Chrome Hearts has purchased the former Webster building at 121 Scollard Street in Toronto’s Yorkville neighbourhood for $12.65 million, securing a new location for its first standalone Canadian store.
Commercial real estate news publication CoStar first reported the acquisition on Wednesday. Retail Insider has confirmed additional details about the transaction and the brand’s Canadian expansion plans.
The three-storey, freestanding building at 121 Scollard Street spans approximately 7,076 square feet and had been listed for $13.25 million by the CBRE Toronto Urban Retail Team under the guidance of Arlin Markowitz. First Capital REIT sold the property to Chrome Hearts in an owner-user transaction.
The building has been vacant since luxury multi-brand retailer The Webster closed its only Canadian store late last year.
Chrome Hearts’ acquisition also represents a change from the company’s original plans for Toronto.
Chrome Hearts Changes Locations in Yorkville
Chrome Hearts acquired nearby 97 Scollard Street about two years ago with plans to renovate the property for a Canadian boutique. The location had been identified within the real estate industry as the future home of the brand’s first store in the country.
A major fire broke out across the street in March 2025, damaging several properties in the surrounding area, including the building Chrome Hearts had intended to occupy.
The store is no longer expected to open at 97 Scollard. The building is currently covered with plywood over its windows and has been painted black.
Chrome Hearts has now shifted its plans to 121 Scollard, acquiring a larger building that was extensively restored and converted for luxury retail before The Webster opened there in 2021.
Buying the property gives Chrome Hearts direct control over its Canadian flagship building. That is a considerable commitment for an international retailer entering the country with its first dedicated store, particularly in a neighbourhood where luxury brands commonly lease their premises. No opening date has been announced.
The Webster’s Former Canadian Flagship
The Webster opened at 121 Scollard Street on October 30, 2021, establishing its first Canadian store and its first location outside the United States.
The Miami-based retailer occupied a restored Victorian building dating to the 1880s. The property became recognizable for its pink-toned brick exterior, neon Webster sign and flamingo weather vane, while the store carried a curated assortment of international luxury fashion brands.
The Webster closed the Toronto location in late 2025 after four years in Canada, leaving behind a building that had been comprehensively adapted for high-end retail.
Its departure created a rare opportunity to acquire a vacant, freestanding luxury property in the centre of Yorkville. Chrome Hearts has now purchased the building as the permanent home of its Canadian store.
The sale also took place as First Capital REIT moves through its pending acquisition by KingSett Capital and Choice Properties REIT. The $9.4-billion arrangement was approved by First Capital unitholders on June 23 and received court approval two days later.
A Growing Luxury Cluster
The new Chrome Hearts store will sit near several of Yorkville’s most established and recently expanded luxury shopping streets.
Hazelton Avenue is steps away and includes retailers such as Hästens, Le Labo and Caudalie. Italian luxury linens and home furnishings brand Frette also recently opened on the street.
One block south, Yorkville Avenue has undergone a major retail transformation through the arrival of international luxury brands. Chanel, Brunello Cucinelli, Stone Island, Balenciaga and Christian Louboutin are among the retailers operating along the street.
Bloor Street West, two blocks south, remains Canada’s best-known luxury shopping corridor.
The concentration of fashion, beauty, jewellery, home furnishings and lifestyle retailers surrounding 121 Scollard has made the area increasingly interconnected as a shopping district. Luxury activity in Yorkville is no longer confined to Bloor Street, with international brands spreading north through Yorkville Avenue, Hazelton Avenue and nearby side streets.
The Webster previously operated on Scollard as a multi-brand luxury retailer. Chrome Hearts will become the first individual international luxury brand to operate a dedicated standalone boutique on the street.
Its new building is also closer to the luxury clusters on Hazelton and Yorkville avenues than the company’s original property at 97 Scollard.
Inside the World of Chrome Hearts
Chrome Hearts has built its following without adopting the traditional expansion model used by many global luxury companies.
Richard Stark co-founded the Los Angeles business in 1988, initially producing leather clothing and sterling silver accessories influenced by motorcycle culture. Chrome Hearts subsequently expanded into jewellery, eyewear, apparel, handbags, footwear, furniture and home accessories.
The privately held company remains closely associated with the Stark family and maintains tight control over its production, distribution and store network. Its boutiques are often highly customized, with interiors designed specifically for their locations.
Chrome Hearts has historically placed little emphasis on conventional advertising and broad e-commerce distribution. Scarcity, craftsmanship and its links to music and popular culture have helped the company develop a devoted international clientele.
Its products are known for Gothic crosses, daggers, fleur-de-lis motifs, sterling silver hardware and handcrafted details. Depending on the category and materials, prices can extend well into the thousands of dollars.
Cher was among Chrome Hearts’ earliest and most prominent supporters. The singer and actress developed a close friendship with Stark and helped introduce the brand to the entertainment industry during its formative years. When Stark received the CFDA Accessory Designer of the Year award in 1992, Cher accepted the award on his behalf.
Her longstanding association with Chrome Hearts predates its rise as a sought-after label among musicians, actors, athletes and fashion collectors.
Limited Distribution in Canada
Chrome Hearts products have had only a limited presence in Canada.
A small number of optical retailers carry selected eyewear, although those assortments represent a narrow portion of what the company produces. At Squint Eyewear on Yonge Street in Toronto, a limited selection of Chrome Hearts frames is displayed in a locked showcase.
There has been no comparable Canadian access to the company’s broader selection of jewellery, apparel, leather goods, accessories, furniture and home products.
The Yorkville location will give Chrome Hearts direct control over how its products and store environment are presented in Canada. It will also provide Canadian clients with their first substantial local access to the brand.
Chrome Hearts has not disclosed the planned merchandise mix, design of the store or scale of the renovations at 121 Scollard.
A Permanent Investment in Toronto
Chrome Hearts’ Canadian expansion has taken an unusual route.
The company acquired one Yorkville property and began planning a store there before moving its boutique to another building nearby. Its $12.65-million purchase of 121 Scollard now gives it a larger property with a recent history as a luxury destination and a stronger connection to Yorkville’s surrounding retail corridors.
The deal also returns the former Webster building to luxury use within months of that retailer’s Canadian departure.
For Chrome Hearts, the purchase establishes a permanent base in a market where its products have long been difficult to find. For Scollard Street, it introduces the first standalone boutique operated by an individual international luxury brand.
