New York City-based lifestyle retailer Kith is preparing to open its first Canadian store at 78 Yorkville Avenue in Toronto on Friday of this week. The stunning retail space took months to build, and features two foodservice businesses as well as an expansive range of fashions for adults and kids.
The popular youthful retailer, founded in 2011 by Ronnie Fieg, began as a footwear retailer and later expanded to streetwear and other fashions. Kith has a handful of stores globally with Toronto now being among them.
The approximately 10,000 square foot Toronto storefront spans two levels, in a retail space that most recently housed an Anthropologie store. And while the Kith store technically opens on Friday, it’s already been merchandised with photos supplied in this article.
Included in the new Toronto store is Kith’s own in-house branded products, as well as a range of other brands of ready-to-wear apparel, accessories, and footwear for men, women, and kids. Part of Kith’s business model includes limited edition product drops, which creates a perception of scarcity and will lead to occasional lineups outside of the new store.
First Capital REIT owns the retail space where Kith is located in Toronto. Eric Sherman, Head of National Operations at First Capital, said, “We are thrilled to welcome Kith into our world class portfolio in Yorkville. This is a brand we have been coveting and working with for several years and it is super exciting to finally bring the concept to life in Canada in such an impactful way. We’ve worked with a lot of amazing and unique concepts, but I can assure you, this one is special!”
Michael Yadgard of brokerage Compass represented Kith in the lease deal with First Capital REIT.
Kith’s founder/CEO/Creative Director Ronnie Fieg designed the space in collaboration with design-build firm SAJO, which has built numerous luxury brand stores in Canada as well as globally.
The design of the new Toronto Kith store is described as being “clean and modern” with ample use of Venetian plaster, Alba Chiara, and Verias Green Marble. White, blue and brown are the primary colours used in the interior, with greenery placed throughout the store. Change rooms and elevators are covered with vegan leather wallpaper featuring the Kith Classic logo. The south-facing retail space will be flooded with sunlight on sunny days, creating a dramatic space showcasing product within.
The main floor of the store houses men’s and women’s apparel and accessories. The second floor features an expansive footwear department and kid’s apparel. Also included on the second floor are kitchen facilities and dining areas for two foodservice businesses — a Kith Treats cereal ice cream bar and Sadelle’s restaurant, featuring views over Yorkville Avenue.
Kith Treats was founded in 2015 and can be found in Kith’s large standalone stores globally. The Sadelle’s restaurant will feature all-day dining offerings of bagels, sliced-to-order salmon, chopped salads, French toast and more. The only other Kith stores to feature Sadelle’s are the locations at the Miami Design District in Miami, and in Paris. Other standalone Sadelle’s locations can be found in New York City, Las Vegas, Coconut Grove, Dallas, Boca Raton, and Riyadh Saudi Arabia. Pricing will be in line with what one might expect from a new restaurant in Yorkville.
To mark the Toronto opening, Kith worked with footwear brand New Balance to reinterpret the 1700 silhouette, with two new colorways inspired by the city. Each colorway features a premium pigskin leather upper with a padded collar seen on the interior. The Roccoco Red colorway will be available Friday, September 22 exclusively at the Kith Toronto flagship, and on Monday, Kith will launch a limited number of the Rococco Red colorway styles on Kith.com, EU.Kith.com, and CA.Kith.com. On Monday September 25, the Marshmallow colorway style will be available at all Kith stores, Kith.com, EU.Kith.com & CA.Kith.com.
Hours for the Toronto Kith store will be Monday to Saturday 11am-8pm, and Sundays 11am-7pm.
Kith is expected to drive more foot traffic into Toronto’s Bloor-Yorkville area, which has seen a flurry of construction activity including the building of new stores. Kith will join other retailers in the area focusing on youth culture and streetwear including CNTRBND, which operates two retail spaces on Yorkville Avenue and Bellair Street. Yorkville Avenue is also home to luxury brands including Chanel, Balenciaga, Versace, Stone Island, Brunello Cucinelli, Christian Louboutin and others, while nearby Bloor Street is home to flagships for brands such as Louis Vuitton, Tiffany & Co., Dior, Prada, Gucci and others, with more on the way.
Kith operates 12 other standalone stores globally in the New York City area (four locations), Los Angeles area (two locations), Miami area (two locations) and in Honolulu, Aspen, Paris and Tokyo. The retailer also operates concessions at Bergdorf Goodman in New York City, Hirshleifers in Manhasset New York, and at Selfridges in London.
