Craig’s Cookies is expanding its store locations with two upcoming openings with a plan to expand further into the Greater Toronto Area within the next five years.
The company will be opening two locations in the CF Toronto Eaton Centre and the Scarborough Town Centre, both in Toronto. The expansion plan is part of the company’s larger strategy to increase the number of stores in high-traffic retail locations to reach a larger audience.
“Scarborough Town Centre is the first location that we will be opening, probably early summer 2024, and the CF Toronto Eaton Centre will be opening most likely in early Fall. We are really stoked. There is really a special market in these mall locations and it is really exciting,” says Craig Pike, Founder and CEO of Craig’s Cookies.
“Scarborough Town Centre is quite impressive – it actually has more foot traffic than Yorkdale. And the CF Toronto Eaton Centre speaks for itself with over 50 million people a year in foot traffic. These two malls are a good starting point for the launch,” says Jay Lee, franchise partner of Craig’s Cookies.
“Sharing the cookie love with as many people as possible”
As the brand is known in the GTA for its unique cookie recipes and community engagement, Pike sees these two new locations as a chance to connect with a broader demographic.
“Scarborough is just as much a part of Toronto as anywhere else. Bringing Craig’s Cookies to that community and neighbourhood is going to be really exciting. And with the Toronto Eaton Centre bringing in over 50 million visitors each year there is a chance to reach locals and tourists. There are so many folks that come through that mall, and there is a great opportunity to share the cookie love with as many people as possible,” says Pike.
Lee says success goes further than deciding on which malls to open in, but deciding where within the malls is crucial.
“We want to be in the main part of the mall, where there is the highest traffic. Good co-tenants, tenants that will draw a lot of traffic, and being near one of the top entrances within the mall, or in the centre where they do a lot of activities – all of these things matter. We don’t want to be off on the side wing where you have to turn off the main path to get to us,” says Lee.
Product offerings and customer experience
Craig’s Cookies is going to be bringing its signature collections into the two new locations, offering a mix of classic and innovative cookie recipes. The offerings will be the same as the other locations such as the mars bar, apple pie, cookies and cream, and more.
Pike says Craig’s Cookies encourages consumers to provide feedback for developing new flavours, giving a chance for consumers to have a say in what cookie might be coming next: “We are very open to trying new recipes, especially if they are inspired by our community.”
Future expansion plans
Craig’s Cookies has recently opened locations in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Fallsview Casino, and Collingwood in the past nine months, and its expansion plans will continue after opening these two new locations.
Lee says he is planning on opening five new locations within the next few years and will be focusing on high-quality malls. The focus as of right now will be remaining local and once Craig’s Cookies is successfully expanded in Ontario, Lee and Pike would like to see it expand across Canada.
“We do have plans to open five within the next five years. I think it makes sense to stay more local for the first several years, just until we perfect operations. I would rather have five well run stores that are successful, opposed to having 20 that are not as well run all over the country. So the focus right now is to stay local as close as possible so it makes it easy for us to manage. Down the road, we can start thinking about expanding outside the area, but there are enough high-quality malls in the area to focus on. Once we have that down, I am open to going across the country,” says Lee.
The five locations are unknown right now as Lee says it is not finalised yet, but will be looking into high-traffic malls such as Square One, Vaughan Mills, and CF Sherway Gardens.
Once these five locations are open, Lee says they will be continuing to find new locations: “We are just waiting on good locations, we don’t want to just settle for any spot within the mall so I think it is worthwhile to wait on a prime location to come up and be available. Once we have had those open up and have the operations figured out, we are open to going into every mall out there – people need cookies, so we are not just going to keep it to ourselves.”
“One of the great things is the feeling that Toronto has really taken ownership over Craig’s Cookies, and you can’t ask for a better thing when you build a brand. But I love that Toronto feel and it makes people feel like they are part of the growth and success of Craig’s Cookies,” says Pike.
