Canadian Retail Thread [Archive] - Page 8

SSLL

Nov 22, 2006, 4:27 AM

From: http://www.retailingtoday.com/magazine/story.cfm?ID=3583
_________
Costco opens in downtown Vancouver

November 2006
By Doug Desjardins

Costco opened its first urban store in Canada Nov. 10 on the bottom floor of a high-rise residential development in downtown Vancouver. It’s Costco’s second urban store in North America and could serve as a model for other urban markets.

“If we can do it here, we can see where it could have applications in other cities like Manhattan and Chicago,” Costco ceo Jim Sinegal told Retailing Today.

The 128,000-square-foot store is about 10,000 square feet smaller than a standard warehouse and has a unique look created by dozens of load-bearing pillars scattered around the store. The pillars, which take up close to 3,000 square feet of floor space, support a parking garage and high-rise towers being built above.

Parking is provided on two levels below the store, which is at street level across from the GM Arena, home of the Vancouver Canucks NHL hockey team. Extra-large elevators are outside the entrance to accommodate shoppers heading down to the parking lot with heavy loads.

Costco chose Vancouver in part because of its demographics. The downtown area has one of the heaviest residential populations of any city in North America. And that built-in customer base will be supplemented by a four-tower, high-rise development above the store that will eventually be home to close to 900 luxury condos, with the first two towers due to open in fall 2007.

The merchandise mix is typical of a standard Costco with a heavier focus on food. Catering to local tastes, the food department has a large selection of cheese and fish along with an extensive array of prepared meals. “With so many people living within walking distance, we think they’ll be a popular item here,” said Sinegal.

Though the store is expected to attract throngs of customers from the downtown area, Costco expects it to perform even better with business members. “We’ve found that to be the case with our store in San Francisco, which is one of our busiest stores, and that’s one of the reasons we chose this site,” said Sinegal. “You have a lot of small businesses, shops and restaurants down here.”

The new store isn’t likely to impact others in the area, since Costco’s locations in Richmond and Grandview are about a 20-minute drive from downtown Vancouver.

Costco’s store in San Francisco was its first attempt at operating in an urban area and, like Vancouver, has a two-level parking garage attached to the store. But that warehouse is a stand-alone and doesn’t have a residential complex built into the site, which makes Vancouver unique for Costco and for most retailers experimenting with urban concepts.

Sinegal said Costco will be looking for opportunities in other cities if Vancouver works out as expected. Though it’s relatively new at operating urban stores in North America, it does have some experience overseas. “We’ve dealt with similar issues with our stores in Japan and Taiwan and I think those experiences helped us,” said Sinegal.

Costco is part of a growing list of big box retailers experimenting with urban formats. Wal-Mart opened its first Urban 99 store in Tampa, Fla., two years ago and opened another in White Plains, N.Y., this summer. Those stores have a footprint just under 100,000 square feet and carry an edited selection of products.

The Home Depot has taken a similar approach to entering dense urban markets with a mix of formats that includes multi-level stores. It entered New York City in 2004 with two urban prototypes and is due to open another in 2007. The only difference with Costco is that it’s managing to open stores that are about the same size as a standard warehouse with a full selection of merchandise.

SpongeG

Nov 22, 2006, 6:04 AM

i wonder if i should renew my Costco membership

it was always such a waste

MTLskyline

Nov 28, 2006, 12:00 AM

Honda to sell it all under one roof
Idea is to tempt clients to buy more

GREG KEENAN
AUTO INDUSTRY REPORTER

Honda Canada Inc. is moving to a new generation of retail outlets that will offer all its consumer products at one location -- from lawnmowers and snow throwers to motorcycles, cars and trucks.

The new concept, called Honda Centre in Quebec and Honda Powerhouse in the rest of Canada, is already in place at one Honda dealership in each of Quebec and Ontario and there are more to come, said Jim Miller, senior vice-president of Honda Canada.

"We're putting them together to reinforce the brand," Mr. Miller said. The creation of the Honda Ridgeline sport utility truck was essentially the final piece of the puzzle because now "we've got the truck that you can put your ATVs in back of," he said.

Honda's consumer products also include water pumps, portable generators, weed trimmers and marine outboard motors.

"It's a natural evolution to bring customers the Honda products they want, closer to where they live, work and play," added Honda spokeswoman Sandy Di Felice.

Market studies are under way in Calgary and Vancouver to determine whether the new concept makes sense. Calgary is a booming market with the growth in the oil patch, and Vancouver has for years been one of the strongest markets for Asian-based auto makers.

Dealers and sales people in stores offering all the company's consumer products will be trained across the entire range.

Industry analysts said it makes sense to put all the products under one roof so that anyone buying a generator can be encouraged to look at an all-terrain vehicle or a car.

Honda has 214 car dealers in Canada and 310 motorcycle dealers.

"I think it's something that is at least worth trying out," said Tony Krajewski, a consultant in the automotive practice at Deloitte.

The idea also appeals to Joe Zanchin, who owns one Honda dealership northwest of Toronto and another one that will be officially opened in a new auto mall in Vaughan tomorrow.

"I'm confident," Mr. Zanchin said.

"I think it's the way to do it."

He is dedicating about 10 acres of the new mall to Honda. Next to his Honda car and truck dealership will go a store for the generators, motorcycles and other products.

Next to that will be a dealership offering Acuras, Honda's luxury car brand.

He figures people travelling between the Honda and Acura outlets will stop in the Honda Powerhouse to check out the other consumer products and Honda accessories.

Honda sold 155,000 cars and trucks in Canada last year, along with 21,000 motorcycles, 23,400 all-terrain vehicles, 25,000 generators, 6,000 outboard engines, 4,000 weed trimmers and 6,700 snow throwers.

Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20061127.RHONDA27/TPStory/Business
________
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SHOFEAR

Nov 28, 2006, 12:27 AM

Thats cool news about Honda. I'm not a fan of most of their cars but I've always had good experience with their power equipment...especially their ATV's.

Coldrsx

Nov 28, 2006, 1:28 AM

love the honda idea....im a BIG BIG HONDA fan and would be in heaven to walk into that.

IntotheWest

Nov 28, 2006, 1:36 AM

love the honda idea....im a BIG BIG HONDA fan and would be in heaven to walk into that.

I always wondered if coldrsx had anything to do with Acura RSX? :)

Big Honda fan too - and that concept sounds like a good idea.

SteelTown

Nov 30, 2006, 3:13 PM

'Tim Hortonese'

That's the lingo soldiers of 12 nations learn in Kandahar
By Bill Graveland
The Canadian Press
Kandahar, Afghanistan (Nov 30, 2006)

It turns out the universal language isn't the language of love after all, at least not here at Kandahar airfield.

No, the universal language here is all about coffee.

"I'll have a large double-double and a regular," said a young soldier with an Australian accent, stopping in at the base Tim Hortons.

"We call it Tim Hortonese -- Tim Hortons lingo," laughs Kelly Taylor, 42, of Oromocto, N.B. who has been working at the base since July while her military husband is at home.

"The British will come up and ask us for a regular coffee, only 'regular' in Tim Hortons language is one milk, one sugar. Only to them it's not -- it's white, whatever that means," she added.

Currently, 1,300 customers a day file through the Kandahar Tim Hortons from the military of 12 countries stationed on the base.

Whereas Canadians file in and out as if they are on a conveyor belt, it takes a lot longer for others.

"It takes a little while to pick up the lingo," said Air Engineering Technician Daniel Stace from Darbyshire, England, who is in the Royal Navy.

"A double-double? It took me a while to work that one out, but normally I just stick to the bagels and the orange juice," he said.

Others don't even try to learn the language of Tims.

"No, not yet, because I only just drink black coffee and so that's just fine by me," said Sergeant Mike Koninkle of the Netherlands.

"I'm not quite familiar with all the slang around Tim Hortons and I just drink coffee and that's it and I don't need all the fancy coffee or tea."

Taylor boasts that she can tell a soldier's nationality even if they speak perfect English and are not wearing a uniform, simply by what they order.

"The British and the Dutch mostly will order Boston creams and Canadian maples... and the Americans will probably order five dozen doughnuts at a time. And the British and the Dutch always order the very sweet cappuccinos," Taylor explained.

"Canadians order bagels and coffee," she said.

The confusion over the Tim Hortonese has Taylor vowing to put a Tim Horton-English dictionary on the door of the store.

"I'm going to write a dictionary and post it on the outside of the door for all the non-Canadians. That's my job for the next week."

http://www.hamiltonspectator.com/images/hs/hs1532462_1.jpg
Kelly Taylor of Oromocto, N.B., says she can tell a soldier's nationality by their order.

ErickMontreal

Dec 1, 2006, 11:05 PM

I would like to know if it`s possible to find a website about retail news mainly ?

SpongeG

Dec 4, 2006, 1:32 AM

^^^ if you go to www.cbcnews.ca - there is a "consumer life" section - they just added it a few months ago - and it covers a lot of retail happenings - great section :)

SpongeG

Dec 4, 2006, 1:35 AM

there is also this site: http://www.esourcecanada.com/bnn/retail.asp

miketoronto

Dec 4, 2006, 4:00 PM

I have to dig up the article from THe Star. But Harry Rosen has announced expansion plans, including a huge renovation and addition to the flagship store on Bloor Street in Toronto.

Claeren

Dec 4, 2006, 4:44 PM

In Calgary, does anyone know what is going in the old Royal Doulton site at Market Mall? Seems too small for the reported upcoming H&M... ??

Claeren.

ErickMontreal

Dec 4, 2006, 5:34 PM

there is also this site: http://www.esourcecanada.com/bnn/retail.asp

Thank you for informations!

IntotheWest

Dec 5, 2006, 12:19 AM

Coldrsx

Dec 5, 2006, 12:39 AM

I was taking a trip to Edmonton, and decided to check any new stores at WEM...wow, it's widening the gap between what we have in Calgary...

Most notably, the addition of Lacoste!

And G-Star...never heard of them, but looks like they have quite a few international stores, but this is the first in Canada?

yeah...WEM is really going after more and more higher end and unique to canada stores. I am quite impressed with it of late, too bad the exterior looks like crap.

I hear they have 4-5 more "canada 1sts" coming

IntotheWest

Dec 5, 2006, 12:45 AM

yeah...WEM is really going after more and more higher end and unique to canada stores. I am quite impressed with it of late, too bad the exterior looks like crap.

I hear they have 4-5 more "canada 1sts" coming

Really? So is this G-star a big name??? Is it "high-end" clothing? If yes to both of those, that can really help out that Europa Blvd stretch of the mall. I don't recall noticing it in the US, but their website shows they're all over?

Any idea what the other 4-5 are?

I'm guessing Calgary's behind on getting them because of retail space...so, at the very least Edm is just paving the way! Can't wait to spend some bucks at Lacoste and Sketchers though...

Coldrsx

Dec 5, 2006, 12:59 AM

Claeren

Dec 5, 2006, 1:01 AM

G-star is very popular apparently...i didnt know of them either.

Edmonton is getting them because, like it or not, WEM is more important as a entrance point than calgary or even many other markets....WEM has hollister, etc. etc....

no idea whats coming, just a few rumours out there.

but we do know H&M is setting up shop.

It could also be because they can get good space for little money compared to other premier shopping centre's like say, Chinook or Market - where the rents are likely double (or more) and the wait is 2-4 years (if at all).

Claeren.

Coldrsx

Dec 5, 2006, 1:07 AM

^perhaps to some degree, but WEM is WEM....and is more lucrative than even chinook.

Claeren

Dec 5, 2006, 1:26 AM

I was under the impression Chinook and Market both had revenue/sq-ft numbers much higher then WEM, and amongst the very highest in Canada.

Of course they have rents and labour costs to match that revenue so maybe that difference is where you see 'lucrative'?

Claeren.

Coldrsx

Dec 5, 2006, 1:33 AM

^i cant recall the numbers to be honest and i know chinook does very very well, but it aint WEM....simple as that.

Claeren

Dec 5, 2006, 2:11 AM

^i cant recall the numbers to be honest and i know chinook does very very well, but it aint WEM....simple as that.

Simple as that? Chinook does just shy of $1000/sq-ft in sales and is growing year over year. You cannot simply wait for a lease to come to renewal to out-bid to get space (like at WEM) - you have to wait for it to be built.

It is far from 'simple'....

Unlike WEM, there are no entire wings in Chinook that are full of ghetto stores and 2nd and 3rd versions of the same store (that the retailor got as bonuses for signing long term leases).

Claeren.

SpongeG

Dec 5, 2006, 2:18 AM

It could also be because they can get good space for little money compared to other premier shopping centre's like say, Chinook or Market - where the rents are likely double (or more) and the wait is 2-4 years (if at all).

Claeren.

some H&M stores are small

San Francisco has 3 - two of them are fairly small - and the smaller stores carry less of the lines - only the big one had the mens stuff - the other two were strictly for women - which itself is broken down into a few lines and they may carry say 3 of the 5 womens lines they have

where as the huge ones carry the full lines, womens, mens, childrens

SpongeG

Dec 5, 2006, 2:21 AM

have to point out WEM has the distinction of being the world's largest mall - its a great starting point for sureand it is recognized world wide among the shopping set

IntotheWest

Dec 5, 2006, 2:23 AM

Well, I'm not so sure about that...I agree that WEM is seeing several new retailers new to AB (and Canada), but Chinook also has Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn - don't think that's in Edm yet (and W-S isn't even in Van yet). Apple, Crate and Barrel, and rumoured Tiffany's are all wanting into Chinook.

From what I recall just a few years ago, there were quite a few garbage (i.e. low-end) stores in WEM...and with over 800 spots to pick from in there, there's bound to be a spot that these retailers can get into to capitalize on the AB market.

Chinook was second only to Yorkdale for revenue/sq-ft the last I saw...

IntotheWest

Dec 5, 2006, 2:25 AM

have to point out WEM has the distinction of being the world's largest mall - its a great starting point for sureand it is recognized world wide among the shopping set

Not any longer - it's been surpassed by several in China, and the Mall of the Emirates I believe is larger (incl it's indoor skiing)...

Still, I do like WEM, and unlike Chinook it is far more than just shopping...

SpongeG

Dec 5, 2006, 2:28 AM

oh yeah by no means is WEM a great mall with great stores - but there are people who plan trips purposefully to visit the mall - i know a few new immigrants who are dying to go see this "mall" in edmonton they have heard about

Coldrsx

Dec 5, 2006, 2:28 AM

Plus15

Dec 5, 2006, 2:29 AM

Chinook sales per square foot are definetely higher than WEM. They are third highest in the country, after Yorkdale and Eaton Centre in Toronto, at $805 per square foot. (Source...Calgary Herald). Market Mall is also way up there. This is not to say that WEM doesn't have higher TOTAL sales, I would almost guarantee that it does. But when you divide the number by the total leasable area, it can't touch Chinook's productivity.

I agree with you Claeren 100%...stores find it harder to enter Calgary because rents are much higher...and there is so little space. I also would guess that they want to make sure they have the RIGHT location. When entering Edmonton its a no-brainer, WEM is the best choice. But Calgary has no less than four shopping centres that are all contenders. Retailers can choose from Eaton Centre (high end) or Chinook (volume) or Market Mall (fashion)...retailers want to make sure they secure the right space.

Edmonton may be a more attractive entry point because of the lower rents. A 'quick'n cheap' entry point if you will, where the sales results at the end of the day will be about the same as Calgary. Edmonton has the clear advantage there.

Lets clarify that Edmonton is certainly not running away with a lead here, WEM may have attracted A&F, Hollister, and Lacoste first, but there are several prestige retailers that Calgary has attracted that Edmonton still has not. Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Bang & Olufsen, and opening in 2007, Sephora and Apple Store. H&M is opening here as well at Market Mall.

Chinook ain't WEM? We're all thankful for that.

Coldrsx

Dec 5, 2006, 2:32 AM

Chinook is a very good mall, no question, and i agree WEM can work around things to get people in quickly....but WEM is WEM...love it or hate it, it will continue to be picked many times over chinook for being simply, WEM.

IntotheWest

Dec 5, 2006, 2:44 AM

ColdRSX - I see your point, and I'd agree 10-20 years ago...and I agree that WEM is still a big tourist spot (largest in the province still?), but I believe as pointed out above - it's easier to get into than Chinook.

Plus15 - B&O is on Stephen Ave - not in a mall...besides, WEM also has a Bose store that Calgary doesn't have. As far as comparing Chinook with other retail space in the city - I think Market is still well behind Chinook, and there is no way EC is even close (I'd like to see numbers if you can find them).

It's no surprise that many are seemingly waiting for Chinook to expand - or possibly the new "lifestyle centre" at Deerfoot meadows. However, I think even that "Lifestyle Centre" from the latest I heard, will end up being nothing more than the like what's at South Edm Common.

Plus15

Dec 5, 2006, 2:59 AM

Fair enough...WEM's status as major can't be disputed.

IntotheWest, some numbers for you. (Calgary Herald.)

Calgary Shopping Centres
(Monthly sales per square foot as of the end of July)

Chinook Centre: $805
Eaton Centre: $776
Market Mall: $712
Southcentre: $598
TD Square: $558
Sunridge Mall: $467*

*as of the end of June

Holt Renfrew is the only reason Eaton Centre is up there. I have heard ramblings of them wanting to expand to include another floor because sales are through the roof. As for Market Mall being that far behind Chinook, I think the gap is narrowing. Banana Republic, Benetton, Guess, and soon H&M, its getting there.

IntotheWest

Dec 5, 2006, 3:09 AM

LordMandeep

Dec 5, 2006, 3:26 AM

I liked the Chinook Center while i was there.

I think Yorkdale mall has really gone from low scale to up scale really fast. I remember being such a crappy mall, now its alwaysssss busy. Every single day of the week, almost the whole day. Such easy access, subway from the City Center and two close by highways. A lot of the malls here in this area are going through major change.

Claeren

Dec 5, 2006, 3:48 AM

The Holt Renfrew at Eaton's Centre does insane sales. Thousands of dollars / sq-ft from what i hear... the biggest revenue generator in their chain i believe.

Claeren.

LordMandeep

Dec 5, 2006, 3:52 AM

I think there are 4 Holt Renfrews here.

2 are average to a little upscale and 2 are real upscale.

SpongeG

Dec 5, 2006, 5:45 AM

It's no surprise that many are seemingly waiting for Chinook to expand - or possibly the new "lifestyle centre" at Deerfoot meadows. However, I think even that "Lifestyle Centre" from the latest I heard, will end up being nothing more than the like what's at South Edm Common.

thats really all a "lifestyle" centre is really - its like an outdoor mall nothing much more

park royal has the first one apparently in Canada - its nothing too exciting otehr than you get to get rained on between shops :rolleyes:

m0nkyman

Dec 5, 2006, 7:08 AM

Calgary Shopping Centres
(Monthly sales per square foot as of the end of July)

Chinook Centre: $805
Eaton Centre: $776
Market Mall: $712
Southcentre: $598
TD Square: $558
Sunridge Mall: $467*

*as of the end of June
I'm thinking those are yearly sales per square foot.... I can't see an average 2,000 square foot store pulling in 20 million $ a year anywhere. :koko:

Change it to yearly, and that same 2,000 sq/ft store is still grossing a hugely respectable 1.6million at 805$/sqft per year....

SpongeG

Dec 6, 2006, 5:10 AM

Tiffany's corner of Vancouver
New shop creates critical mass of luxury brands downtown

Published: Tuesday, December 05, 2006

I'm off to breakfast at Tiffany's this morning.

http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465/1d/media.canada.com/idl/vapr/20061205/58342-21526.jpg

No, not the one on New York's Fifth Avenue, made famous by the graceful figure of Audrey Hepburn in the film Breakfast at Tiffany's, but Vancouver's own!

Tiffany & Co. will throw open its elegant and expensive retail doors at the corner of Burrard and Alberni streets today.

When the Tiffany baby-blue hoarding walls are peeled back, the city will join the hallowed ranks of luxury retail cities such as New York, London, Paris, Hong Kong, San Francisco and Toronto.

Tiffany is at the new "axis" of luxury shopping downtown and will rub shoulders with fellow luxury brands, including Gucci, Hermes and Louis Vuitton.

All have taken root close to Robson, Vancouver's most fashionable street.

"We identified Vancouver many years ago as a place we wanted to be but we needed to get the right location and believe we have," said Andrea Hopson, vice-president, Tiffany & Co. Canada.

"This absolutely puts Vancouver into the top leagues of retail cities and we have already had a tremendous response from Vancouver and Western Canada to this new store," she said.

Actually, Tiffany will have two stores downtown.

It has long had a boutique with upmarket retailer Holt Renfrew, itself in the throes of a huge expansion in the Pacific Centre Mall.

"We have had a relationship for 13 years with Holt Renfrew and will continue having a boutique there," she said.

She did not reveal how much has been spent on the new store on Burrard but said it is a "substantial investment."

Sixth Line Solutions retail analyst David Gray said Vancouver now has a critical mass of luxury retailers and more names will likely follow.

"When you look at Canada, Vancouver is the natural place to expand to. It has the Olympics coming and the world is already here as far as the Pacific Gateway and Asia is concerned," he said.

The luxury retail market is changing and is not as exclusive as it once was, he said. It appeals to Asian and younger consumers who have cash and like the value of a brand name.

Tiffany will offer customers a full line of jewelry and other goods, packaged in the chain's hallmark baby-blue boxes with silky white ribbon.

The 4,700-square foot store will operate seven days a week with a staff of approximately 32.

The company was founded by Charles Lewis Tiffany and John B. Young in 1837 as Tiffany & Young.

It changed its name to Tiffany & Co. in 1853.

http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/money/story.html?id=1e0a0a63-d512-403a-9213-0120eb405a6a

IntotheWest

Dec 6, 2006, 6:04 AM

thats really all a "lifestyle" centre is really - its like an outdoor mall nothing much more

park royal has the first one apparently in Canada - its nothing too exciting otehr than you get to get rained on between shops :rolleyes:

The initial plans were to be like a little "village" and more ped-centric. However, the last update I read, the developer feared they weren't get the cars close enough, so they've moved the parking to right at the storefronts.. The closest I've seen that fits that description is Edm's South Common - however, that's not a far departure from the strip malls surrounding big box stores anyway.

Yes...not too exciting for sure. And a disappointment if stores unique to Calgary open up there.

SpongeG

Dec 6, 2006, 6:09 AM

we have a couple of "power Centres" too

they basically strip away the lifestyle things and just have stores

at least park royal has gardens and fountains and such

there are a few in seattle that are nice - university village is really nice and alderwood mall just added a "lifestyle" extension a couple years ago

SSLL

Dec 8, 2006, 11:12 PM

There are only three Holt's in Toronto (Bloor St., Yorkdale, and Sherway Gardens), and a Last Call Outlet in Vaughan Mills.

SSLL

Dec 8, 2006, 11:14 PM

From: http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1164409811383&call_pageid=968350072197&col=969048863851
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Harry's widens belt
Menswear chain has ambitious expansion plans
Founder's son eyes 50% of national upscale market
Nov. 25, 2006. 01:00 AM
DANA FLAVELLE
BUSINESS REPORTER

Tucked in the far corner of Harry Rosen's flagship store on Bloor Street, in the well-appointed custom tailoring room just above subway level, are swatches of fabric so rare that only 16 suits on Earth may be made from each sample.
It is a measure of Harry Rosen's stature in the world of men's fashion retailing that his small (by global standards) chain of Canadian specialty shops has been selected as one of the vendors.
Harry, the man, may have stepped back from the business, now that he's celebrated his 75th birthday. But his son, Larry, is ensuring his father's vision of style combined with service continues to infuse the now 16-store chain with 700 employees as it embarks on an ambitious expansion plan.
The first $20 million will be spent dramatically expanding and revamping the store on Bloor St., starting in January. The renovation will nearly double the size of the squat two-storey building by adding two more floors, of glass and steel, and include a complete interior makeover.
"It's going to be, in my humble opinion, the best men's store in the world," said Larry Rosen, who quietly took over the job of CEO at Harry Rosen Inc. when his father stepped aside.
Another $30 million will be spent on other locations over the next five years to help boost the company's stake in the Canadian market for better men's wear.
"We have 40 per cent of the market. We believe we can take it to 50 per cent," Larry predicted in an interview this week. "We broke the $200 million mark this year. We think we can take it to $300 million."
A lawyer by training with a master's degree in business administration, he describes his role as the keeper of his father's vision.
"I don't see myself filling his shoes because he was an icon," said Larry. "What I try to do is make sure the standard of service, the retail experience and the brand will carry itself."
So even though Harry personally stopped appearing in store advertisements about two years ago, the retailer's slogan is still "Ask Harry." Based on a campaign he launched in the '60s, a few years after opening the first store with his brother, Lou, it aimed to position Harry as an expert in men's clothing.
"We don't sell clothes. We assist men to develop a confident personal image," says Larry.
Want to know what's hot this holiday season? Just look around a Harry Rosen store. Here is a must-have velvet suit jacket, in a rich chocolate brown tone with the all-important peaked lapel. Larry himself will be wearing one this holiday season. There is the Andrew Marc soft-as-butter lambskin bomber jacket with removable rabbit fur liner for $1,300.
"It's flying out the doors," Larry says on a tour of the Bloor St. store.
All around the main floor is cashmere, cashmere, cashmere. From the Harry Rosen-brand sweaters for $298 to the winter caps with Elmer Fudd earflaps for $170. As Larry explains, men need someone else to pamper them. They don't do it well themselves.
Even Santa wants a gift from Harry's, the retailer suggests in this year's cheeky Christmas ad campaign.
The jolly fat man is just the latest in a long line of celebrities Harry Rosen has used over the last decade, from actor Ted Danson to author Malcolm Gladwell. Larry says he gets many of them to pose for free by making a donation to their preferred charity.
On Danson: "I met him at a regatta in Portofino that (menswear designer) Zegna was sponsoring."
In a world increasingly dominated by a handful of global retailers, Harry Rosen continues to thrive despite its relatively small stature.
Larry says they've done it by sticking to their core business. Gone is the experiment in women's fashion. Gone is the ill-fated venture into the U.S.
"Good business practise says focus on what you do well. When we were in the States it was a tremendous distraction. Since we retrenched, our business has been excellent. Sometimes doing one thing well is enough," Larry says.
The past few years have been good to luxury retailers and Harry Rosen is no exception. Even as more designer brands opened their own shops on Bloor, and the new fast-fashion imitators Zara and H&M moved in next door, Harry Rosen has prospered.
"We're in our third year of double digit growth and this year has been even better than the last two," Larry said. That's not bad for a company whose main market is the small but lucrative top 3 to 5 per cent of households with a minimum $100,000 in disposable income.
While company customers include some of the country's wealthiest business leaders, Harry Rosen also aims to appeal to younger managers, professionals, entrepreneurs, athletes and entertainers.
Larry Rosen concedes that the company has been slow to start selling online, a position it's now reconsidering "because we recognize now the younger man — under 35 — is very attuned to the virtual world." People even buy shoes online, he adds in a tone of disbelief.
In the meantime, Harry Rosen will mark its 53rd year in business next year by raising the roof on the Bloor St. store to make way for the latest concepts in brick and mortar stores.
Already one of the most productive shops in the world, selling an astonishing $1,000 worth of merchandise per square foot, Larry is betting the additional space will be another home run. Even for a luxury retailer, those numbers are high.
"This store was a masterpiece of vision by my father. When he opened it in 1987, everyone thought he was crazy," Larry recalls. "At 34,000 square feet it was huge by menswear standards. But it's been a smashing success."
The renovation will also elevate the bespoke tailoring shop to new heights. The shop, which turns out 8 to 12 custom-made suits each week, will move out of the basement and into the top floor.
In the meantime, one of the salesman reportedly already has a line on the first customer for a suit made from two of the rarest fibres in the world: the camel-like vicuna and the pashmina goat.
For a mere $19,000, that customer could lay claim to owning one of the rarest suits in the world. From Harry Rosen.

SSLL

Dec 8, 2006, 11:27 PM

From: http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=bc1dea00-1902-433c-9d99-50a262a63401&k=22258
__________
Piece by piece makeover
Working to revive venerable but tired brand, as U.S. chains have done

Hollie Shaw, Financial Post
Published: Saturday, November 25, 2006
On a recent weekday, a voice blared across the PA system of The Bay department store in suburban Toronto, urging lunch-hour shoppers to pick up a gift at the bottom of the store's escalator.
Karen, a comely pitchwoman from U.S. Jesco International Ltd., stood at a makeshift podium littered with a batch of orange plastic gadgets. Eagerly beckoning onlookers toward her while holding the tiny devices -- apple corers that double as "the world's smallest juicer!" -- she drew customers into her spiel. Those who took the freebie were treated to Karen's whirlwind presentation about knives: U.S. Jesco is the conglomerate that owns the rights to Ginsu knives, an oft-parodied staple of late-night infomercials from a quarter-century ago. Karen's powers of persuasion are remarkable.
"This is the last knife you'll ever buy," she breathes, theatrically sliding a carving knife from the company's Master Cut 2 line back and forth across the head of a steel hammer, shavings spraying across her podium.
One could never have imagined such a bald display of hucksterism inside The Bay a year ago, when its tired management team was fending off a takeover bid from South Carolina businessman Jerry Zucker and a palpable atmosphere of desperation pervaded its stores, where sales had been on the decline for five years.
But it's precisely that entrepreneurial zest which Mr. Zucker, a frustrated investor who ended up buying the whole company when his entreaties for management changes were ignored, hopes will lure consumers back to Hudson's Bay Co.'s 550 stores across Canada, which include the Zellers and Home Outfitters chains.
He points to a rebirth in the U.S. department store industry in the last year, where sales at outlets open for more than a year have climbed 4.1%, compared with a 1.3% rise at specialty clothes stores, according to the U..S. industry association International Council of Shopping Centers.
After years of bankruptcies and rapid consolidation, remaining players such as Kohl's, Macy's, and J.C. Penney have made strides by giving facelifts to tired stores, revamping old change rooms, bringing in hot brands and developing a stronger lineup of stylish and affordable house-branded goods.
Mr. Zucker, who has invested in textiles, manufacturing and entertainment companies but has never owned a retail business, hopes to work a similar magic at The Bay and Zellers, which hemorrhaged market share after Wal-Mart entered Canada in the 1990s.
Industry rumours persist that he is fixing up the chains in order to sell them to companies such as U.S. discounter Target Corp. or the home goods giant Bed Bath and Beyond, which closely resembles Home Outfitters.
So it's a surprise that changes, some sweeping and some minor, have already made a tangible impact on many stores just eight months after the takeover.
On a recent week in the lead-up to Christmas, there was a renewed sense of pageantry and bustle at The Bay's flagship outlet on Queen St. in Toronto.
The aisles were cleaner, the racks were no longer filled to bursting with merchandise, and the assortment was more fashion-forward, featuring a mix of staples, trendy styles and new higher-end brands, such as Dooney and Bourke.
The stores have eschewed the striped plastic Bay bags for a sturdier and more formal yellow bag made of paper and embossed with a white B.
Merchandising was savvier: a display of high-end kitchenware sat alongside a pillar featuring "As-Seen on TV!" stackable plastic containers and an artfully arranged tower of canned tomatoes. There are items in a greater range of prices, ethnicities, and sizes, thanks to new software that tracks consumer purchases.
The company has also been unafraid to scrap its dogs, with plans to discontinue its prosaic private label clothing line, To Go, and its housewares brand, Market Square. It will introduce new private labels in 2007.
The Bay has also addressed one of the big sticking points with consumers, making sure its key change rooms are staffed.
Across town at Zellers, a similarly surprising shift has taken place. One store, which in the past resembled the haphazard clutter of a teenager's bedroom, looked shockingly ordered at the end of two busy November weekends. Merchandise had been strategically thinned out and displayed neatly on racks and palettes. Even more striking was a change in the sales force which, in a sharp contrast to the era of former CEO George Heller, were deployed throughout the store and repeatedly approached customers to ask whether they were in need of help.
Mr. Zucker says he has increased staff levels and tried to inspire employees by making store visits to outline his vision in person. While employees were not given raises, according to industry sources, new incentive and feedback programs were implemented to encourage them to interact more frequently with customers.
"It's as though what we were saying for years and years about what would make things better is finally being heard and respected," said one employee who spoke on condition of anonymity.
But will the efforts work? Is it too late to regain the trust of customers burned by one too many bad retail experiences in the company's former incarnation?
More importantly, how will Hudson's Bay Co. be able to appeal to those in its target market, a generation of twenty to forty-something women whose shopping temperament has been strongly influenced by the rise of specialty stores and big-box giants?
"When you've lost a customer it's very hard to get them back again," said Wendy Evans, president of retail consultancy Evans & Co. "It would take a lot of creative advertising to draw people back again because a lot of people had crossed [the Bay and Zellers] off of their list of places to go. I don't think anything's ever too late. We've seen it work in the States. so I don't think the format or the concept is dead, but it's a very steep hill."
Specialty stores have taken a significant bite out of the businesses that department stores used to dominate, most notably apparel and so-called soft goods, such as towels. Department stores' share of apparel sank to 18.6% in the year ending June, 2006, from 23.5% five years ago, according to market researcher Trendex North America. During the same period, specialty stores' share had spiked to 51% from 46.6%.
One advantage the company has, Ms. Evans agreed, is the state of uncertainty at Sears Canada Inc., whose U.S. majority owner was recently stymied by minority shareholders in its attempt to take over the retailer. Sears cut its workforce last year and has been trying to improve operating performance by taking costs out of the business -- something that analysts say can help profits in the short-term, but could hurt sales over time.
It's too early to tell how successful Mr. Zucker will be in his efforts to put Canada's oldest retailer on the comeback trail, and the transformation is far from over. Service, selection and presentation were all subpar at a Bay outlet a few blocks north of the flagship on a recent visit, a location just steps from the tony Bloor St. shopping strip.
But if the response to Karen from Jesco was any indication, customers like the frills. At the end of her energetic presentation, which lasted about 20 minutes, all but two of the 25 or so observers bought the kit for the "low, low price of $29.95." A set of four Ginsu steak knives were thrown in for good measure.

SSLL

Dec 8, 2006, 11:29 PM

From: http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=b26fe956-d24e-45a7-8f0c-860dba164295
___________
Friday » December 8 » 2006

Home Depot braces for rival Lowe's debut
Triples appliances space

Hollie Shaw
Financial Post

Thursday, November 30, 2006

Home Depot Canada is making a major push into appliances in advance of rival Lowe's Cos. entry into Canada next year, tripling store square footage in the category and offering a far greater breadth of selection.

The country's biggest home improvement chain is expanding its appliance departments to 2,500 square feet from an average of 880 square feet, and displaying up to 200 items compared with 70. The upgraded departments will be in 76 Home Depot stores by the end of next year, roughly half of the retailer's store network. The retailer has reconfigured its flooring and tools areas to accommodate the changes.

"We have been taking market share so aggressively ... that we now have a greater assortment to provide our customers with what they are asking for," said Karol Allen, divisional merchandise director at Home Depot Canada.

North Carolina-based Lowe's, second in market share behind Home Depot in the United States, is that country's second-largest retailer of appliances behind Sears Holdings Corp.

"Lowe's is definitely focusing on appliances, but this initiative happened long before Lowe's announced it was coming in Canada," Ms. Allen said, noting Home Depot's appliance sales grew 25% last year and were expected to climb more than 30% in 2006.

Home Depot Canada began selling appliances in 2001 after seeing an opportunity in a category dominated by Sears Canada, which at the time had a staggering 40% share of the market.

But savvy big-box chains have steadily eroded the business at traditional appliance retailers. Sears has opened some furniture and appliance outlets in response, but its market share has still tumbled.

"It makes sense that people have moved into shopping at [home improvement chains] because people doing renovations can do a one-stop shop there and they can also get financing for the entire project," from contracting to countertops, said retail consultant Richard Talbot, president of Talbot Consultants.

Sears Canada's share of the $3.5-billion major-appliance market stood at 29.3% for the year ending September, 2006, according market researcher Synovate Canada's home durables tracking study. Home Depot's share was 3.9%, behind The Brick (7.8%), Future Shop (4.6%), and Leon's (4.2%).

"Consumer demand for major appliances has been very buoyant during the past few years, benefiting in particular from strength in the new and resale home market," said Adrian Murphy, syndicated research services director at Synovate.

"While market leader Sears remains the top retail destination for Canadians looking to buy a major appliance, the space is becoming increasingly competitive."

Research shows consumers will cut corners on commodities in order to splurge on such higher-end goods as appliances with an emphasis on design.

"Appliances have really become a bit of a decor item," Ms. Allen noted, with consumers eschewing the "white boxes" of yesteryear for pricier stainless steel styles or those with added features. "There is more of a design component, and innovation has spurred consumers to rotate their purchases much more rapidly."

Home Depot and rival Rona Inc. of Quebec have been scooping up real estate in advance of the arrival of Lowe's, which is scheduled to open six to 10 big-box stores in Ontario in the second half of 2007. Rona does not sell major appliances.

Home Depot is opening 18 stores this fiscal year -- for a total of 155 stores -- and will likely sustain that pace the following year.

The retailer is also looking at strategies to maintain its market dominance in Canada against Lowe's, which has a reputation for carrying more stylish merchandise. A recent management meeting at Home Depot's headquarters in Atlanta reportedly focused on ways to combat Lowe's in Canada, noted Michael McLarney, publisher of hardware industry magazine Hardlines.

SSLL

Dec 8, 2006, 11:31 PM

From: http://www.globest.com/retail/news/1_572/northeast/21921-1.html
_________
Aeropostale Looks to Canada
By Beverly Ford
Last updated: November 30, 2006 07:51am

NEW YORK CITY-Teen-apparel retailer Aeropostale Inc. will go international next year when it takes its trendy, mall-based shops to Canada, a company official says. The chain, which grew by 12 stores domestically during the third quarter, said it plans to add more US outlets next year and will step outside the border to bring its mix of hip styles to Canadian teenagers.
The expansion announcement comes as Aeropostale closed on a third quarter that produced record sales and strong earnings on the verge of what the company expects to be a robust holiday season. The mall-based retailer, which operates more than 700 stores that cater to 11 to 18-year-olds, says net income for the quarter ended Oct. 28 rose by 25% to $32.6 million, or 61 cents per share, a gain of more than $6 million over the prior year’s quarter when it earned $26.1 million, or 47 cents per share.

Sales for the quarter were up 18.7% to a record $385.5 million, from $324.7 million in the year-ago period while comparable store sales rose 5.6% against a 1.5% drop in comparable store sales during the third quarter of 2005.

“During the quarter, we experienced solid sales and margin growth in classifications which will continue to drive our business for the remainder of the year,” Julian R. Geiger, Aeropostale’s chairman and CEO said, adding that the results exceeded company expectations.
Geiger attributed the company’s strong third-quarter performance to the success of several initiatives, including improvements to merchandising assortments.

“We are very pleased with what we accomplished in the past 12 months and 2007 looks to be a promising year,” he told analysts in a conference call.

For November, comparable store sales were up 1% and total sales for the month jumped 11.5% to more than $15 million from $134.3 million in the year ago period to $149.7 million, the company said. Driven by deep discount promotions, same store sales rose to the mid-single digits for the two prime shopping days after Thanksgiving, Aeropostale said. That compares to a 30% jump in comparable store sales on the same days in 2005.

For the fourth quarter, Aeropostale says it expects earnings of 89 cents to 91 cents, on par with the 90 cents expected by analysts.

SSLL

Dec 8, 2006, 11:32 PM

From: http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1165014634254&call_pageid=968350072197&col=969048863851
__________
Malls get a holiday makeover
Traditional malls are hard to beat when shopping in comfort and style and owners are investing heavily to keep it that way
Dec. 2, 2006. 01:00 AM
DANA FLAVELLE
BUSINESS REPORTER

It's the first Saturday in December and malls across the GTA are gearing up for the Christmas crush. Faced with increased competition from online stores and big-box retailers, malls like Square One in Mississauga are investing millions in dramatic facelifts.
General manager Nance MacDonald, who has been with Square One since it opened 34 years ago, says a lot has changed since the farmer across the street parked his horse on the bike rack to do his shopping.
"Everyone thought the developer was insane," said MacDonald, referring to legendary Mississauga developer Bruce McLaughlin, of The McLaughlin Group, who began building Square One when it was still surrounded by farmers' fields. "I was marketing to a market that didn't exist yet."
Now, the mall gets 22 million visitors a year, including walk-in traffic from the forest of condos that circle the parking lot and MacDonald figures sales have nowhere to go but up as suburban growth continues.
Owned by Oxford Retail Group, which also owns Yorkdale Shopping Centre, Scarborough Town Centre, and dozens of others beyond Toronto's borders, Square One is the latest proof that neither retail power centres nor Internet retailers have replaced indoor shopping in comfort and style.
With the exception of Vaughan Mills, no one in Canada has built a new enclosed mall in more than 14 years. But owners of traditional regional malls, most of them cash-rich pension fund management firms, have been pouring millions into existing properties.
"I think we're in a period of intense buoyant optimism with the vast majority of regional shopping centres across the continent, from coast to coast, having invested heavily over the last several years to upgrade their facilities at every level," said Anthony Stokan, a principal with the consulting firm Anthony Russell Inc., in Toronto, and author of Naked Consumption: Retail Trends Uncovered.
"The vast majority of retailers have recognized that even though they may have gone into power centres, or opened factory outlets, no one delivers traffic consistently like a regional shopping centre."
"That's really the key to the whole thing; the absolute pleasure of one-stop shopping in a controlled environment," Stokan explained. "That's not to say warehouse clubs like Costco aren't busy. They are. But the market place is big enough to appeal to the extremes. There are people who cherish the functionality of warehouse or big-box shopping. And there are millions of consumers who enjoy the luxury of the regional shopping centre."
Besides, Stokan asks, where else are you going to find Santa?
Sales data at enclosed malls in Canada are hard to come by as the industry lumps power centres in with traditional indoor malls. But they're generally considered to be somewhat more productive than their U.S. counterparts, Stokan said.
If sales at U.S. malls on Black Friday, considered the start of the holiday shopping season, are any indication, Canadian mall owners could be in for a robust season. Sales south of the border rose 6 per cent last Friday, according to the International Council of Shopping Centres, quoting independent research firm ShopperTrak.
Over a three-year period, ending next year, the Oxford Retail Group and its owner, OMERS Realty, the municipal employees pension fund for Ontario, will have put $33 million into Square One, one of the country's largest malls at 1.7 million square feet.
The makeover in Mississauga, at Hurontario St. and Burnhamthorpe Rd., is typical of the new direction malls are taking. Higher ceilings, cleaner signage and less clutter are all aimed at making the mall easier to navigate. Distinctive colours divide the mall into three "neighbourhoods" — north, south and central. Specialty menswear retailer Harry Rosen has moved into the mall. European cosmetics retailer Sephora has opened a shop. Casual-wear chain Eddie Bauer opened its latest prototype store a few days ago. The mall is also home to the largest Wal-Mart store in North America, at a staggering 240,000 square feet, nearly twice as big as the average Wal-mart in Canada.
"We have almost every store you can imagine in the middle-range," said MacDonald.
In three decades, Square One has undergone three renovations and three expansions. But this latest is the most extensive one in MacDonald's memory.
It's now home to 360 retailers and 5,000 employees, including 100 mall administrative and maintenance staff. For now, traffic in the mall is steady but the real crush won't come until later this month.
Altering an age-old formula that saw discounts rise in January as merchants try to clear shelves after Christmas, MacDonald said she thinks more stores will stock new and full-priced goods in January as gift cards send a second wave of holiday shoppers to stores.

SpongeG

Dec 13, 2006, 5:55 AM

a number of Wal-mart stores across BC will be open for 24 hours next week - for one week only

the only lower mainland one seems to be the Langley Store...

-----------

Langley Wal-Mart new Christmas hours
December 12, 2006 - 5:08 am
By: Mike Hanafin/Vancouver Sun

LANGLEY (NEWS1130) - Last minute Christmas shoppers in Langley will be able to stretch the clock next week. The Langley Wal-Mart is one of 5 stores in BC planning to be open 24 hours a day, just for the week before Christmas. Wal-Mart stores in Victoria, Kelowna, Kamloops and Prince George will also be open all night.

Rusty van Reddick

Dec 13, 2006, 4:37 PM

a number of Wal-mart stores across BC will be open for 24 hours next week - for one week only

the only lower mainland one seems to be the Langley Store...

Two stores in Calgary too, looks like a company policy- not that I'd be caught dead in a wal-mart.

SpongeG

Dec 13, 2006, 10:34 PM

the one across the border in bellingham is now open 24 hours year round - it just started those hours this past summer

its weird almost all the grocery stores in bellingham are open 24 horus yet there are only a handful of 24 hour ones here in vancouver

malek

Dec 20, 2006, 10:49 PM

Rooster logo raises St. Hubert's hackles
Launches action. Alleges infringement by Vancouver eatery
CP

Published: Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Quebec-based chicken restaurant chain Groupe St-Hubert Inc. has announced a legal action seeking to stop a numbered company doing business in the Vancouver area under the name Montreal BBQ from using a logo depicting the head of a rooster.

St-Hubert, which has 96 restaurants in Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick, alleges infringement of its copyright and trademarks.

The company, in business since 1951, "insists on advising the population that it is in no way related to the business of 0753882 B.C. Ltd. nor to the Montreal BBQ restaurant located on Hastings St. in Vancouver."

Groupe St-Hubert, which characterizes itself as "the favourite restaurant chain of Quebecers," added yesterday that it is not currently offering franchises in British Columbia.

SpongeG

Dec 20, 2006, 11:30 PM

aww probably some montreal homesick people wanted to have the same thing

SSLL

Dec 21, 2006, 3:17 AM

neilson

Dec 21, 2006, 3:51 AM

There's an unwritten agreement between St-Hubert and Swiss Chalet to not compete against 1 another in the same market.

I like Swiss Chalet better anyway.

malek

Dec 21, 2006, 4:40 AM

SpongeG

Dec 21, 2006, 4:51 AM

i remember when i moved to ontario for school in 1992 - seeing one or two huberts - i never did try them

i miss harveys though - i used to like going there

we have some in BC but they are inside home depots

Taller Better

Dec 21, 2006, 4:57 AM

Swiss Chalet and St Hubert taste exactly the same. Awful. Right down to the weird orange sauce, and the toasted hamburger bun. Gross. Watery, greasy chicken. However, St Hubert's is right to protect its logo in case they want to move into BC.

SpongeG

Dec 21, 2006, 4:59 AM

haha

i don't ever eat at swiss chalet

my old room mate ate there all the time he loved it

i think because his brother worked there and he was always sent certificates to get free food

do they have nandos out east? they are ok - tried them a couple times - they are from south africa...

Taller Better

Dec 21, 2006, 5:53 AM

The trouble with Walmart is you have to get all gussied up fancy-like to go shopping there:

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/5976/rednecknewspaperarticlekl9.jpg

CMD UW

Dec 21, 2006, 5:57 AM

Two stores in Calgary too, looks like a company policy- not that I'd be caught dead in a wal-mart.
Same in Edmonton...2 stores 24hrs for this week.

CMD UW

Dec 21, 2006, 5:57 AM

The trouble with Walmart is you have to get all gussied up fancy-like to go shopping there:

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/5976/rednecknewspaperarticlekl9.jpg

I really don't know what to say about that comment....holyf*ck...

malek

Dec 21, 2006, 6:01 AM

someone said something about tiffany and Montreal, one is opening up in the same building as the Holt Renfrew.

Taller Better

Dec 21, 2006, 6:03 AM

someone said something about tiffany and Montreal, one is opening up in the same building as the Holt Renfrew.

That building is entirely Holt Renfrew, right? It will probably be a boutique
run by HR, like the old one in Vancouver, or maybe like the new boutique in Calgary.

malek

Dec 21, 2006, 6:10 AM

yeah same building i think, i saw a 3/4 page ad about it in the paper.

kind of the Dior boutique.

Claeren

Dec 21, 2006, 7:22 AM

Same in Edmonton...2 stores 24hrs for this week.

It has been so successful in Calgary that ALL Walmarts in Calgary and the one in Red Deer will now be open 24hrs until x-mas eve.

CrAzY! :happysad:

Claeren.

mersar

Dec 21, 2006, 7:36 AM

Not all, just a few. I was in the one at Northlands today and they had a huge banner, but Royal Oak is still regular hours only.

Supposedly from what my dad had heard the ones that are staying open managed to do it without needing to hire any more staff... they've just trained a couple of the night crew to run the tills since they are there anyways, plus offered more shifts to those who want to take overnight.

West_aust

Dec 21, 2006, 8:16 AM

Never heard about that, there used to be swiss chalets here... but it never caught on and failed. It tasted like carton.

Harveys is doing bad too and is managed by the same group as swiss chalet, maybe they have bozos working there who have no clue?

both are owned by Cara, which imo is the worst managed restaurant business in Quebec at least

no marketing whatsoever, open restaurants and closed them after a year...

They opened 1 montana's cookhouse in kirkland, unless you've been to the coliseum next to no way you'll know about that restaurant

Closed all swiss chalets, most harveys are ugly and need major renovations..

Their only chain in which they did partly good is Kelsey's, even then, no marketing at all... And second cup, but that is not really a restaurant

Taller Better

Dec 21, 2006, 3:13 PM

I like the concept of Harvey's, but I dislike the "Mystery Meat" flavour of the patties they use. I heard that in Toronto at least, Harvey's was created as a kind of holding spot to sit on valuable pieces of land, like Bloor and Yonge. But in the case of Hooker Harveys, they may be waiting some time for the land to skyrocket! ;)
also Harvey's are hideous and 70's looking inside. For fast food burgers, Wendy's is by far the best.

CharlesMunroe

Dec 21, 2006, 3:33 PM

I wish St-Hubert reopened their Southern Ontario stores. I remember there being at least a good half-dozen in my childhood (in Toronto). There was one on the Queensway in Toronto as recently as the summer, which is now gone:(

The one on the Queensway is still basically St. Hubert. It is the exact same menu, the exact same food and the same prices. Even the colours are the same, just the name has changed.

Claeren

Dec 21, 2006, 5:31 PM

harls

Dec 21, 2006, 6:36 PM

I thought all the Wal-Marts in Ontario were open 24hrs this week, but I went to one last night in the east end of Ottawa and it closed at 11.

the two locations on the Quebec side closed at 11 as well. I guess we're not as hardcore over here.

Taller Better

Dec 21, 2006, 6:54 PM

I'm trying to envision being in a Walmart at 3am. Not pretty.

SpongeG

Dec 21, 2006, 7:37 PM

of the 6 or so walmarts in the Vancouver area - only one stayed open 24 hours - and only 5 stayed open throughtout all of BC for this week

i wonder if they will see if they can stay open 24 hours year round

most of the walmarts in the states are 24 hours now - its great when travelling

SpongeG

Dec 21, 2006, 9:13 PM

Edmonton liquor store asks: Cash, credit or Canadian Tire money?
Thursday, December 21, 2006 | 01:07 PM ET
There's a new place to spend that wad of Canadian Tire money you've been saving up — an Edmonton liquor store. But it may not last.

A big sign outside of Liquor International says the store accepts Canadian Tire money at par, in addition to more traditional forms of payment.

"A lot of customers come in and they think we're joking when we say we take Canadian Tire money — and no, we're dead serious," manager Mike Reimer told CBC News.

Canadian Tire money was first introduced as a loyalty reward program in 1958 and the bonus coupons can be used for almost any purchase at the giant retailer.

Reimer said Liquor International began accepting Canadian Tire money about a year ago, adding that the alternative payment method is proving to be very popular.

He said on some days Liquor International takes in $200 worth of the coupons that feature a grinning Sandy McTire. Customers use the coupons to buy beer, whiskey or anything else in the store.

When asked if Liquor International was allowed to accept Canadian Tire money as payment, Reimer said the store had the blessing of the province.

However, the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission says such alternative methods of payment are only allowed if the proceeds go to charity.

"If it's something other than for charity, then it's not allowed," commission spokesperson Robyn Cochrane said.

Staff and management at Liquor International generally use the Canadian Tire money they collect to buy business supplies, although Reimer admits that sometimes the store's owners will buy something a little bigger.

Reimer explained how one of the owners used the coupons to buy a replacement garage door opener and a new barbecue this summer.

Canadian Tire spokesperson Lisa Gibson said she's heard of Canadian Tire money being used for all kinds of things, but this is a first.

"On the one hand [it's] flattering, but on the other hand it sort of wasn't the objective of our loyalty program," she said.

Gibson says it's doubtful the company would try to stop Liquor International from accepting Canadian Tire money. But the liquor outlet could face a warning or fine if the province enforces its rules.

http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/comm-oddities/2006/12/edmonton_liquor_store_asks_cas.html

Boris2k7

Dec 22, 2006, 6:26 PM

Alberta holds lead in retail spending
Christmas shopping peak expected today

Mario Toneguzzi, Calgary Herald
Published: Friday, December 22, 2006

As Calgarians prepare for the busiest shopping day of the Christmas season, there comes word that Albertans continue to outpace the rest of the country by far when it comes to annual percentage growth in retail spending -- almost tripling the national average.

Statistics Canada reported Thursday that retail sales in the province have remained consistently above 15 per cent growth over the previous year for each month in 2006. The seasonally adjusted retail sales numbers for October showed the province spending 15.8 per cent more than at the same time a year ago, compared with a national average of 5.7 per cent.

Also on Thursday, Visa Canada said the festive frenzy will reach its peak today between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. as 700,000 Albertans will spend an estimated $257 million on last-minute holiday gifts.

According to the eighth annual Visa gift-giving survey, 33 per cent of shoppers have yet to cross everyone off their list and will be out in force in hopes of finding the perfect present.

"Over the last eight years, we've found that the busiest shopping day is typically Dec. 23, but since Christmas Day falls on a Monday this year, we anticipate Canadians will try to finish their shopping on Friday," said Tania Freedman, director of corporate communications for Visa Canada.

And Albertans will be spending lots of money. Visa says average spending on holiday gifts in Alberta will amount to $1,042 compared with the national average of $930.

Rick Egelton, chief economist for the BMO Financial Group, said Christmas sales activity in Alberta will lead the nation and will be 15 to 20 per cent higher than in 2005. That compared with a national average of six per cent.

That's great news for local retailers who have been benefiting this year from burgeoning sales in the city.

Erin Hryniuk, owner of First Class Fashions in Willowpark Village, said sales for the store this year have increased by about 20 to 25 per cent from a year ago.

"We've seen sales increase, but we've seen sales increase more on the casual side," she said. "Women don't dress in suits anymore except for lawyers and people in corporate boardrooms. Women are dressing much more casual.

"A woman can come into the store and she can find something for work, something to go on a cruise. It's very diversified, which is really what enhances the product."

Her store, which opened in 1983, is dedicated to the Joseph Ribkoff line of clothing. It started with a small section about two years ago and now 1,000 square feet are dedicated to Joseph Ribkoff. "And we go from size four to size 20," she said.

Hryniuk said the store has experienced about a 30 per cent increase in sales this year in that line of clothing.

Grant Kosowan, regional director for Orange National Retail Group Inc., said massive net migration into the province and "an economy which is completely separated from almost reality in Canada" have contributed to the booming retail industry in Alberta.

Statistics Canada said retail sales in Alberta were $4.483 billion in October, down only 0.1 per cent from the September figure of $4.488 billion.

- - -

Retail sales

(Seasonally adjusted)

Oct. 2005 to Oct. 2006

per cent change
Alberta 15.8 %
Nova Scotia 6.6 %
Saskatchewan 6.2 %
Yukon 6.1 %
British Columbia 5.7 %
Quebec 4.5 %
Prince Edward Island 4.5 %
Manitoba 4.2 %
Nunavut 3.7 %
New Brunswick 3.5 %
Ontario 3.1 %
Northwest Territories 2.5 %
Newfoundland & Labrador 1.0 %
Canada 5.7 %
Source: Statistics Canada

mtoneguzzi@theherald.canwest.com

Taller Better

Dec 22, 2006, 6:43 PM

That liquour store accepting Canadian Tire money is so ghetto! :haha:

SpongeG

Dec 22, 2006, 9:20 PM

i went downtown last night and couldn't believe how dead it was - almost all the shops were closed up by 9 pm, the bay and sears were open until 10 pm but other than my friend and I there was pretty much no one on some of the floors

the malls out in the burbs were mostly all open untill 11 pm and looked busy when i went past

its weird how the downtown is so dense yet the shopping was so dead

malek

Dec 22, 2006, 10:13 PM

last weekend, we could barely walk on the curb, so packed it was on ste-catherine.

Carrefour Laval, was mega jam packed, geez, i hate it.

malek

Dec 23, 2006, 3:10 AM

Rona élargit son réseau

22 décembre 2006
Jesse Caron, LesAffaires.com

http://www.lesaffaires.com/fr/images/shim.gif

Rona a annoncé hier une autre expansion de réseau canadien.

Rona a recruté récemment 19 marchands un peu partout au Canada, rapporte La Presse. Parmi les nouveaux Rona, dix se trouvent en Ontario, trois sont situés en Nouvelle-Écosse, et deux autres ont pignon sur rue en Saskatchewan.

Le détaillant de produits de rénovation s’est cette fois-ci affilié à un seul magasin au Québec. Il s’agit de la Quincaillerie Felmax, de Gracefield, en Outaouais.

Ensemble, les 19 nouveaux établissements ajouteront 102 M$ aux ventes annuelles de la chaîne Rona.

Cette dernière a recruté 35 marchands déjà établis au Canada depuis le début de 2006. Ils représentent une superficie supplémentaire de 305 000 pieds carrés.

Le titre de Rona a terminé la séance d’hier à 20,98 $ à la Bourse de Toronto, en hausse de 1,8 % (0,38 $).

neilson

Dec 23, 2006, 4:12 AM

English please? Something about Rona expanding?

malek

Dec 23, 2006, 4:14 AM

i didn't find it in english.

10 ontario, 3 in NS and 2 in Saskatchewan and 4 others not mentioned.

19 brand new, 35 new total in 2006.

alps

Dec 23, 2006, 4:17 AM

When are they building these stores? Next year? Rona is like a Canadian version of Home Depot?

malek

Dec 23, 2006, 4:39 AM

at this moment the article says RONA has recruited these new (franchise?) owner, it doesn't say when we'll see the buildings, must be 2007.

http://www.rona.ca/contentMgr/img/assets/1732-1_SECTION1127404127683.jpg

600+ locations
14 million sq ft
25,000+ employees
5.6 billions in sales

harls

Dec 23, 2006, 4:52 AM

I went to Wuhlll-Mart in the Plateau tonight (in Hull). Fuck did I want to punch someone. Leave it to me to do last minute shopping at the most horrible store on earth. I deserved it.

That and the sheet of black ice on the parking lot made for a most excellent evening. at least I got my frustrations out by pulling the e-brake and doing a few three-sixties near the theater while frightened soccer moms rushed their children to safety.

someone123

Dec 23, 2006, 5:07 AM

I went to Wuhlll-Mart in the Plateau tonight (in Hull). Fuck did I want to punch someone. Leave it to me to do last minute shopping at the most horrible store on earth. I deserved it.

Today counted as last minute? :uhh:

harls

Dec 23, 2006, 5:08 AM

It's pretty close, according to Seamus O'Regan and Beverly Thomson.

BlackRedGold

Dec 23, 2006, 5:31 AM

I went to Wuhlll-Mart in the Plateau tonight (in Hull). Fuck did I want to punch someone. Leave it to me to do last minute shopping at the most horrible store on earth. I deserved it.

You went to Wal-Mart AND Zellers on the same night?

SSLL

Dec 23, 2006, 5:49 AM

The one on the Queensway is still basically St. Hubert. It is the exact same menu, the exact same food and the same prices. Even the colours are the same, just the name has changed.

Yeah? I'll give it a go. It's interesting Eastern Ontarians are the only ones who can experience both Swiss Chalet and St-Hub.

miketoronto

Dec 23, 2006, 7:33 PM

SpongeG

Dec 23, 2006, 8:24 PM

the cafes, bars, pubs and clubs were all packed though

the roxy had a line up outside - as usual

SpongeG

Dec 24, 2006, 3:22 AM

Ritchies Bros. grosses $2.72 billion US in sales

VANCOUVER - Richmond, B.C.-based Ritchie Bros. grossed an estimated record $2.72 billion US in sales this year, the world's largest auctioneer announced Friday.

That's a 30 per cent gain on last year despite tight markets for industrial equipment around the globe, said CEO Peter Blake.

``It truly was a remarkable year for our company,'' Blake said in a statement. ``We helped a record number of buyers and sellers to access the global market using our unreserved auctions.''

Ritchie Bros. sells a broad range of used and new industrial equipment typically used in the construction, transportation, materials handling, mining, forestry, petroleum, marine, real estate and agricultural industries.

Working with a record number of truck and equipment sellers, the auctioneer handled more than 32,000 consignments and sold more than 240,000 lots, up from more than 203,000 lots in 2005.

It conducted 177 industrial auctions with average gross sales of more than $14 million US in 13 countries throughout North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australia. It also held 141 agricultural auctions and one real estate auction.

The company's Internet bidding service set records with more than 9,660 qualified customers from 76 countries making purchases of more than $446 million US worth of trucks, equipment, and real estate, a 57 per cent increase over last year's online gross auction sales.

Internet bidders represented about 24 per cent of total registered bidders at industrial auctions and they were the buyers or runner-up bidders on 24 per cent of the lots offered online.

The company's biggest auction in more than 40 years of business took place in February in Orlando, Fla., generating gross sales of more than $113 million US.

There was also a Canadian record-breaking auction in Edmonton in October which generated gross sales of more than $52 million Cdn.

http://www.canada.com/topics/finance/story.html?id=c0d05266-34bb-41d2-b06c-b0c3ede82a33&k=82694

SSLL

Dec 25, 2006, 12:08 AM

From: http://www.canada.com:80/ottawacitizen/news/business/story.html?id=622ed3a1-eccf-4952-ac4e-ab010e9f6a83&rfp=dta
_______________
RadioShack to close last nine Canadian stores

Vito Pilieci, The Ottawa Citizen
Published: Saturday, December 09, 2006
RadioShack Corp. is pulling the plug on nine corporately owned stores in Canada, less than a year after they opened for business.
The U.S. electronics retailer says the outlets will close by January.
The stores were opened in a rebranding effort by the company in January 2006 in an attempt to reassert a foothold in the Canadian market after severing ties with RadioShack Canada in 2004.
None of the stores are located in the Ottawa area. Those to be closed are located in Edmonton, Calgary and Sherwood Park, Alta., as well as Burlington, Mississauga, Pickering and Scarborough, Ont.
The company said the stores are being closed so it can refocus resources on business in the United States.
The closing of the stores will not affect The Source by Circuit City, which was formerly RadioShack Canada. The Source was formed after a lengthy legal battle with the U.S. retailer over the name RadioShack.
RadioShack Canada's former owner was InterTAN Canada Ltd.
InterTAN licensed the named RadioShack to be used in Canada, but when its more than 900 Canadian stores were bought by giant U.S. electronics retailer Circuit City in May 2004, the licensing agreement ended and the name of the stores had to be changed.

SSLL

Dec 25, 2006, 12:10 AM

From: http://www.insidetoronto.ca/to/scarborough/story/3818814p-4417594c.html?loc=scarborough
______________
Condominium shopping centres slated for north Scarborough
Steeles Avenue from Kennedy to Markham seen as tourist zone

MIKE ADLER
Dec. 19, 2006

The condominium concept brought many people to Scarborough to live. Now it's going to revolutionize shopping here.
Built in the mid-1990s on the north side of Steeles Avenue in Markham, Pacific Mall, which still bills itself as the "largest indoor Asian mall in North America" brought in a novel idea: its 400 stores are individually owned.

But two new condominium malls, each hoping become a regional shopping destination bigger than Pacific Mall, are planned for the Scarborough side of Steeles.

Backers say their hundreds of stores, some as small as a closet-sized 90 square feet, offer condo-mall shoppers a level of comparison shopping the regular retail malls lack. Shops of a few hundred square feet are also a business opportunity, they add, for immigrant entrepreneurs without the funds to lease a larger store or those who have been shunned by retail malls as an unknown quantity.

"The pattern of shopping has changed totally," said Lawrence Wong, CFO and a partner in The Landmark, a condo mall on Steeles near Middlefield Road whose 700-store Phase 1 is approved and may be open by winter 2008.

Condo store owners "don't need a big profit margin, so the shoppers can enjoy a unique product at a lower price," Wong said in an interview last week.

Meanwhile, a former Canadian Tire just east of Kennedy Road and nearly across from Pacific Mall, has been converted to a 281-store condo mall, Splendid China, whose grand opening is scheduled for Feb. 17, Chinese New Year's Eve.

And though the city has concerns about its effect on local traffic - and is being forced to fight the mall developer at the Ontario Municipal Board - Splendid China plans a second phase of 700 stores on what is now its parking lot. That larger phase is already 95 per cent sold, said Paul Jone, owner of Visar Realty Inc. and broker for the project. The parking lot, he added, would be replaced by a four-storey garage.

Jone, who has worked six years on Splendid China, doesn't see the mall as competitor for Pacific Mall and its companion on the Markham side, Market Village.

"We will be complimentary and beneficial to each other," he said this week, predicting the busy stretch of Steeles from Kennedy to Markham Road will attract tourists and "keep the area booming."

The city, which has heard nearby Heathwood residents say Splendid China would invite shoppers to cut through their neighbourhood, has not finished a report city council needs to make a decision on Phase 2. It's been waiting for the developer to revise a traffic study, said Renrick Ashby, senior planner on the file.

"Lots of stuff needs to happen" before staff can recommend approval, he said.

Splendid China, however, has wasted no time in sending the stalled Phase 2 plan to the OMB, which could force a decision. A pre-hearing is set for February.

Jone, however, said Splendid China's plans for traffic control are "excellent" and include extending Redlea Avenue from Steeles to Passmore Avenue by January 2008 and opening Silver Star Boulevard to Passmore as well.

The Landmark, which like Splendid China will come with a food court and several restaurants, is also relying on Passmore to channel traffic. Its backers are also paying to extend State Crown Boulevard to Steeles as well as widen sections of Steeles and Markham Road, Wong said.

Now being prepared for construction on what was mainly vacant farmland on the edge of an industrial zone, The Landmark - "a shopper's paradise, an investor's precious gemstone" - had the support of local politicians before it received approvals this summer.

Then-Ward 41 Councillor Bas Balkissoon (Scarborough-Rouge River) said he heard about 18 months ago from The Landmark (Canada) Inc. president Charles Chan, not knowing Chan had been his neighbour for seven years. At a meeting over coffee, Chan asked Balkissoon, who is now Scarborough-Rouge River MPP, for advice "on how to get his mall built," Balkissoon recalled at a press conference this month.

He said he convinced Chan to have the condo mall auction a store to raise money for the Yee Hong Community Wellness Foundation and provide a second store free as an information booth for the Yee Hong Centres for Geriatric Care.

The mall "will finish off an area in Ward 41 that has sat vacant for years" and change the face of Scarborough, Balkissoon said.

Chin Lee, the current councillor who said he was also at the meeting with Chan, voiced his own approval. "The community itself benefits and we all come out winners," he said.

The Landmark will be "divided into colourful theme zones" for different items, which Wong said is an innovation from Asia that lets shoppers better compare products and price.

English will be mandatory on all mall signs, he added. "We want to make everyone come in, not just Chinese."

The Landmark, whose promotional video says its "vision is even more ambitious than the shopping paradise we have suggested" hasn't finished deciding what to build for a Phase 2, Wong said.

But he added the mall developer is part of a larger association called the Tapscott Landowners Group, which hopes to build on up to a million square feet of retail in the area, with The Landmark covering half a million.

The mall could also see satellite buildings housing large retailers that are popular with customers of all backgrounds, Wong suggested.

"Our dream is, Let the West meet the East."

SSLL

Dec 25, 2006, 12:12 AM

From: http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=e9f3d75d-cdd7-4fbf-815f-0d1b76465f35&k=44212
________________
Yankee Doodle retail

Sean Silcoff, Financial Post
Published: Saturday, December 23, 2006
Without a doubt, we are really seeing the Americanization of the Canadian retail sector. If they haven't bought it (The Bay), they've built it (Home Depot). And with the world awash in private-equity money and cheap credit, more potential foreign buyers have put Canadian retailers on their radar screens.
In October, 2000, Mitch Goldhar, Wal-Mart's Canadian real estate developer, declared that within five years "all retailers serving Canada on a national basis will be foreign owned."
His timing may have been off, but Mr. Goldhar nailed the trend. In the past six years, foreigners have bought some of Canada's biggest and best-known retailers, including Dollarama, Future Shop, yoga wear merchant Lululemon Athletica and, this year, Hudson's Bay Co., lingerie seller La Senza and jeans maker and retailer Buffalo Group.
If they haven't bought, they have built. New entrants include European banners Zara and H & M and U.S. favourites Pottery Barn, Abercrombie & Fitch, and Build-A-Bear Workshop. Some, such as Apple, have been awed by the high volumes in their Canadian outlets. More chains are coming, including Lowe's and Crate and Barrel.
Much has obviously changed since Wal-Mart and Home Depot entered Canada in 1994, not least that Canadians have learned to expect better from their retailers.
Now that shoppers have become better served, investors are starting to benefit as well. Thanks to the eye-popping sums paid, in particular, $1-billion for Dollarama in 2004 and $710-million for La Senza this fall, and the strength of the Canadian economy, retail has ended its long drought as one of Canada's most moribund sectors for investors.
Across the country, merchants have begun doing the back-of-theenvelope calculations to figure out what they could get for their businesses if they were to sell or take on partners. That is, if a slew of eager private equity firms and investment banks haven't beaten them to it.
"I don't think there is a retailer in Canada who wouldn't sell" for the price that lingerie merchant La Senza received from Victoria's Secret owner, The Limited Brands, said one senior retail industry veteran in Montreal.
That deal valued La Senza -- which operates 318 stores in Canada and has 327 licensed outlets in 39 countries -- at an impressive 9.3- times the ratio of the firm's enterprise value to operating profit.
Receiving Christmas cards is nice, and gift cards are even nicer, judging by their growing popularity
way of the U.S. mass merchant juggernauts, honing in on niches they could dominate. Some managed to break the curse of Canadian retailers past by thriving beyond Canada's borders. Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. has grown into the second-largest independent convenience store operator in the United States, while La Senza and shoe merchant Aldo Group have franchised stores around the world. Bath and beauty retailer Fruits & Passions has franchised 60 outlets in Asia, Europe and Mexico (in addition to its 90 in Canada) and sold its branded products to some of the world's great department stores, including Harrods and Nordstrom.
But the retailers marking these recent successes, which have put Canadian retail on the global map, are also the very ones most likely to have foreign owners calling the shots before long. Jean Hurteau, chief executive of Fruits & Passion's parent company, shrugs off that likelihood. After selling 30% of the company to Quebec's investment arm this year, "I would say [for our next round of financing] it's definitely going to be an international investor," he said. "We need someone that will bring that international dimension and access to real estate."
And in the end, is that such a bad thing? Canadian merchants are cashing out, shoppers are getting more choice, and space once occupied by lumbering, poorly performing domestic retailers has been released to better shops. Save for the odd Canadian sentimentalist, the changes have been good for everyone.
Many industry observers say the deal is unique as it pairs two rivals with complementary operations, giving Victoria's Secret a platform to expand globally. At the same time, however, it points to huge value premiums Canada's "best-in-class" retailers could fetch if sold. "There are idle conversations going on," the source said. "Everybody gets turned on" by the La Senza deal. "This will vibrate. There are people in play."
One top Montreal mergers and acquisitions lawyer said "investment bankers are calling the retailers and effectively giving them the message there has never been a better time than today to sell out. I know that for a fact. If they haven't been calling, some of the retailers have been calling and saying, 'What can I get for my company?' "
One firm that is on the block is fashion retailer Le Chateau. The Montreal-based company traded hands this week in the range of $58 to $60 per share. But a buyout offer similar to that for La Senza could value Le Chateau for as high as $80 a share, Versant Partners analyst Neil Linsdell said.
Other retailers say they've fielded far more calls lately from possible buyers talking of similar premiums to be had. The president of one growing Canadian fashion retailer with more than 200 stores said the company used to get "about one call a year" from potential suitors. Since early 2005, "we get a call once every couple of weeks. They probably literally walk through malls trying to figure out who to pick up the phone and call."
Many merchants, including Stephen Bebis, chief executive of the 28-store Golf Town Income Fund, say their firms aren't for sale. But they openly talk about likely suitors, which suggests they are open to deals, at the right price. Shares of Markham, Ont.-based Golf Town, said Mr. Bebis, would "definitely be selling for more than we are today" if a suitor was in the wings, "Without question, Dick's Sporting Goods would be a perfect strategic partner" for Golf Town, which had $215-million in sales in its last four quarters.
Pittsburgh-based Dick's recently paid 11-times operating earnings for fellow U.S. retailer Golf Galaxy. At that multiple, Golf Town, which is more profitable than Golf Galaxy, would sell for more than a 50% premium to its recent value of $13 per unit.
Others are equally coy. "If someone were to make an approach with numbers we thought were appropriate, it would gain our attention and we would look at it," said Jeremy Reitman, CEO of Montreal-based fashion retailer Reitmans Canada Ltd., one of Canada's largest specialty chains. "I think there have been some very interesting deals out there."
The internationalization of Canadian retail has only begun. More U.S. chains are on their way. And with the world awash in private-equity money and cheap credit, more potential foreign buyers have put Canadian retailers on their radar screens.
"The reality is you've got some phenomenal retailers," said Tom
Financial Post ssilcoff@nationalpost.com Stemberg, former CEO of Staples Inc., and now a venture partner with Lexington, Mass.-based Highland Capital Partners, which paid US$93-million along with another U.S. private equity firm in 2005 for a 48% stake in Vancouver-based Lulu lemon. "I spend an awful lot of my time in Canada looking for opportunities."
The retailers and buyout firms see a Canadian economy that is strong -- and possibly more resilient than the economy of the United States, where consumer spending could be hit by a fall in housing prices. Private-equity firms have already done a round of buyouts there, but in Canada there remains a healthy complement of merchants that are expanding and carry valuations that are lower than their U.S. peers. The retail sector is also less competitive than it is in the United States, which has more stores per capita. Meanwhile, Canadian department stores have not roared back to health as they have to the south. As a result, there are many opportunities for the picking.
"There is definitely an eagerness to invest in the sector, but it's not a blind interest," said Kevin Callaghan, managing director of Boston-based Berkshire Partners, which put $100- million last year in Aritzia, a Vancouver- based women's apparel chain. "People want to buy the winners. It's in markets like these that good companies are available."
All that is missing are Canadian buyers. There are few private-equity firms of any consequence in Canada. That doesn't bother Mr. Stemberg much. "There are more ideas than there is capital up there," he said. "I don't know why, but I like it."
It's hard to believe these people are talking about Canada. In the dark ages of retail, before the arrival of Costco, Wal-Mart and Home Depot in the early 1990s, shopping in Canada was a depressing experience, dominated by large, datedmass merchants. Being underserved seemed like a civic duty. But many of the retailers that either came of age or began in the Wal-Mart era are today's savviest and fastest-growing players, including La Senza, Dynamite Group (operator of the Dynamite and Garage banners), Dollarama and handbag merchant Bentley. They learned quickly to get out of the

malek

Dec 28, 2006, 5:21 AM

The Reitmans group plans on opening 40 new locations and closing 11 less profitables ones.

They run : Reitmans, Smart Set, RW & Co, Thyme, Cassis, Pennington (http://www.lapresseaffaires.com/section/LANSTEIN&TaxIDList=20108756&Word=Pennington) and Addition-Elle with 900 stores in Canada.

-----------------------
Reitmans garde le cap sur le Canada
27 décembre 2006 - 17h26
Presse Canadienne

La chaîne de magasins Reitmans (RET (http://www.lapresseaffaires.com/section/LAINVESTIR06&tabnumber=0&sym2=T_RET&sym=T.RET)) continuera, en 2007, à cibler les Canadiennes de la classe moyenne en leur offrant des vêtements appropriés pour leur vie de tous les jours, a fait savoir le pdg de l'entreprise, Jeremy Reitman (http://www.lapresseaffaires.com/section/LANSTEIN&TaxIDList=20108755&Word=Jeremy%20Reitman).

Cette stratégie a déjà permis à l'entreprise de tirer son épingle du jeu face à ses concurrents, dans un contexte où les habitudes de consommation des Canadiennes sont en pleine évolution.

Au troisième trimestre de 2006, Reitmans a enregistré des ventes de 258,6 millions $, une hausse de 8,4 pour cent par rapport à la même période l'an dernier.

«Nous laissons la haute couture et les vêtements vraiment dispendieux aux autres, comme Holt Renfrew et les boutiques spécialisées, a expliqué M. Reitman. Nous avons toujours basé nos affaires sur la classe moyenne et moyenne inférieure, parce que c'est là qu'on peut faire des profits et qu'on retrouve le plus grand nombre d'acheteurs.»

En plus de la bannière Reitmans, l'entreprise est derrière Smart Set, RW & Co (qui offre aussi des vêtements pour hommes), Thyme (qui offre des vêtements de maternité), Cassis (une nouvelle chaîne pour consommatrices d'âge mûr) ainsi que Pennington (http://www.lapresseaffaires.com/section/LANSTEIN&TaxIDList=20108756&Word=Pennington) et Addition-Elle (qui offre des vêtements de taille forte).

Reitmans compte quelque 900 magasins au Canada, mais aucun aux États-Unis.

M. Reitman a indiqué que 40 nouveaux magasins pourraient être créés en 2007 tandis qu'une dizaine d'autres, moins profitables, fermeraient. Il a toutefois refusé de donner plus de détails.

Il a aussi révélé que l'entreprise étudie diverses acquisitions, même si elle «n'est pas encore rendue là».

«Il y a peut-être cinq entreprises que nous pourrions acheter d'ici cinq ans», a-t-il dit.

L'analyste John Winter, de la firme torontoise John Winter Associates (http://www.lapresseaffaires.com/section/LANSTEIN&TaxIDList=20108757&Word=John%20Winter%20Associates), croit que la décision de Reitmans de ne pas tenter de percer le marché américain est «excellente», compte tenu de tous les défis que cela représenterait.

«Ils ont un beau petit créneau et ils l'exploitent bien», a dit M. Winter.

M. Reitman ne se sent par ailleurs pas menacé par le géant américain Wal-Mart (http://www.lapresseaffaires.com/section/LANSTEIN&TaxIDList=20066912&Word=Wal-Mart).

«Je pense que psychologiquement, les consommateurs aiment la marchandise de Wal-Mart (http://www.lapresseaffaires.com/section/LANSTEIN&TaxIDList=20066912&Word=Wal-Mart) mais qu'ils ne le perçoivent certainement pas comme un magasin de mode», a-t-il expliqué.

M. Reitman ajoute que son entreprise compte environ 250 magasins dans des centres commerciaux où Wal-Mart (http://www.lapresseaffaires.com/section/LANSTEIN&TaxIDList=20066912&Word=Wal-Mart) est aussi présent, et que cette présence génère pour eux un achalandage profitable.

Mercredi à Toronto (http://www.lapresseaffaires.com/section/LANSTEIN&TaxIDList=20005550&Word=Toronto), le titre de Reitman a terminé en baisse de 0,19 $, à 21,94 $.

Arriviste

Dec 28, 2006, 5:41 AM

It's times like these that I wish we had be taught to speak french throughout our education in Alberta, not just untill 6th grade. French is a fog that I can barely see through.

malek

Dec 28, 2006, 5:47 AM

Reitmans is eyeing the US, a specialist says they'll have trouble against the walmart giant.

M. Reitmans answers, that 250 of his stores are nearby a walmart and profit from the walmart traffic.

malek

Dec 28, 2006, 7:54 AM

Reitmans goes for middle-class women who shop, forgets about high-end fashion

Published: Wednesday, December 27, 2006 | 3:28 PM ET

Canadian Press: LUANN LASALLE

MONTREAL (CP) - Clothes designed for real life, not the runway.
That's the philosophy of Reitmans (Canada) Ltd. (TSX:RET.A) reflected in its humorous TV commercials, which show women mocking glamorous poses and living regular lives in Reitmans clothes. Even while giving short shrift to high-end clothes, the Montreal-based company racked up third-quarter sales of $258.6 million, an increase of 8.4 per cent from the same period a year ago.

It's aiming for the pocketbooks of middle-class Canadian women as it competes with other specialty stores for growth in a changing retail landscape.

"We've left the haute couture and the really high-priced stuff to the others like Holt Renfrew and the specialty boutiques that are around," said CEO Jeremy Reitman.

"We've always built our business on the middle and the lower middle because that's where the money is, that's where the people are and that's where the broad base of customers are."

In addition to the Reitmans banner, the company operates Smart Set, RW & Co. (which also sells some men's fashions), Thyme (maternity clothes), Cassis (new banner for mature boomers) and plus-sized Penningtons and Addition-Elle with a total of almost 900 stores across Canada. The company doesn't operate in the United States.

About 40 new stores could open in 2007, while as many as nine unprofitable locations could close, Reitman said, without specifying which would open or close. Fifty-five new stores opened this year.

Reitman also said he was instrumental in bringing up-to-moment fashion store Zara from Spain to Canada and had a five-year relationship with the chain before that.

The family-run Reitmans, which celebrated its 80 anniversary this year after being founded by Reitman's grandparents, bills itself as Canada's largest specialty retailer.

But despite his family's retail heritage, Reitman says, "I'm not a major shopper myself," adding he "doesn't want to freeze walking from store-to-store in a plaza."

Reitman says the TV ads, now in their second year, for the Reitmans division have boosted sales.

"They like the fashions, the value is extraordinary," he said in an interview at the company's headquarters. "Canadians by nature are fairly thrifty and it's our heritage, our several heritages (to be thrifty)."

He said he's also considering future acquisitions but "we're not quite there yet."

"There may be very well five different businesses that we can perhaps acquire in the relatively near future within the next five years," Reitman said.

He notes how the Canadian retail landscape has changed.

"The major shift that we have experienced over the years is the decline of the department store. And as a result of the decline of the department store. the specialty chain - such as ours and La Senza, to name two - have grown their market share and grown their businesses," he said.

La Senza Corp., (TSX:LSZ), a Montreal-based lingerie seller, recently struck a deal to be bought for $710 million by the U.S. owner of the Victoria's Secret chain. Limited Brands (NYSE:LTD), based in Columbus, Ohio.

Retail analyst John Winter said Reitmans hasn't overestimated the affluence of its market.

"They have a nice niche and they exploit it," said Winter, of Toronto-based John Winter Associates.

Staying out of the United States is an "excellent move" with all of the challenges in the U.S., Winter added.

Reitman doesn't believe that fashion by U.S. retail giant Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT) will affect his sales.

"Psychologically, I think most women, most consumers, like Wal-Mart for the offerings it has but it's not a fashion store by the wildest imagination."
Reitman said his company has about 250 stores in Wal-Mart anchored shopping centres in Canada and finds that Wal-Mart brings in shoppers, which helps other retailers on the site. "We've been very successful with Wal-Mart."

Despite the changing landscape, Reitmans recently reported a rise in third-quarter profits, to $23.4 million from a year-earlier $19.2 million, on strong sales growth and raised its quarterly dividend by 14.3 per cent.
Reitmans started its Smart Set banner in 1970, catering to 20-to 30-year-olds, and RW & Co. in 1999, for younger women with a target age of 24.

And last August, the company launched the Cassis banner, which aims at the baby boomer.

It acquired Penningtons, for plus-sized women, in 1995 and Dalmys (Canada) Ltd. in 1996. In 2002, Reitmans bought Shirmax Fashions Ltd., which includes plus-sized Addition-Elle and Thyme maternity stores.
Shares in Reitmans were trading at $21.98, down 15 cents, Wednesday afternoon on the Toronto Stock Exchange.