[Moncton] Retail Thread

[OliverD]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Excellent news for the whole Maritimes. I don't begrudge Halifax their IKEA store one bit. I think it was the natural choice.

I'm pretty confident we'll see a pick-up IKEA store in Moncton sometime. Again, it would seem a natural fit. With a full IKEA store in Halifax, I actually think this improves our chances at having a pick-up store down the road.

They will certainly be able to gauge how many of their customers are coming from NB/PEI.

[OliverD]

Originally Posted by Soupafly

Our municipal and provincial governments only focus for the last 4 years is on the Down Town Centre (DTC). Halifax stepped up and our government is more focused on street trees, bus routes and no LED screens. Our city officials don't care about retail and that the facts!! Just look at Mapleton Crossing and Mapleton Centre- the sidewalks are not even plowed. If you were a retailer and looking at these projects with the tax base they now provide would you choose Moncton to represent your only Atlantic Canada site? We might as well take a steamy — on their front door with the respect we have shown these new players. Until government officials are educated on the value of a growing tax base, HST added and retail jobs are actual jobs than we will continue to lose more to Halifax. I suspect that Dartmouth Crossings next announcement will be for an Outlet Mall. We will always be the drive by province...

Let's be real here: Does anyone actually walk, or want to walk, to Mapleton Crossing/Centre?

And why would you choose Moncton to represent your only Atlantic Canada site? It's not the biggest market, which is the primary factor in choosing retail locations.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by OliverD

Let's be real here: Does anyone actually walk, or want to walk, to Mapleton Crossing/Centre?

And why would you choose Moncton to represent your only Atlantic Canada site? It's not the biggest market, which is the primary factor in choosing retail locations.

Agreed. There is no residential area anywhere close to the Mapleton Road retail district. Virtually 100% of visits to the area are by car. I'm sure that nobody cares that the sidewalks aren't plowed in the winter. To improve accessibility, one could argue to improve bus routes in the area, but that would be it.

Lets call a spade a spade. Halifax was chosen by IKEA for their regional store because:

1) - It has a larger local catchment area (~550,000 vs ~ 250,000) within a one hour drive.
2) - Halifax has a younger demographic, largely because there are so many universities in the local area. There are probably 25,000 university students in and near Halifax (versus maybe 7,000 in the Moncton/Sackville area). IKEA appeals greatly to this demographic.

The choice of Halifax for IKEA was obvious, just like the choice of Moncton for Bass Pro Shops seemed intuitive.

[pierremoncton]

Originally Posted by Soupafly

Our municipal and provincial governments only focus for the last 4 years is on the Down Town Centre (DTC). Halifax stepped up and our government is more focused on street trees, bus routes and no LED screens. Our city officials don't care about retail and that the facts!! Just look at Mapleton Crossing and Mapleton Centre- the sidewalks are not even plowed. If you were a retailer and looking at these projects with the tax base they now provide would you choose Moncton to represent your only Atlantic Canada site? We might as well take a steamy — on their front door with the respect we have shown these new players. Until government officials are educated on the value of a growing tax base, HST added and retail jobs are actual jobs than we will continue to lose more to Halifax. I suspect that Dartmouth Crossings next announcement will be for an Outlet Mall. We will always be the drive by province...

Patapouf just posted about Moncton's retail base being worth $2.7B. Nobody in Moncton is disrespecting retailers. If anything, retail is too much of a focus; we bend over to let anyone in.

We didn't lose anything to Halifax; they just gained something which is entirely reasonable given their potential customer base.

Moncton is the first market in Atlantic Canada to have either Cabela's or BPS, and it's the smallest market to have both.

And with respect to the events centre... you realize that the previous provincial government wouldn't commit any funds to the project until the last minute, and that the current government wasn't keen on making it a priority either?

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Patapouf26

The last part of the article writes of possible major project for the Trinity area and the rumours of Costco's move to a larger building. For the project :

Translation : There are many rumours (about retailer development), but there is a major project that is presently being considered and that would greatly impact the Mapleton area. It (the project) is still at a preliminary stage, but if it were to be realized, it would be one of the largest in Atlantic Canada.

http://www.acadienouvelle.com/actualites...davoir-ete-ignoree-ikea-profit-dhalifax/

I read the article. If I were to read between the lines, I would say that they are speculating on a new Costco on the Day & Ross site at the SE corner of the TCH/Mapleton intersection.

The Costco here in Moncton is insanely busy. I was at the Costco in Saint John earlier this week, and the difference in the traffic in the building was obvious. The Costco in Moncton is also undersized and beginning to show it's age. It's time to seriously consider a replacement.

The Day & Ross site is more that large enough to accommodate an enlarged Costco (including gas bar), as well as an adjacent retail development of some kind (perhaps an outlet mall). A development such as that could easily be "amongst the largest in Atlantic Canada".

[Taeolas]

I agree, Halifax for Ikea is a no brainer. Ikea is the sort of store that you need to visit often to get the most use out of. You buy a few things, see how they fit and work in your house, then go back to buy more/swap out for others/complete the set, etc.... So Halifax having the bigger catchment area at the 50 and 100km ranges made the choice obvious. Even though Moncton is bigger at the 150 and 200 catchment ranges, those distances are not as likely to have repeat visits.

Frankly, if Ikea had decided to put the full store in Moncton, I would have wondered if Bernard Lord had taken over Canadian operations. (The Premier who decided a hospital that would serve a town of 5000 would be best placed 15 minutes outside said town in a village of 500)

[Patapouf26]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

I read the article. If I were to read between the lines, I would say that they are speculating on a new Costco on the Day & Ross site at the SE corner of the TCH/Mapleton intersection.

I read through it again and there seems to be a distinction between the Costco project and the other large project that seemed to be in the preliminary stages.

I'm assuming it's something that has never been announced, so it would remove the retail project next to the Mapleton Crossing that was discussed a while back. So, if it isn't Costco either, what other projects do we know about, but may not have officially announced?

Edit : Although after re-reading it, you may be right. 3+ might have been simply adding fuel to the fire on the Costco rumour.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Patapouf26

I read through it again and there seems to be a distinction between the Costco project and the other large project that seemed to be in the preliminary stages.

I'm assuming it's something that has never been announced, so it would remove the retail project next to the Mapleton Crossing that was discussed a while back. So, if it isn't Costco either, what other projects do we know about, but may not have officially announced?

I didn't get that distinction, however I'm not a native French speaker and something could have been lost in the translation.

The only thing I can think of is a true factory outlet development (like Tanger Factory Outlets). Moncton can compete on a level playing field with Halifax for a development such as that.

[OliverD]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

I didn't get that distinction, however I'm not a native French speaker and something could have been lost in the translation.

The only thing I can think of is a true factory outlet development (like Tanger Factory Outlets). Moncton can compete on a level playing field with Halifax for a development such as that.

Agreed. This is the kind of development where Moncton's larger population when you extend the catchment area to 200km or more is actually an advantage.

[stephan.richard]

Look I hope that Moncton can attract a outlet style development like a Tagner or A Premium Outlet Center in town tied in with a new Costco/Gas Bar. But personally I think that it could happen and I will send another Email to Tagner on this.

But as I said in a earlier post what concerns me is the pace that projects tend to take off as of late in the city. One example is the retail developpment at the corner of Morton and McGlauglin took over three years for the project to take off. At the monent we have the project at the corner of Elmwood and TCH that is dormant and status unknown for the past two years and the construction of the new Moncton Chrysler Superstore next to the Hampton Inn. I do not know if its related to city management being slow in issuing building permits.

But I hope after the municipal elections in May that the city of Moncton will have a new retail/ developpment vision for the city.

But here are some key retailers missing in the moncton landscape. Forever 21, Hollister, Abercombie and Fitch, Journey's shoes , Hockey Life, and to name a few. But dont take me wrong to the city to have Bass Pro Shops, Cabelas and DSW as regional brands is a plus but we do need more.

[mctnguy]

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/the-last-days-of-target-canada/

[josh_cat_eyes]

Originally Posted by mctnguy

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/the-last-days-of-target-canada/

Excellent read! I liked how they talked about SAP. I work at Superstore, and I HATE SAP. It's so glitchy and often causes us inventory problems, so I'm not surprised it was the culprit!

[bigrivernb]

Here is a Ikea article with a Artist rendering of what it may look like...
http://www.ctvnews.ca/business/swedish-m...-to-build-new-store-in-halifax-1.2747759

[q12]

Originally Posted by bigrivernb

Here is a Ikea article with a Artist rendering of what it may look like...
http://www.ctvnews.ca/business/swedish-m...-to-build-new-store-in-halifax-1.2747759

Here is the largest image I could find of the rendering:

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by stephan.richard

But as I said in a earlier post what concerns me is the pace that projects tend to take off as of late in the city. One example is the retail developpment at the corner of Morton and McGlauglin took over three years for the project to take off. At the monent we have the project at the corner of Elmwood and TCH that is dormant and status unknown for the past two years and the construction of the new Moncton Chrysler Superstore next to the Hampton Inn. I do not know if its related to city management being slow in issuing building permits.

The timeline for development projects can be inordinately long. From the conception stage through to shovels in the ground can easily take five years or so. You have to have initial discussions with prospective tenants, acquire land (usually from multiple existing landowners), assess the site, do soil testing, get initial renderings, final architectural drawings, get a proper engineering study, feel out municipal councillors to see if there are any potential political roadblocks to construction, get approval from town planning, rezoning if necessary, do traffic surveys, line up the construction personnel (and you might have to reserve your place a couple of years in advance), hire a project manager, secure financing from lenders, sign final contracts with tenants etc, etc, etc.

Regarding the projects that you have mentioned:

1) - McLaughlin Place is a go. They have cleared the site and the first tenants (Pharmasave and a medical clinic) have been announced. They are currently on winter hiatus. Construction will resume in the spring.
2) - The Elmwood Centre at the TCH interchange is also a go. Elmwood Home Hardware has committed to relocating here, and it is almost certain Superstore is building here as well. I'm pretty sure that a gas station/convenience store is part of the package too. The status of other prospective tenants is less certain. As far as I know, it was always the intention of the developers to begin construction in 2016. Expect to see work beginning here in the spring.
3) - The Moncton Chrysler Superstore has bought the land next to the Hampton Inn and intends to relocate. I'm not sure of the timeline here, but I expect construction to begin either this spring or next.

These things take time. You have to be patient when potential developments are first rumoured. If nothing seems to be happening for a few years, this is normal.

[josh_cat_eyes]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

The timeline for development projects can be inordinately long. From the conception stage through to shovels in the ground can easily take five years or so. You have to have initial discussions with prospective tenants, acquire land (usually from multiple existing landowners), assess the site, do soil testing, get initial renderings, final architectural drawings, get a proper engineering study, feel out municipal councillors to see if there are any potential political roadblocks to construction, get approval from town planning, rezoning if necessary, do traffic surveys, line up the construction personnel (and you might have to reserve your place a couple of years in advance), hire a project manager, secure financing from lenders, sign final contracts with tenants etc, etc, etc.

Regarding the projects that you have mentioned:

1) - McLaughlin Place is a go. They have cleared the site and the first tenants (Pharmasave and a medical clinic) have been announced. They are currently on winter hiatus. Construction will resume in the spring.
2) - The Elmwood Centre at the TCH interchange is also a go. Elmwood Home Hardware has committed to relocating here, and it is almost certain Superstore is building here as well. I'm pretty sure that a gas station/convenience store is part of the package too. The status of other prospective tenants is less certain. As far as I know, it was always the intention of the developers to begin construction in 2016. Expect to see work beginning here in the spring.
3) - The Moncton Chrysler Superstore has bought the land next to the Hampton Inn and intends to relocate. I'm not sure of the timeline here, but I expect construction to begin either this spring or next.

These things take time. You have to be patient when potential developments are first rumoured. If nothing seems to be happening for a few years, this is normal.

Just look at how long it took them to get the events centre started!! Same idea.

[Patapouf26]

Originally Posted by josh_cat_eyes

Excellent read! I liked how they talked about SAP. I work at Superstore, and I HATE SAP. It's so glitchy and often causes us inventory problems, so I'm not surprised it was the culprit!

Indeed. It read like riveting novel!

As much as SAP may have contributed to the problem, it is clearly Target's mistake to have undertaken such a project without proper planning. EVERY mistake possible was done! The words EPIC FAIL have never been used as properly.

[habs33]

BREAKING: Moncton retailer to close doors
https://www.telegraphjournal.com/telegraph-journal/story/45567613/?nopromo=1

Sears Home Store in the Trinity Power Centre will close in July, Sears officials confirmed Monday.

[MonctonRad]

That news broke here the other week.

The Sears Home store in Halifax closed last year. I see on Retail Insider that the Sears Home store in Victoria BC is closing too. Sears is also looking at closing other stores too. The chain continues to contract.

[Scarface]

Not 100% on this but from what I have understood Sears is still desperately trying to keep there head above water still, and have not been making much of a profit if any.

Talking with employees who have been there a long time, and they don't think many of the Sears department stores will stay open passed January 2018, or there about's.