CF Market Mall in Calgary is undergoing a wave of retail activity, with several new stores opening, expanding, or relocating, according to Darryl Schmidt, senior executive with Cadillac Fairview.
“Ever New came out of The Bay when The Bay closed, and we’ve since signed a permanent deal with them,” said Schmidt, Vice-President of National Leasing. The brand is currently operating a pop-up in the former Joydrop location, with a permanent storefront scheduled to open in the west mall by Black Friday.
Other brands are also expanding their footprint in the centre Arc’teryx is expanding—they’re going to more than double in size. They’ve been very successful,” Schmidt said. “We’re relocating SoftMoc adjacent to them; same thing, they’ll almost double in size.”
Schmidt confirmed that Kiokii is opening soon and said Monza (restaurant) will open in the coming weeks after resolving earlier construction delays. “That’ll be great—adding more food and beverage to the site,” he said, noting that aligning food offerings with consumer trends has become a key focus for Cadillac Fairview’s portfolio.
Despite flat foot traffic, Schmidt said the centre has seen strong financial performance following the closure of The Bay. “We’ve been averaging about 10 per cent (growth in sales) here at Market Mall.”
He added that the shift is due to customers redirecting their spending. “There’s a void in the marketplace without The Bay. Customers are finding other specialty retailers to replace those lost sales,” he said.
Market Mall is currently achieving approximately $1,180 in sales per square foot, an all-time high in terms of sales productivity.
While several new leasing deals are in progress, Schmidt said they are not yet finalized. “I’ve got to wait until the ink is dry on some of the deals at Market Mall. We’re in a bit of a lull in terms of space availability and new store openings,” he said.
Asked about future plans for The Bay’s former space, Schmidt said the company is awaiting a court ruling. “That’s one Ruby Liu had identified as one she wanted to take control of. So we’re waiting for the judge to render a decision,” he said.
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