Canadian apparel brand Kit and Ace has launched a new retail space at The Well in downtown Toronto, marking its 10th store and part of a larger national expansion strategy under the leadership of CEO David Lui. The opening reflects the brand’s focus on experience-driven retail, strategic location selection, and a renewed emphasis on connecting with urban professionals.
Although officially designated a pop-up, the Kit and Ace store at The Well is far from a temporary experiment. The brand has developed a strong relationship with the development’s landlord and is treating the space as a permanent fixture—with room to evolve.
“It’s a pop-up with long-term intent,” explained Lui. “We’ve worked closely with the landlord, and The Well offered a great space. The intent is to stay.”
At approximately 2,500 square feet, the new location focuses on delivering a curated brand experience rather than showcasing the full breadth of Kit and Ace’s assortment. Lui emphasized that the store highlights the brand’s most innovative and beloved fabrics, such as its brushed French terry and cooling cotton Marbella boyfriend shirts.
“We’re really trying to tell our story through the materials we’re known for,” said Lui. “We want people to come in and feel the difference.”
Why The Well?
The decision to open at The Well—Toronto’s ambitious new mixed-use community developed by RioCan REIT and Allied Properties REIT—was strategic.
“The Well is a fascinating development,” said Lui. “It’s full of young professionals, and that’s exactly our target demographic: people on the move, people who need clothing that’s functional but refined.”
Located at Front and Spadina, The Well integrates residential, office, and retail space with an emphasis on design, sustainability, and community. With over 500,000 square feet of retail—including anchors like Adidas, Indigo, Sephora, and a 70,000-square-foot food hall—The Well is expected to see over 20,000 daily visitors.
“The design, the tenant mix, the energy—it all aligns with who we are as a brand,” said Lui. “And it gives us another strong downtown presence.”
Kit and Ace now operates three downtown Toronto stores—at CF Toronto Eaton Centre, Queen Street West, and The Well—along with others including CF Sherway Gardens, Toronto Premium Outlets in Halton Hills, and downtown Oakville.
“We now have six stores in Toronto and the GTA,” said Lui. “That’s a substantial presence.”
Lui noted that each location serves a slightly different demographic, from tourists and commuters downtown to outlet shoppers and suburban professionals, allowing Kit and Ace to engage with a diverse urban customer base.
National Expansion Under New Ownership
Founded in 2014 by Shannon and JJ Wilson—connected to Lululemon’s founding family—Kit and Ace was originally known for machine-washable cashmere and performance-infused fashion. Following rapid international expansion and a 2017 contraction, the brand was refocused under new ownership.
In July 2023, Unity Brands Inc. acquired Kit and Ace. The firm is co-founded by retail veterans Joe Mimran, Frank Rocchetti, and David Lui, who brought more than 30 years of marketing and retail experience to his new role as CEO.
Since then, Lui has helped scale the brand from four stores to 10, with additional locations set to open.
“This one is our 10th,” Lui noted. “We’ve got another pop-up launching at Metropolis at Metrotown before Father’s Day. And we’re already working on a few more for summer.”
He added that expansion will continue to focus on a blend of high-traffic shopping centres, lifestyle nodes, and key urban neighbourhoods.
A Consistent Brand Experience
Even with smaller-format stores or temporary setups, Kit and Ace is committed to delivering a consistent and immersive experience. At The Well, the store includes tactile displays and curated merchandise built around the brand’s performance-meets-luxury identity.
“Even though it’s a pop-up, we want to make sure the experience matches that of our other stores,” said Lui. “That’s really important for us.”
The brand’s product philosophy continues to centre around elevated essentials—minimalist pieces built for movement and designed for everyday wear. Its offerings are aimed at urban professionals seeking functionality, comfort, and understated sophistication.
“Our commitment is to technical apparel with a modern silhouette. And our stores—wherever they are—need to reflect that vision.”
A Hometown Hero in Vancouver
While Kit and Ace has been expanding in Toronto, the brand still maintains deep roots in Vancouver, where it opened its first store in Gastown in 2014.
“We’re a hometown hero in B.C.,” said Lui. “The recognition and support in Vancouver have always been strong. Our West 4th store is actually one of our top-performing locations.”
Lui noted that Calgary has also emerged as a strong market, with growing brand awareness and loyal customers. Other stores include CF Market Mall in Calgary and two Vancouver stores — Gastown and West 4th Avenue in Kitsilano.
Seeking a Toronto Flagship
While The Well adds another strategic address, Lui confirmed that Kit and Ace is still evaluating options for a permanent flagship store in Toronto.
“We’re always looking,” he said. “But it’s hard—flagship retail in Toronto can be prohibitively expensive. We want the right space at the right time.”
In the meantime, pop-ups are proving to be an effective strategy for testing new markets and gaining exposure.
“The flexibility helps us stay agile,” said Lui. “We can enter a market quickly, make an impression, and decide from there.”
With momentum building across the country, Kit and Ace is poised for continued growth through the remainder of 2025. The brand is expected to announce further openings later this year, including new permanent locations and additional pop-ups.
“We’ve got some exciting things coming,” said Lui. “Summer will be a big one for us.”
Strategic location selection… is that really something we can call existing at the Well? The retail mix is is confusing at best, and desperate in most retrospects of visiting… I’m hoping, like many, that this will change with higher occupancy rates of the condos in the project… and the quick failure of irrelevant retail categories.
This store, I have to say, is one of the better offerings in the new Kit and Ace identity, in terms of merchandise and allocation. Their other Toronto locations are too focussed on large commodity buys in tons of color ways, and are lacking effectively trended storytelling in major wardrobing focuses that tells us who the new Kit and Ace really is. Here at the Well, we see larger more paletted collections living in the back walls with some stronger trend consistencies that are letting us know a little bit more about what the brand vision is. It definitely a stronger showing here, where they are telling more focussed fashion stories that allows us to engage with who they really are as a brand.
wishing this new VM strategy and location all the best… there is great talent behind this brand!