[Moncton] Retail Thread

[icetea93]

Regarding Champlain Place, I think being too female focused is a bad thing. I would agree that the middle aged and older men are not that active in the retail industry (with the exception of a few stores), however the younger male generations are certainly much more involved. In the future, shopping will be much more male/female balanced.

[josh_cat_eyes]

Originally Posted by icetea93

Regarding Champlain Place, I think being too female focused is a bad thing. I would agree that the middle aged and older men are not that active in the retail industry (with the exception of a few stores), however the younger male generations are certainly much more involved. In the future, shopping will be much more male/female balanced.

I'm 22 and I love shopping, I bring my girlfriend to the mall, she doesn't bring me haha. So I think that you are right.

Originally Posted by Stirsnack

I realize that an indoor mall is both very expensive to build and maintain as well as being a 1970's thing that is dead compared to the strip malls and power centers of today. But I wanted to toss out a think tank question. Champlain place is basically the only indoor mall we have now, moncton mall is closed into a northwest center strip mall, highfield is dead, but Where in Metro would be a good spot to build another destination mall ? I too am tired of champlain place being only for women. when future shop and Sam the record man were there, i had a place to go while the wife spent my pay check now i sit on the bench in the food court. But think of what we could do to create another place, anything goes, have fun. I would love an anchor mall with IMAX and Best buy, i know they are long shots but it would be a start. I got thinking about this when a friend of mine came down from Toronto, first time in Moncton, he has heard me go on and on about how Moncton was the hub for retail as well as other reasons, we went to Champlain and his comment was, when are we going to the mall, this is a closet. Got me thinking. It wasn't Toronto center of the universe arrogance either, he was used to 2-4 story malls. and was shocked when this was the crown jewel of shopping. Any thoughts ?

Here is my proposal:
- Attached to the new "events centre"
- Essentially one long hallway stretching from the Terminal Buildings to where the Bay formerly was and maybe 3 storeys tall. Similar to Eaton Centre.
- Attached to the Terminal building and given a similar feel to Brunswick Square at that end of the building.
- Anchored by Hudson's Bay, on one end, and the terminal building at the other end.
- Personally, its annoying to have stores like GAP, Tommy Hilfiger, Fairweather or H&M, or other store that are awkwardly shaped and have a large storefront. So maybe stores like that might move.
- The food court (located in the giant 3 story open area overlooking the Terminal Building) could have a Tim's, A&W, KFC, Subway, DQ etc.
- Other stores could include BENCH, Apple, Sports Experts, Lululemon, Hot Topic etc.
- Kiosks could be the usual Bell, Rogers, Telus, Second Cup, Starbucks, Things Engraved, Sunglass Hut etc.

I honestly think that, despite the trend toward plazas and strip malls, that this project could succeed.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by OUIR@random

I think that people are wrong when assuming that rents will be THAT lower (than Champlain) in a new downtown mall within the new events centre. I expect rents to be quite high, this project will have a huge price tag, I don't expect tenants to get any ''deals'' of any kind. I don't see this mall being busy outside of major events. Downtown malls are a thing of the past, it's a very 60s-80s concept, and many of them have been demolished or have been repurposed, I think many people here should rethink this idea of a downtown mall...
I see the downtown events centre having; restaurants (bar & grill type) + (fast food type), a nightclub or sports bar, a hotel and a few retails tenants (5-10 units max) facing Main Street, a department store is a very big IF, but I'm sure that there will be no new traditional mall (as we know them) in Moncton...

I understand and fully appreciate your reservations about a downtown mall succeeding. Pretty much the only cities where downtown malls are successful are those ones with a significant core population. This certainly doesn't describe Moncton (although we all wish this were the case).

Still, if the Bay could be cajoled into re-establishing a downtown store as part of an events centre, this might make a difference. It would be the only Bay store in the province and as such, would be a destination retailer. I think the presence of a Bay could allow a small adjacent retail mall to survive, perhaps with 10-20 stores. The more amenities that we have downtown, the easier it becomes to convince people that it might actually be worthwhile living downtown. It's a chicken and egg thing. I think the idea of a downtown retail component to the events centre should serious be explored.

Aside from this, I agree with your observations that a bar & grill type restaurant and/or a sports bar would be obvious choices for any retail component to the events centre. I think a food court would be very popular too (and would also serve all the federal civil servants across the street). I think another Starbucks could go here. If properly designed, it might be neat if these concessions could have an inside counter also facing into the concourse of the events centre, thus serving fans at Wildcats & Miracles games too. This would be innovative and would help to maximize revenues for the food vendors.

[mmmatt]

Bass Pro is amazing news!

While we still have many "unique in NB" stores here we have been slowly losing our "signature" stores of that nature (Costco/Princess Auto namely).

This store will certainly be as big a draw as both those combined as it will be unique in Atlantic Canada. A store like this will serve as a great entry point for regional shoppers. Aka come for bass pro but visit the Gap, Moxies, and MAC while they are here.

Hope it happens soon!!

[micks5477]

I am not sure where Bass Pro Shop is going but they clear a huge piece of land out on Berry Mills Road near Trans Canada Highway. Any thoughts what might be going in there.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by micks5477

I am not sure where Bass Pro Shop is going but they clear a huge piece of land out on Berry Mills Road near Trans Canada Highway. Any thoughts what might be going in there.

Snow dump.

[gehrhardt]

I'm going to jump on the bandwagon here and say it will most likely go on that large parcel of land cleared off of Elmwood. It provides good visibility from the TCH and is certainly large enough.

On a related note, the parcel between that one and McLaughlin has a big "for sale" sign on it now.

[BlackYear]

Just like everyone else, I'm super pumped to start spending my weekends inside a this massive toy store.

Location, location, location.

Since BPS wants this to be their Atlantic Canada's flagship store, I'm guessing they want maximum exposure, so location could be extremely important.

Elmwood Dr. & Highway 2: I can see this. Lots of land, good visibility from the highway, commercial growth in this area seems to be trending, urban sprawl in this area also seems to be trending, fairly close to highway 134 (Veteran's Highway to Shediac).

Harrisville Boul. & Highway 2: A very good possibility. Commercial growth is this area has gone threw the roof. Still some good parcel of land available, very close to Trans Canada Highway 2, even closer to Veteran's Highway, traffic in this area is insane, airport near by, future infrastructure in this area is imminent and already taking place.

Mapleton Rd. & Highway 2: Another good possibility. Is there enough room in the Mapleton Power centre to accommodate a 110,000 sqft super store? Seems like this area could be a nice home for BPS. Other than that, there's still some very good piece of land closer to Highway 2.

If I was BPS, one of these three locations is where I would be looking at.

[josh_cat_eyes]

What about near the new kent on Harrisville? Maybe off the road that they are extending parallel to the highway.

[NBNYer]

Originally Posted by josh_cat_eyes

What about near the new kent on Harrisville? Maybe off the road that they are extending parallel to the highway.

That's a good spot, high traffic, high visibility. But somehow I think they're going to be located somewhere along highway 2. Seems like the best option for them.

[Norshorer]

Noticed new ads on local TV stations (CTV Atlantic, Global Maritimes, CBC, etc) with the usual "Target hearts Canada" advertising campaign from a few months ago when it was first announced that the stores were coming here, however, now at the end of the ads, it says "now open".

Thought that was kind of odd since...

1. The stations are based out of Atlantic Canada (Fredericton, Halifax, etc), not Toronto.
2. The Targets in Atlantic Canada were rumored to only be opening around Nov 15th if I recall correctly.

My only guess is that these ads are meant for the Ontario locations & were "cut into" the local ads that were running on the stations?

The Moncton location certainly isn't open yet as I passed in front of it yesterday and all the windows/doors were covered up (kudos to the forum members who got sneak peek shots a few weeks ago of the inside/Starbucks counter).

Target.ca still shows "opening late fall 2013". If you change your postal code to an Ontario code, you can view the flyers. From what I can see, the same store brands from USA will be making the trek this side of the border (Archer Farms, etc). Can't wait to see if the selection of products will be the same as USA or if we'll get the simplified/reduced Canadian selection instead thanks to the bilingual labeling/packaging laws.

[MonctonRad]

Target is open - in Halifax.

Elsewhere in the outer colonies we have to wait until November 15th.........

[MonctonRad]

Poking around the web tonight.

It appears the consensus is that Bass Pro Shops will be opening in the spring of 2015, not the fall of 2015........

[stephan.richard]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Poking around the web tonight.

It appears the consensus is that Bass Pro Shops will be opening in the spring of 2015, not the fall of 2015........

I would have thought that looking at the scope of the project and I can't wait to see where they will put it..

ON a side note I drove in front of the Target and it looks like they have all their shopping carts ready to go for the openning. And the Future Marshalls location is all painted up and the interior looks complete. All that is waiting is Marshalls install and store prep team to come into to come in and do their stuff.

[micks5477]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Snow dump.

I heard another freight carrier like Day and Ross was going in there.

[cl812]

Originally Posted by Budyser

Just like everyone else, I'm super pumped to start spending my weekends inside a this massive toy store.

Location, location, location.

Since BPS wants this to be their Atlantic Canada's flagship store, I'm guessing they want maximum exposure, so location could be extremely important.

Elmwood Dr. & Highway 2: I can see this. Lots of land, good visibility from the highway, commercial growth in this area seems to be trending, urban sprawl in this area also seems to be trending, fairly close to highway 134 (Veteran's Highway to Shediac).

Harrisville Boul. & Highway 2: A very good possibility. Commercial growth is this area has gone threw the roof. Still some good parcel of land available, very close to Trans Canada Highway 2, even closer to Veteran's Highway, traffic in this area is insane, airport near by, future infrastructure in this area is imminent and already taking place.

Mapleton Rd. & Highway 2: Another good possibility. Is there enough room in the Mapleton Power centre to accommodate a 110,000 sqft super store? Seems like this area could be a nice home for BPS. Other than that, there's still some very good piece of land closer to Highway 2.

If I was BPS, one of these three locations is where I would be looking at.

I know it would be a strech for a Spring 2015 opening, but what about the current Costco site, if they were to build a new store soon? That would be a perfect location.

[Taeolas]

Originally Posted by cl812

I know it would be a strech for a Spring 2015 opening, but what about the current Costco site, if they were to build a new store soon? That would be a perfect location.

And it comes with a ready made rock climbing wall! (Just watch out for traffic. )

I doubt the current Costco site would work. It would hinge too much on too many factors to hit a Spring 2015 deadline. Costco would have to be building a new locations NOW for them to even look at that site to replace the existing Costco.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by cl812

I know it would be a strech for a Spring 2015 opening, but what about the current Costco site, if they were to build a new store soon? That would be a perfect location.

If Costco were building a new store, their current location would be a good one for Bass Pro to consider because (1) - both stores are roughly the same size and (2) - the Current Costco location is already part of a large and successful power centre development.

I just can't see this happening though. The rumour is that Costco has already secured land elsewhere in the event they ever do want to build a replacement store. The time frame however just isn't there to allow Costco to build anew, vacate their current site, and for Bass Pro to demolish the old Costco and rebuild a new store and all meet a spring 2015 deadline. I just don't see how this is possible.

My choices for the Bass Pro location are (in descending order).

1 - Elmwood/TCH interchange (northwest corner)
2 - Mapleton/TCH interchange (southwest corner aka Mapleton Crossing)
3 - Harrisville/Rte 15 interchange (either northeast corner or northwest corner)
4 - Harrisville/TCH interchange (southeast corner, between the TCH and the CN mainline).

My money is on the Elmwood Drive site. They are clearing way too much land here than they need for just a Home Hardware store and a grocery store. If Bass Pro comes here too, then I think we could be looking at a whole new power centre area for greater Moncton. Other retailers will likely want in too.

One has to remember that Bass Pro Shops is a true destination retailer (just like LL Bean is) and therefore could be a magnet for additional (hopefully new to market) retailers. In particular, I could absolutely see one of the Tanger Outlet Centre locations setting up next to, or in close proximity to a Bass Pro Shops. That would be a perfect fit since both of these would be destination retail developments.

EDIT:

Further to the above about the Tanger Outlet Centres, here is a link to a blog from the Wall Street Journal about Tanger's expansion plans into Canada.
http://blogs.wsj.com/canadarealtime/2013...mall-giant-eyeing-markets-across-canada/

They mention they are planning on opening about 10 outlet centres in the country over the next decade, concentrating on the largest markets. That doesn't sound too hopeful for us but, if they were planning on opening an outlet centre in the Maritimes, I think we would be one of the two markets that they would consider. It is interesting to note that their Canadian partner is RioCan (which owns the Wheeler Park Power Centre), so they should be familiar with the Moncton market. Also, as I mentioned above, locating next to an established destination retailer like Bass Pro Shops would likely also be factored into any decision about where they should set up. I'm actually more excited about Moncton's chances for a Tanger Outlet Centre now than I was before.......

[stephan.richard]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

If Costco were building a new store, their current location would be a good one for Bass Pro to consider because (1) - both stores are roughly the same size and (2) - the Current Costco location is already part of a large and successful power centre development.

I just can't see this happening though. The rumour is that Costco has already secured land elsewhere in the event they ever do want to build a replacement store. The time frame however just isn't there to allow Costco to build anew, vacate their current site, and for Bass Pro to demolish the old Costco and rebuild a new store and all meet a spring 2015 deadline. I just don't see how this is possible.

My choices for the Bass Pro location are (in descending order).

1 - Elmwood/TCH interchange (northwest corner)
2 - Mapleton/TCH interchange (southwest corner aka Mapleton Crossing)
3 - Harrisville/Rte 15 interchange (either northeast corner or northwest corner)
4 - Harrisville/TCH interchange (southeast corner, between the TCH and the CN mainline).

My money is on the Elmwood Drive site. They are clearing way too much land here than they need for just a Home Hardware store and a grocery store. If Bass Pro comes here too, then I think we could be looking at a whole new power centre area for greater Moncton. Other retailers will likely want in too.

One has to remember that Bass Pro Shops is a true destination retailer (just like LL Bean is) and therefore could be a magnet for additional (hopefully new to market) retailers. In particular, I could absolutely see one of the Tanger Outlet Centre locations setting up next to, or in close proximity to a Bass Pro Shops. That would be a perfect fit since both of these would be destination retail developments.

EDIT:

Further to the above about the Tanger Outlet Centres, here is a link to a blog from the Wall Street Journal about Tanger's expansion plans into Canada.
http://blogs.wsj.com/canadarealtime/2013...mall-giant-eyeing-markets-across-canada/

They mention they are planning on opening about 10 outlet centres in the country over the next decade, concentrating on the largest markets. That doesn't sound too hopeful for us but, if they were planning on opening an outlet centre in the Maritimes, I think we would be one of the two markets that they would consider. It is interesting to note that their Canadian partner is RioCan (which owns the Wheeler Park Power Centre), so they should be familiar with the Moncton market. Also, as I mentioned above, locating next to an established destination retailer like Bass Pro Shops would likely also be factored into any decision about where they should set up. I'm actually more excited about Moncton's chances for a Tanger Outlet Centre now than I was before.......

For Tagner outlets IT would be good news if they could build up near the Future Inn to fill out that area and I read to that the Simon Proprety group ( Owner and operator of the Bangor Mall and many other malls and outlet malls in the US) is getting into Canada but I am not sure if they are looking at the maritimes. But one thing I can see the area near Mapleton, Harrisville and even Elmwood drive area to change within the next 5-10 years but to keep moncton as a retail and entertainment center will include also the construction of a new downtown Coliseum.

And one last thing IF Moncton can attract more regional retailers maybe that would limit cross border shopping and increase the amount of people doing overnight stays here in town..

[BlackYear]

Is anyone going to send an email to the Bass Pro Shop marketing group to let them know that if they don't bring along a Bilingual sign of Magasin Pro Bar, they are going to get a few days of angry complaints? But not to worry because the week long free publicity will NOT affect business what so ever?