumers find favour with Alo Yoga. 

In an exclusive article in WWD early last year, Alo co-founder and CEO Danny Harris said that the company is looking to open about a “half a dozen” more stores including Toronto. That expansion appears to be more rapid now given how many locations appear to be opening in Canada alone. 

As well, early on Alo Yoga chose street-front locations for its stores in the United States, though that strategy has clearly grown to include a significant presence in enclosed shopping centres. Canada is expected to have at least five Alo Yoga locations by the end of the year and all but one will be in major malls.  

Alo Yoga was founded in Los Angeles in 2007 by entrepreneurs Danny Harris and Marco Degeorge who continue to own and bankroll the business. The company says that it makes “the most technologically advanced yoga clothing in the world” with a “studio-to-street” ethos. Home workouts are possible with Alo Moves, an at-home fitness concept with a $30 monthly membership for unlimited yoga, fitness and meditation.

Related Retail Insider Articles

• Alo Yoga Looks to Grab Market Share from Lululemon as it Opens 1st Canadian Store with Plans for National Expansion

Last Days of Victoria’s Secret Pink at CF Toronto Eaton Centre