The Royalmount development in Montreal has announced a roster of new retail tenants as the project prepares to open to the public in the summer of 2024. Included is a mix of luxury brands, global and national brands as well as foodservice and other attractions. About half of the brands and retail concepts at Royalmount will be new to Quebec.
New luxury brands announced to open at Royalmount include Saint Laurent, Versace, Jimmy Choo, David Yurman and TAG Heuer — all of which will be the first standalone locations for the Montreal market.
Saint Laurent will occupy a corner location along a luxury-focused corridor at Royalmount in a 6,000 square foot retail space — neighbours will include previously announced luxury brands Louis Vuitton, Tiffany & Co. and Gucci, all of which will open large-format flagship concepts nearby. It will be the first standalone corporate Saint Laurent store to open in Montreal, joining locations in Vancouver and Toronto.
Versace and Jimmy Choo, both owned by Capri Holdings Ltd., will open further up Royalmount’s luxury corridor — Versace is expected to span more than 2,800 square feet while Jimmy Choo will be about 1,900 square feet. Capri’s Michael Kors brand is another confirmed upscale tenant for Royalmount and that store, which will include the pricier Michael Kors Collection, will be located in another part of the shopping centre.
American luxury jewellery brand David Yurman will open its largest store in Canada in a space spanning more than 2,800 square feet in Royalmount’s luxury corridor. Currently the only standalone David Yurman store in Canada is at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre, and the brand also has concessions at Holt Renfrew in Vancouver and in downtown Toronto.
Watch brand TAG Heuer’s Royalmount location will feature a curved facade in a space spanning nearly 700 square feet, and will be the second standalone location for the brand in Canada — a location opened at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre in 2019. TAG Heuger’s Montreal store design will pay tribute to the history of racing in the city with the Montreal Grand Prix set to take place later this week.
Several Montreal-based brands are now confirmed to be opening stores at Royalmount next year. They include Acuité Visuelle, Aldo, Arc’teryx, Bikini Village, Browns Shoes, Dynamite, Garage, Influenceu, Judith & Charles, La Canadienne, La Vie en Rose, Mackage, Moose Knuckles and Rudsak. Browns Shoes will span more than 5,000 square feet, Moose Knuckle will span more than 3,800 square feet and Garage, owned by Carbonleo CEO Andrew Lutfy, will open a store of about 3,500 square feet.
Royalmount is being developed by Montreal-based landlord Carbonleo, with funding partly provided by LVMH-associated L Catterton. The mixed-use $7 billion Royalmount will include retail tenants, restaurants, entertainment and offices which will surround a central park. The first phase will include an 824,000 square foot two-level retail and lifestyle complex. Royalmount will be the first 100% carbon-neutral mixed-use development in the Americas and the largest LEED Gold retail project in Canada. Previously announced components include Cineplex which will bring premium cinemas and The Rec Room, upscale home retailer RH, and innovative beauty hall concept Rennaï which will subsequently expand globally.
Carbonleo CEO Andrew Lutfy spoke to Retail Insider about the project. He said that he expects the Royalmount’s retail component to open on time and that his team has been using Scrum as an agile methodology to meet design and construction objectives. That includes regular meetings with key players to ensure that Royalmount’s progress is on track.
Royalmount will launch an app according to Lutfy, which will include rewards and aim to create loyalty and repeat visits. Parking will involve a ‘smart system’ that will also be tied into the app.
Customer service will be paramount to Royalmount he said, including a concierge service, click-and-collect, and package assistance.
The tenant mix will be primarily direct-to-consumer brands according to Lutfy, as opposed to housing multi-brand retailers. He said that he expects the standalone brand stores to have exceptional productivity per square foot, while at the same time many multi-brand retailers are struggling — Royalmount will be noticeably absent of any department store tenants as a result. Original plans had included one or two department stores and plans have since been modified as direct-to-consumer brands are projected to see strong sales growth globally with their own standalone stores.
Food and beverage will be important to Royalmount he said as well, including a mix of full-service sit-down restaurants and a yet-to-be-named food hall that will become an attraction on its own. Lutfy said that consumer spending as a percentage of food purchases at restaurants has grown significantly in recent years and that the trend is expected to continue. At Royalmount, about 80% of the restaurants will boast a west exposure, providing ample sunlight and evening sunsets.
Lutfy went on to explain the importance of sustainability to the project. This week a pedestrian bridge began construction to connect Royalmount to the nearby De la Savane subway station. About a third of shoppers are expected to arrive at Royalmount via public transportation he said, noting that Montreal’s Metro system runs on hydro-powered electricity.
Next year’s opening of Royalmount will be only about 10% of the entire project according to Lutfy, who noted that the multi-phase development will take years to complete. Residential towers and other commercial offerings will eventually become part of the mix.
The first phase of the project has been under construction since before the pandemic. In the spring of 2019 Retail Insider attended the ground-breaking of Royalmount which at the time was a former industrial site with construction equipment ready to dig.
Carbonleo is a privately owned, Quebec-based real estate development and management company. Founded in 2012, the company has more than 170 employees and counts several major projects to its credit, including Quartier DIX30 and the Four Seasons Montreal Hotel and Private Residences.
We’ll follow up on this story as more announcements are made ahead of Royalmount’s summer 2024 opening.
