Vancouver-based luxury brand retail operator Vestis Fashion Group has relocated its Weekend by Max Mara storefront at Metropolis at Metrotown in Burnaby, near Vancouver. Its new main level location replaces a former store that operated upstairs for about 10 years.
The new Weekend by Max Mara store spans 1,858 square feet in a retail space boasting a 40 foot wide facade. It replaces a Michael Kors store, and neighbouring retailers include Anne Louise Jewellers, Arc’teryx, Psycho Bunny, Browns Shoes, and similar strong brands.
The Metropolis at Metrotown Weekend by Max Mara carries the full range of the brand’s women’s fashions as well as bags, footwear and accessories. Italian women’s luxury fashion brand Max Mara launched Weekend by Max Mara as a diffusion line in 1983 with a lower price point than the main label. Over the years Weekend by Max Mara has established itself as a brand with a loyal following of women globally.
The Metropolis at Metrotown store design is described as being “reminiscent of a contemporary European home” with flooring of natural wood in two neutral shades that contrast with geometric cement tiles and checkerboard motifs. Wallpaper in the store depicts black-and-white Italian landscapes and gardens. Walls are painted a shade of teal blue and are adorned with the brand’s signature boiserie accent walls.
Vestis Fashion Group was founded in 1985 by entrepreneur Catherine Guadagnuolo. Currently Vestis has the license to operate Max Mara-branded stores in Western Canada via Max Mara USA. That includes having two Max Mara storefronts in Vancouver (by next year it will be three), and three Weekend by Max Mara stores in the Lower Mainland.
The Max Mara locations include a flagship at 3025 Granville Street just north of Shaughnessy, and a storefront at CF Pacific Centre in the downtown core. In about a year, Vestis will reopen its Max Mara store at the overhauled Oakridge Park at 41st and Cambie Streets, formerly known as Oakridge Centre. Vestis also operates Weekend by Max Mara stores at Metropolis at Metrotown and CF Pacific Centre, along with a shop-in-store within the 3025 Granville Street Max Mara location.
Harriet Guadagnuolo, Vice President of Retail at Vestis Fashion Group, said that the opportunity to move stores came up after the renewal of a 10-year lease. The new store, with a wider presence, provided the opportunity to showcase Weekend by Max Mara’s newest retail aesthetic.
Over the past decade, the Metrotown Weekend by Max Mara store has built up a clientele, Guadagnuolo said, which had kept the brand in the mall. Metropolis at Metrotown is one of the most productive malls in the country in terms of sales per square foot, though it’s not known to house luxury brands other than at a handful within jewellery stores. Weekend by Max Mara would be considered the most upscale mono-brand store in the mall, given the retail mix.
Vestis Fashion Group brought the Max Mara brand to Canada, and continues to operate the highest saturation of Max Mara stores of any city in North America. Vancouver is also among the top cities for sales in the world, speaking to the strength of the local client base.
The next big move for Vestis in the Vancouver market will be the opening of a Max Mara store at Oakridge Park in Vancouver next year. Max Mara will join an impressive roster of luxury brands in the overhauled mall with names such as Louis Vuitton, Prada, Brunello Cucinelli, Moncler, Versace, Christian Louboutin, Miu Miu, Rolex, and others. Harriett Guadagnuolo also said that Vestis could be looking at taking on another brand for the Vancouver market, as it has in the past, though we’ll have to wait to hear of any further details.
