Canadian shopping centre landlord Cadillac Fairview is launching a number of holiday activations across the country to attract shoppers to their properties and enhance customer experiences.
Craig Flannagan, VP, Marketing, Cadillac Fairview, said traffic in the company’s shopping centres has been steadily increasing with sales back to pre-pandemic levels.
“So that’s great. What we’re focused on right now is building experiences that are going to make people want to come to the mall and bring people together and feel that magic of the season. We know the importance that experience plays . . . and we’ve got great expectations for the season. We think it’s going to be great,” he said.
Cadillac Fairview is inviting customers to experience ‘CF Winterville’ at shopping centres across Canada this season.
To usher in the most wonderful time of the year, all 18 CF retail properties across the country will transform into their own “CF Winterville” destination, featuring iconic holiday décor, enchanting CF Music performances, beloved visits with Santa, and at select properties, festive tree lighting ceremonies, including the much-anticipated return of the 114-foot tall Christmas tree at CF Toronto Eaton Centre.
“Nothing brings people closer together during the holidays than the magic and wonder of traditions old and new, and we’re proud to offer a range of memorable experiences to make a visit to CF extra special this holiday season,” said Flannagan. “We’re focused on delivering unique and entertaining experiences and hope that guests feel inspired and delighted when they come to shop during this festive and busy time of the year.”
“We’re in the business of building experiences. Holidays are no different for us. We’re going to continue to build experiences that create and celebrate traditions and bring people together and engage and inspire. And for this holiday, it’s things like the return of our iconic decor. So we’ve got big, beautiful decor in every property across the country. We’ve got CF Music experiences. I’m not sure many people know but we’ve had hundreds of musical performances in CF properties this year and we’ll continue to have over a hundred different performances in our properties this holiday. So bringing music is such a big part of the experience.”
Tree lighting ceremonies will be happening at various properties across the country. The biggest one was at CF Toronto Eaton Centre on Wednesday, November 15th.
“Following a successful revitalization of the centre’s glass atrium ceiling, the iconic tree that has been a part of Toronto’s holiday celebrations since 2016 is back and even better than ever. To complement the tallest and most magical indoor tree in North America, the centre will make it snow even more than last year, transforming CF Toronto Eaton Centre into a true wintery wonderland,” said the company.
“The tree is a special part of the CF Toronto Eaton Centre holiday experience, and after a year-long hiatus, we are thrilled to bring it back – bigger and better than ever,” said Sheila Jennings, General Manager, CF Toronto Eaton Centre, of the 114-foot tree.
To learn more about CF’s holiday hours, experiences and services, along with event registration and ticketing info, please visit https://shops.cadillacfairview.com/holiday
Cadillac Fairview (CF) is one of the largest owners, operators, investors and developers of best-in-class office, retail, multi-family residential, industrial and mixed-use properties in North America. Wholly owned by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, with assets under management of more than $30 billion, CF manages over 35 million square feet of leasable space at 68 landmark properties across Canada, including Toronto-Dominion Centre, CF Toronto Eaton Centre, Tour Deloitte, CF Carrefour Laval, CF Chinook Centre and CF Pacific Centre.
Flannagan said hosting activities in shopping centres is incredibly important.
“I think that our spaces are places where people come to connect and engage and we want to build experiences that promote that. Our properties have been gathering places for the community for decades and we want to make sure we can build experiences that promote that behaviour. It’s something that people need, especially post-pandemic we found. That ability to come together with others and feel that connection, that human energy, it’s really important,” he said.
“It’s why you’ll see thousands of people singing together this Wednesday at the Toronto Eaton Centre tree lighting but it’s also why we think important traditions like the social aspect of music and how our decor is something you can bring your family to, walk around and have an experience just in that.
“And furthermore, even beyond a traditional holiday experience we’re looking at other experiences that promote people coming to the property but also just kind of reflecting and hanging out.”
Flannagan said Cadillac Fairview continues to put its best foot forward in giving people reasons to come visit its properties.
“These experiences are a very important part of the puzzle but also obviously retail is a big piece as well. We’ve got some exciting new retailers. Canada’s first and only Apple flagship opened at CF Pacific Centre. We have Uniqlo’s that are opening across the country. Alo. Fox Homes, Athleta, food options like Eataly, T&T. Toronto Eaton Centre will have an O&B (Oliver & Bonacini ) Queen’s Cross Food Hall and the Constance Taverne opening shortly. There’s just going to be many more options for people to come and hang out and maybe get a bite to eat while they’re at the mall as well.”
