CF Polo Park Mall Winnipeg: 65th anniversary, London Drugs expansion, and retail growth [Feature]

CF Polo Park, a popular shopping destination in Winnipeg, celebrates its 65th anniversary this year. The mall will showcase its history with a visual timeline featuring photographs and highlights from the past six decades. The mall is opening Winnipeg’s second London Drugs store next Fall and will be focusing on bringing more retailers going forward. 

“We have held on to a great collection of photos and memories over the years, and we want to use this celebration to take our visitors on a journey through Polo Park’s evolution. It is incredible to look back at how much the mall has transformed, from its early days as an outdoor strip centre to the major retail hub it is okay,” says Peter Havens, general manager at Polo Park. 

The official anniversary of Polo Park was in August; however, Havens says they will delay celebrations for the opening of London Drugs. 

London Drugs coming soon!

London Drugs is set to open at Polo Park in October 2025. The mall will begin work on the space in October of this year. The new location will be 30,000 square feet and will occupy a large portion of the upper level. 

“London Drugs is coming to Polo Park. That will be a 30,000 square-foot London Drugs on the upper level. It is taking over some space in an underperforming part of the wing, and we are very excited to have the second London Drugs in Winnipeg. They have wanted to expand into the Winnipeg market for quite some time.” 

Tenant expansion at Polo Park 

Since Polo Park’s 60th anniversary five years ago, the mall has brought in new tenants. 

The mall welcomed retailers such as Zara, EQ3’s flagship store, and luxury brand Moose Knuckles. 

“We don’t want to sit back and let the mall stagnate. We are continually trying to drive new and impressive tenants to Winniepg,” says Havens. “Sometimes that is a challenge, but when international retailers do come, they often surprise us by how well they perform here.” 

Related: CF Polo Park adding new retailers as mall dominates Winnipeg market

Polo Park placed 14th for productivity last year 

Havens says Polo Park has made an impressive recovery following the challenges from the pandemic. Today, the mall is seeing an increase in sales and foot traffic. 

According to ICSC rankings, Polo Park placed 14th for productivity last year, generating $1,062 per square foot in sales. Despite some ongoing vacancy as preparations for the new London Drugs store, Havens says the mall occupancy remains strong. 

Havens says beyond sales, Polo Park has seen visitors increase, welcoming nine million visitors annually – a four per cent increase from last year. 

“The rebound from Covid for us has been phenomenal. The level of responsibility in the market to support the shipping centre in our community has been incredible. Foot traffic is still a while from pre-Covid levels, but over the past three years, we are up to nine million, which is a solid number for us. Year over year, we are up four per cent, so we are quite happy about that.” 

Related: Cleo unveils new concept store at CF Polo Park, leads multi-location expansion across Canada

Community engagement and challenges 

As a central hub in Winnipeg, Polo Park is engaging with the community and addressing social challenges that have increased in recent years. 

Havens says the mall has had increased concerns relating to safety, homelessness, and security. 

“Because we are a large destination with access to transit, we get more than our fair share of challenges with that, and it can create a perception of safety and security concerns. So to address that, we have increased security staffing and are having regular meetings. We are trying to meet people where they are at, and not just boot them out. We recognize these individuals are part of society, and they are people, so we want to build a relationship and find solutions.” 

In response, Polo Park has taken proactive steps to improve safety while also partnering with local organizations, such as the Resource Assistance for Youth, to find solutions for vulnerable people while ensuring the shopping centre remains a safe environment for everyone. 

“We have taken a partnership with Resource Assistance for Youth, which is a local charity here that reaches out to street-endangered people and helps those transitioning out of Child and Family Services care. We leverage that relationship to support them. It is not just about moving them along, but building a relationship. We have also increased security and have more visibility, so customers feel safe.” 

Focusing on food, beverage, and entertainment 

Besides the opening of London Drugs, which will be opening in October 2025, Havens does not specify any additional retailers coming to Polo Park. Havens says going forward, the mall is focusing on bringing in interesting and international brands to the mall with goals to evolve the shopping centre with new food, beverage, and entertainment options for the next five to seven years. 

“We want to continue to impress and wow our customers, one of our goals is to make it a fun place to come to. So, we are focusing on our core business of retail, but also looking for new food, beverage, and entertainment options. These are the kind of things that I think we are going to see evolve over the next five to seven years. We want to continue to wow our customers, because we have been around for 65 years, and our goal is to continue to do that.”