General Retail News

[Harley613]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

The Pier Import strip mall?

The far right unit of the Food Basics strip mall. It used to be a credit union or something If I recall.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by rocketphish

Not likely. When Pier 1 moved out, Sofa World moved over one unit to take over their space. Then Blinds To Go moved from across the intersection to take the Sofa World space. So I'd have to guess that the LCBO would be going into the vacated Blinds To Go space next to Sleep Country. You'll be able buy a new sofa, bed, blinds and booze all in one trip

I still refer to the old Blinds to Go space as Rockin' Johnny's!

Originally Posted by Harley613

The far right unit of the Food Basics strip mall. It used to be a credit union or something If I recall.

Makes more sense. Far more accessible than Pier Import or Rockin's Johnny's. Arguably more accessible than the mall, too.

[harls]

Originally Posted by YOWflier

Far be it for me to disagree with your post (I don’t on the general sentiment…eating out has gotten ridiculous), but you clearly got something other than 4 bagels. I’m sure you got 4 bagel sandwiches at $10-ish a pop plus those drinks. Expensive, yes.

Oh yes, they were not just plain old bagels. My bad.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Makes more sense. Far more accessible than Pier Import or Rockin's Johnny's. Arguably more accessible than the mall, too.

Also convenient to pot, party city and munchies.

[SkeggsEggs]

Originally Posted by Proof Sheet

Hazeldean Mall may give Carlingwood a run for the deadest mall in the area.

For what it's worth there is new construction fencing at the exterior entrance of the old Independent Grocer unit. Perhaps the ever present T&T rumour might actually be true?

The floor/rug store moved to another part of the mall so now the triangle of units next to Zellers/Target is empty (years ago it used to be Subway, A&W, Claires, etc). I wonder if the mall has any plans for that? I don't think Goodlife and the cheer studio take up all the space of the old Zellers.

It would be nice for the mall to get a bit of life but I doubt it!

[J.OT13]

Some cannabis store employees feel unsafe or isolated from the street due to the required fronted windows that separate them from the outside world. In Alberta, robberies, sometimes armed robberies, has forced them to remove the law that requires the cannabis products not be visible from outside.

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) is looking into a similar move as Alberta. The positive news it that the AGCO's cannabis retailer training does seem to somewhat prepare retail employees how to deal with robberies, beyond their main goal of training them on the safe use of cannabis.

Des détaillants de cannabis ne veulent plus du givré

Par Émilie Gougeon-Pelletier, Le Droit
5 juillet 2023

En Ontario, elles sont parfois obscurcies, parfois complètement givrées. C’est la loi: les devantures des magasins de cannabis doivent être conçues de façon à pouvoir dissimuler les produits qui y sont offerts à l’intérieur… Mais les règles pourraient bientôt changer.

=SNIP=

https://www.ledroit.com/actualites/2...BW2S7WZSMFZ3U/

[SL123]

T&T Supermarkets opening a second store in Ottawa

T&T Supermarkets has announced plans to open a 38,000 sq. ft. store in the Hazeldean Mall in Ottawa's west end.

https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/t-t-superm...tawa-1.6496297

[huntclub]

Wow, that will be a great location. I use to live right beside that mall and it’s now a dead zone. Hopefully this revives it a little.

[J.OT13]

Good to see. Breath some life into that mall. Losing the Independent must have been a huge hit and I doubt the GoodLife brings much, well, life to the mall.

[Spoonsy]

Originally Posted by SL123

looks like they're adding direct-to-exterior doors on this end, which leads me to wonder if they're gonna seal off the old south side entrance. forcing all entry/exit to this side that might help with foot traffic into the mall too

[SkeggsEggs]

Originally Posted by Spoonsy

looks like they're adding direct-to-exterior doors on this end, which leads me to wonder if they're gonna seal off the old south side entrance. forcing all entry/exit to this side that might help with foot traffic into the mall too

Found another article with some more pictures. Looks like it will be a similar cash set-up to Laura's so I think the other exterior entrance might continue to be used? Hard to tell. I hope they leave the other one open so that parking can be used. The main area gets pretty busy currently with Goodlife.

https://www.newswire.ca/news-release...868308690.html

[Spoonsy]

yeah I grew up in glen cairn, comin up abbeyhilll to the south side parking was always the way. but i read an article earlier about loblaws taking all these steps for loss prevention so had a feeling that multiple exit points may not be the direction grocers are trending towards

[Marshsparrow]

Great win for Hazeldean Mall and Kanata and the west end! It will do very well!

[rocketphish]

Family-owned Quebec retailer of kids clothing opens location in Bayshore Shopping Centre

OBJ staff
August 25, 2023 1:19 PM ET

An 84-year-old Quebec-based retailer of baby and children’s clothing is opening its first store in Ottawa at the Bayshore Shopping Centre.

The Boutiques Clément Quebec brand sells clothing, shoes, accessories and furniture for babies and kids. According to the retailer, the Bayshore location will be the largest such store in Ontario.

“We are particularly thrilled to proceed with the grand opening of the largest baby and kids store in the heart of Ottawa,” said Jean-Philippe Clément, administrator at Les Boutiques Clément, in a news release. “This new outlet will allow us to serve even more efficiently our customers, who are always on the lookout for the latest trends and quality products. This store opening constitutes one more step in our company’s development strategy.”

The 19,000-square-foot store will be located on level one in the mall and will take over the space previously occupied by Sport Chek.

“The new Clément store in Ottawa will offer more than 10,000 products, from clothing 0-20 years old, to baby equipment, breastfeeding products, maternity clothes and a vast selection of shoes, all to meet the needs of families in the Ottawa and Gatineau region,” said Clément, who is part of a fourth-generation leadership team for the family-owned company.

Clément has been in business since 1939. It currently has 30 stores, including two in Gatineau, an online store that delivers in Canada, and 500 employees.

https://obj.ca/quebec-kids-clothing-...s-in-bayshore/

[eltodesukane]

Just checking jeans' online before going to Walmart...
I get surprised by the range of prices!

[J.OT13]

Guessing they don't sell those in store. Sometimes, retailers sell third party merchandise on their website. Common with HBC.

[DarthVader_1961]

Originally Posted by eltodesukane

Just checking jeans' online before going to Walmart...
I get surprised by the range of prices!

1000.00 , 2000.00 for jeans ? Are they high?

[Spoonsy]

Walmart, BestBuy, and The Bay all ruined their default online shopping experience, you have to toggle these every time to get the unmoderated third party (read:scam) listings filtered out

[rocketphish]

Zellers pop-ups land in remaining Hudson’s Bay stores, including Bayshore Shopping Centre

OBJ staff
September 6, 2023 1:59 PM ET

Hudson’s Bay is expanding its Zellers brand to even more of its department stores.

The Toronto-based retailer says Zellers pop-ups will open within all Hudson’s Bay stores that do not yet feature the discount chain.

The most recent expansion covers 13 Ontario locations, seven in B.C., six in Alberta, four in Quebec and one in Manitoba. The Ontario locations include Ottawa’s Bayshore Shopping Centre.

The pop-ups will be open by Sept. 22 in time for the holidays and bring the number of Hudson’s Bay stores across the country with a Zellers presence to 78.

The pop-up locations typically have a footprint ranging from 1,000 to 2,800 square feet and stock an array of affordable household goods. Zellers also has 24 “store-in-stores” within Hudson’s Bay locations ranging from 8,000 to 10,000 square feet.

Hudson’s Bay says it uses pop-ups to determine which markets would be ideal for future Zellers stores.

“Pop-ups are a key ingredient in our expansion strategy, allowing us to explore and test in new markets and fine-tune our offering before establishing larger-format store locations,” Sophia Hwang-Judiesch, president of Hudson’s Bay, said in a statement.

“Our customers are in the driver’s seat — they will tell us how and where to grow.”

Pop-up locations in the National Capital Region include Place D’Orléans, the Rideau Centre and St. Laurent Centre, as well as Les Promenades Gatineau.

In May, HBC, the holding company of investments and businesses that include Hudson’s Bay and Zellers, as well as Saks Fifth Avenue and Saks Off Fifth, announced that it had raised $240 million of additional liquidity to grow its operating businesses.

The company said the capital would strengthen its strategic position, while also taking advantage of the opportunities being created as other retailers exit the Canadian market.

“As we diversify our consumer offerings, we are strongly positioned to expand on the retail experience customers have come to expect from Hudson’s Bay, Saks Fifth Avenue, Saks Off Fifth and now Zellers,” said Richard Baker, governor, executive chairman and CEO of HBC. “With this incremental liquidity, we will strengthen our businesses and build upon the great foundation we have established.”

With files from The Canadian Press

https://obj.ca/zellers-pop-ups-hudso...opping-centre/

[rocketphish]

A $49 T-shirt? Are they crazy?

Zak’s Diner chosen from across Canada to collaborate with Simons on limited-edition T-shirt

Caroline Phillips, OBJ
September 7, 2023 10:29 AM ET



One of the ByWard Market’s oldest and most beloved restaurants is gaining national exposure through a streetwear label sold by Canadian fashion retailer La Maison Simons.

Zak’s Diner was one of four eateries selected from across Canada to be featured by Quebec-based Simons through its limited-edition T-shirt collaboration.

“It’s flattering from a business perspective,” said owner and prominent restaurateur John Borsten during an interview at his Zak’s Diner in the heart of Ottawa’s ByWard Market district. “It’s also nice to see that Ottawa is getting recognized as a major urban centre.”

Simons’ private label for men, called DJAB, gets its inspiration from art, music and street culture. The retailer selected one restaurant from Toronto, Vancouver, Quebec and Ottawa that it felt captured the local spirit and energy of each of those cities, said Pierre Longchamps, buying director at La Maison Simons. The shirt, priced at $49, is sold online and at the chain’s 16 stores, including its Simons store in the Rideau Centre.

“Since the pandemic, there’s been a renewed interest in going out to restaurants and we wanted to share our clients’ passion for good food,” said Longchamps in an interview. “We also wanted to increase the visibility for local businesses and have an impact in our local communities.”

They don’t call Zak’s Diner “locally world famous” for nothing, said Borsten’s wife, Sofia Santiso Borsten, who’s also director of marketing.

“It feels like most people are aware of it,” said Santiso Borsten. “If you come to Ottawa and don’t hit Zak’s, then you’re not really here.”

Known for its milkshakes and all-day breakfasts, the restaurant’s nostalgic interior is warm and welcoming. It features retro-looking red vinyl booths, charming chrome accents and irresistibly catchy tunes.

Zak’s Diner has been around since 1986, when Borsten and his former business partners opened a tiny 26-seat restaurant in the Market. They named it after one of the owners’ sons, Zak Firestone, and kept its doors open 24 hours, which is still the case on weekends.

The diner has expanded considerably in size throughout the years. At 37 years old, it’s one of the oldest restaurants in the ByWard Market. Mind you, it’s a spring chicken compared to the 174-year-old Château Lafayette tavern on York Street.

The downtown diner is also the busiest of the five Zak’s Diners. The other locations are in Kanata, on Elgin Street, in Carleton Place and in Westboro.

While Borsten is the sole owner of the ByWard Market diner, he’s majority owner of the other locations. His partners are former employees who started with him as busboys and servers and worked their way up.

Borsten’s other restaurants include Starling and The Grand Pizzeria & Bar — also in the ByWard Market — and The Metropolitan Brasserie.

On Sept. 12, Zak’s will be hosting an all-day Flipping for a Cause benefit in support of the ONFE (Ottawa Network for Education) School Breakfast Program. It will be serving pancakes by donations.

https://obj.ca/zaks-diner-collaborat...ition-t-shirt/