Halifax Retail

[BravoZulu]

Originally Posted by scooby074

I'll add it's kind of sad what has become of Mills under Mickey's ownership. My mom was a regular shopper there for a very long time and has told me that both the quality of products and service have gone down hill, although the prices remain as high as ever... even more so.

That's unfortunate, I hate to see an independent store change hands and then lose touch with what made it successful. Hopefully new ownership and a new location will bring it back to the standard your mother experienced previously.

Wonder what Mr MacDonald has planned for the site...

[Duff]

Cousins on Agricola has closed and is being re-opened as Hali Deli Old World Delicatessen.

http://www.thecoast.ca/RestaurantandBarNews/archives/2012/10/11/hali-deli-takes-over-cousins-space

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by BravoZulu

That's unfortunate, I hate to see an independent store change hands and then lose touch with what made it successful. Hopefully new ownership and a new location will bring it back to the standard your mother experienced previously.

Wonder what Mr MacDonald has planned for the site...

There is a story in the Herald today regarding the sale of Mills. The new owners (three lawyers and a physiotherapist) sure sound like they intend on making some changes for the better!

I may be mistaken in my understanding that the shops within "Mills" are independent, ie: women's wear is independent of cosmetics. The article makes it sound like they are all together, but Lululemon, Davids Tea and Casa Donte which share the Mills building are the independent stores. That makes more sense.

http://www.thechronicleherald.ca/business/146259-new-owners-eye-rejuvenated-mills

[visualman57]

Originally Posted by scooby074

There is a story in the Herald today regarding the sale of Mills. The new owners (three lawyers and a physiotherapist) sure sound like they intend on making some changes for the better!

I may be mistaken in my understanding that the shops within "Mills" are independent, ie: women's wear is independent of cosmetics. The article makes it sound like they are all together, but Lululemon, Davids Tea and Casa Donte which share the Mills building are the independent stores. That makes more sense.

http://www.thechronicleherald.ca/business/146259-new-owners-eye-rejuvenated-mills

So, if it just "Mills" moving to SGP, what about all the other businesses in that block, including Lululemon, DavidsTeas and even Duggers? At one point, there was a financial connection between Mills and Duggers. Does that mean there will be a large group of stores vying for, as yet unbuilt, real estate along Spring Garden Rd?

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by visualman57

So, if it just "Mills" moving to SGP, what about all the other businesses in that block, including Lululemon, DavidsTeas and even Duggers? At one point, there was a financial connection between Mills and Duggers. Does that mean there will be a large group of stores vying for, as yet unbuilt, real estate along Spring Garden Rd?

Yeah, I wondered about that myself. If he plans to redevlope the old Mills building, I'd imagine those stores will be homeless too? Maybe he plans on just redoing the "Mills" section allowing those other stores to remain open? Perhaps an indoor mall?

And like you, I thought Duggers and Mills were one in the same.

Who knows really seems like the whole "Mills" under Mickey concept was/is overly complicated

[Dmajackson]

MacAskill's Waterfront Restaurant in Dartmouth is closing at the end of the month. It's going to be replaced by a new Wooden Monkey.

[teddifax]

Originally Posted by scooby074

Yeah, I wondered about that myself. If he plans to redevlope the old Mills building, I'd imagine those stores will be homeless too? Maybe he plans on just redoing the "Mills" section allowing those other stores to remain open? Perhaps an indoor mall?

And like you, I thought Duggers and Mills were one in the same.

Who knows really seems like the whole "Mills" under Mickey concept was/is overly complicated

The CH article mentioned Mickey had plans for the site. I wonder if it will be brought into the new development for one of the sisters sites directly behind it. This would enable that development to have frontage on SGR. Just a thought....

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by teddifax

The CH article mentioned Mickey had plans for the site. I wonder if it will be brought into the new development for one of the sisters sites directly behind it. This would enable that development to have frontage on SGR. Just a thought....

someone123, in this post http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showpost.php?p=5863900&postcount=3923 clarified what MacDonald plans. 2 small towers, 8-10 stories, 200 apartments with ground level retail.

Hard to say what this means for the current non-mills tenants.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by scooby074

Hard to say what this means for the current non-mills tenants.

It seems like the Mills relocation and phased plan are all designed to make it possible to shuffle tenants around during construction. Tenants like Lululemon pay a lot for their space. He probably wants to keep them.

The new construction along SGR (Mills, Sisters, former TD site, and even the site up near Robie) might really improve the street if it includes some larger, more modern retail pads unlike what's currently available in that area. Hopefully the Starfish projects on Barrington and the Discovery Centre building will also create some nice modern spaces that can attract some strong retail tenants. Something like a Target and maybe Future Shop/Best Buy downtown would be good.

[teddifax]

Originally Posted by someone123

It seems like the Mills relocation and phased plan are all designed to make it possible to shuffle tenants around during construction. Tenants like Lululemon pay a lot for their space. He probably wants to keep them.

The new construction along SGR (Mills, Sisters, former TD site, and even the site up near Robie) might really improve the street if it includes some larger, more modern retail pads unlike what's currently available in that area. Hopefully the Starfish projects on Barrington and the Discovery Centre building will also create some nice modern spaces that can attract some strong retail tenants. Something like a Target and maybe Future Shop/Best Buy downtown would be good.

What is the site up near Robie you mention?

[essaysmith]

I know that this is flogged to death, but an interesting article in the Winnipeg Free Press talks about the new Ikea opening there on November 28. One of the reasons they built the store there was that "Winnipeg has been one of IKEA's strongest catalogue markets, usually neck-and-neck with Halifax." I thought it was interesting anyway.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/ikea-to-open-doors-nov-28-170464636.html

[icetea93]

Originally Posted by essaysmith

I know that this is flogged to death, but an interesting article in the Winnipeg Free Press talks about the new Ikea opening there on November 28. One of the reasons they built the store there was that "Winnipeg has been one of IKEA's strongest catalogue markets, usually neck-and-neck with Halifax." I thought it was interesting anyway.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/ikea-to-open-doors-nov-28-170464636.html

I think Ikea will come to Halifax sooner than most people think. The amount of people on their Facebook and Twitter pages asking for a Halifax or Maritime store is ridiculous...

Also, Cabela's seems to be interested in Halifax as well. They have stated on their Facebook page numerous times when someone asks for a Halifax store "we intend to have a prescence in Canada from coast to coast, stay tuned for the latest details" or something similar.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by icetea93

I think Ikea will come to Halifax sooner than most people think. The amount of people on their Facebook and Twitter pages asking for a Halifax or Maritime store is ridiculous...

Like I've said before, I think the Halifax and Winnipeg retail markets are probably pretty similar, at least when it comes to regional level stores that attract people from nearby towns.

[q12]

Originally Posted by essaysmith

I "Winnipeg has been one of IKEA's strongest catalogue markets, usually neck-and-neck with Halifax."

This to me sounds like Halifax is next whether they open around 2015 or a few years later.

I think the MYBOXBUYER service is helping to justify putting an IKEA BACK in Halifax to service Atlantic Canada's 2.4 Million residents (Double Manitoba's 1.2 Million).

The massive expansion that's about to start in Bayer's Lake would seem like the ideal spot to put IKEA.

[icetea93]

Correction: Cabela's plans to exist in every Canadian province, so it's only a matter of time before they come here. They already have stores in Saskatoon, Edmonton, Regina, and soon Winnipeg. So it doesn't appear that population is a factor in the order of cities they open in. The Bayer's Lake expansion also seems like a logical choice for Cabela's.

[scooby074]

Come on Ikea...

Bring it to Halifax

[someone123]

Originally Posted by icetea93

Correction: Cabela's plans to exist in every Canadian province, so it's only a matter of time before they come here.

Do they have a mini format store for PEI?

[kph06]

The building housing Rani's Curry and the Salvation Army on Green St. had a fire tonight.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by kph06

The building housing Rani's Curry and the Salvation Army on Green St. had a fire tonight.

That block has tremendous potential. That area is one of the strangest in the city as far as how underdeveloped it is given its location. Maybe the Fenwick redevelopment will kick off some changes.

The small strip mall could be redeveloped along with many of the smaller apartment buildings. Some of them are affordable housing but that's fine. They could be replaced with midrise buildings with a mix of market-rate and nicer affordable housing.

[Duff]

"Tempo" is now open on Barrington and Duke.