General Retail News

[Kitchissippi]

With all the condos popping up in the area, the lower level could probably turned into an urban supermarket especially if they opened up access out on to Nicholas street. It would certainly liven up that ugly blank wall by the sad lonely heritage City Registry Office. I'm thinking something like the Maple Leaf Gardens Loblaws in Toronto.

[BlackRedGold]

It'll probably be Nordstrom. Would a Canadian retailer really be this aggressive to buy out the leases at the busiest malls in three of Canada's top 5 metros?

And it has to be a single retailer who is pushing for it. The malls aren't going to buy out the leases unless they know they've got a tenant lined up to fill the space. Nordstrom makes perfect sense. They're an upscale department store that wants to be in prime spots.

[adam-machiavelli]

With "pop-up" uses all the rage right now, until the next department store moves in, the current Sears space should become a pop-up central market including food booths, craft tables, art, cafes, public service displays, etc.

[c_speed3108]

A few points.

-The lease(s) were bought out by Cadillac Fairview - the real estate arm of the teachers pension fund and owner of the mall.

-Cadillac Fairview approached Sears first.

-It is believed the rent was considerably below market rates.


I personally doubt the mall would want to divide the space as it is technically their only real anchor tenant as the bay is across the street. There would need to be a very compelling financial reason to do. I would have to think that they have someone in mind for the three locations - likely the same store for three.

[McKellarDweller]

Originally Posted by Kitchissippi

With all the condos popping up in the area, the lower level could probably turned into an urban supermarket

I love that idea.

I'm hoping (well, expecting) some sort of urban supermarket to come to the Westboro area in the next 5-10 years. There's a huge market for one, obviously growing. Not much good quality produce nearby without having to get in a car to go to Wellington Village, or the Farm Boy by Lincoln Fields. I'm lucky to walk to Superstore where it is, but it leaves much to be desired (people I talk to agree).

[rocketphish]

OBJ chimes in...

Sears shuttering Rideau Centre store

Peter Kovessy, March 2, 2012

Struggling department store retailer Sears Canada is closing its 240,000-square-foot Rideau Centre store by the end of October, along with locations in Vancouver and Calgary, the company announced Friday.

Rideau Centre general manager Cindy VanBuskirk declined to discuss what the move means to the Rideau Centre and directed questions to the mall's owner, Cadillac Fairview.

In a statement, Cadillac Fairview said it does not discuss tenant negotiations or leasing strategies. The company added that it is always looking for opportunities to "create a fresh and enticing shopping environment for our customers, and this agreement with Sears is a reflection of that."

The departure of Sears could open up opportunities for retailers who currently do not have a presence in Ottawa, which Ms. VanBuskirk said in an earlier interview is sometimes due to the unavailability of space within the city's prime shopping locations.

Speaking at last fall's Ottawa Real Estate Forum, Ms. VanBuskirk said there are several retailers who should have Ottawa on their radar, such as Crate & Barrel, Victoria's Secret, J.Crew, Anthropolgie and H&M. She named several other retailers that she'd like to see come to Ottawa, including Juicy Couture, Brooks Brothers, Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn.

"The reason they are not here is either that they are just coming to Canada and just going into the Toronto market, and Ottawa is a year or two away or - as in the case of H&M - they haven't been able to get the right real estate here. They can't find the right location, with the right size at the right time."

The city's regional malls and large power centres - representing almost seven million square feet of shopping space - ended 2011 with a vacancy rate of 0.6 per cent, according to statistics from Cushman & Wakefield Ottawa.

Sears will pay a total of $170 million to sell its Ottawa, Calgary and Vancouver leases back to Cadillac Fairview in deals expected to close by April 20.

Some employees will have the opportunity to apply for other positions at nearby Sears locations, the company said. The retailer will also look at opening other Sears stores in the affected areas.

The move comes as the retailer works to revamp its struggling Canadian operations. Over the past few months it has laid off about 470 employees in an attempt to cut costs.

The sale of the three department stores follows a similar strategy made by its U.S. parent company in an attempt to shore up some cash.

"While we had no plans to close stores, the transaction for these three specific locations provides an attractive financial benefit for the company which strategically allows us to drive growth in areas which can be most beneficial," said president and CEO Calvin McDonald in a release.

"We are investing in a refresh of our stores and piloting new formats which will provide Canadians exciting ways to access Sears products and services. This is an opportunity for Sears Canada that fits well with our vision and where our strengths are as a retailer."

Sears and other Canadian retailers have been gearing up in preparation for the arrival of U.S. discount retailer Target next year.

Mr. McDonald took the lead role at Sears Canada last summer as the retailer pushed ahead with a streamlining effort to help reverse recent losses.

He has said he wants to make the stores more attractive, relevant and shopper friendly after finding that Sears' stores were cluttered and difficult to navigate.

Last month, the company announced plans to cut roughly 400 jobs across the country as it closed nearly all of its in-store cafes. Sears Canada also laid off about 70 employees in its head office last year.

Sears has roughly 30,000 employees across Canada and more than 400 corporate, dealer and home services stores.

In the National Captial Region, Sears also has locations at the St. Laurent Centre, Carlingwood Mall, the Ikea plaza off Pinecrest Road and across the Ottawa River in Hull and Aylmer.

http://www.obj.ca/Local/Retail/2012-03-0...A-Sears-shuttering-Rideau-Centre-store/1

[Harley613]

Originally Posted by c_speed3108

The o-dot blog suggested a massive Shopper's Drug Mart with a Bridgehead

HAHAHAHA. That blog is just way too funny.

I'm really really really hoping for a Simons...Rideau Centre is a flawless location, it's serviced by STO and Simons holds serious appeal for the younger demographic that frequent Rideau Centre.

I wouldn't be surprised if the space was used as Temp space for certain stores while the expansion proceeds though....

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by c_speed3108

The o-dot blog suggested a massive Shopper's Drug Mart with a Bridgehead


In all seriousness the space 240,000 sq ft. I suspect that is a bit on the large size for Simons. The old plan that had them at St Laurent was around 70,000.

H&M stores are also quite small as well. Even smaller than Simons.

[SpongeG]

I have heard that Nordstrom has agreed to take all three sears locations - Ottawa, Calgary and Vancouver - they announced last year that they were coming to canada and were working on securing locations - they had listed cities they wanted to be in and all 3 were on that list plus toronto

sears has said they will be opening stores in the markets they have had to leave in one of the news articles out there, but the $170 million given them would be hard to pass up eh

[Kitchissippi]

Between the OBJ and the Globe and Mail articles, I'm confused: is Sears paying or getting $170 million to get rid of their leases? I guess I should trust the Globe and Mail?

from OBJ:
Sears will pay a total of $170 million to sell its Ottawa, Calgary and Vancouver leases back to Cadillac Fairview in deals expected to close by April 20.

from G&M:
Struggling Sears Canada Inc. (SCC-T13.040.846.89%) will close three of its department stores in top locations by the end of October, selling its leases back to their landlord for $170-million.

[SpongeG]

sears is being paid $170 million by Cadillac Fairview - cadillac fairview is buying out the leases from sears

also ottawa is getting a new store:

Still, Mr. McDonald said in an interview that he is not looking to sell more stores in Canada. He said Cadillac Fairview approached Sears about taking back the three leases, whose rents are believed to have been considerably below market rates.

He said the deal offers Sears an “attractive financial benefit” allowing it to focus on new prototypes at other locations to build on its strengths. He outlined four new formats that Sears will soon start to test, including four conventional department stores, expanded franchised “dealer” stores in smaller communities and a larger-than-usual home-goods store in Ottawa.

[BlackRedGold]

But is that new store just the one at Pinecrest being moved over to the old Ikea location? Or is it the proposed one out in Kanata/Stittsville?

[MountainView]

My best guess is that it is the location at Pinecrest Mall because it fits the definition of "larger-than-usual home-goods store" as it is going from a normal sized home store to a larger location next door, but not large enough for the full Sears store.

[hunter]

New Apple Store on the horizon?

http://www.macnn.com/articles/12/03/03/apple.could.open.store.in.ottawas.bayshore/

MACNN: Apple may have second Ottawa retail store
updated 03:15 pm EST, Sat March 3, 2012
Apple could open store in Ottawa's Bayshore


Apple may be planning a second retail store in the Canadian capital of Ottawa based on commentaries and a recent retail shakeup. Bayshore Shopping Centre in the city's West end is known to be expanding from 67,000 to 100,000 square meters, and has been getting attention from "major" retailers that would take advantage of the extra space, the Ottawa Citizen said. While the Bayshore wouldn't officially comment, numerous general mall staff were certain an Apple store was coming.

The influx was partly supported by Sears being told to leave its location at the Rideau Centre, where it has been a staple of the building for 12 years since the exit of Eaton's. Bayshore would be a possible new home for Sears and would be seen as a sort of catalyst for a rush of American brands into the city.

While unconfirmed, the retail expansion could be important for Ottawa, virtually the only major city in the country that doesn't have more than one Apple store. The city is spread out in an East-West direction, and many of its more recent and wealthier residents live in Western areas. The Bayshore, like the Rideau Centre where Apple already operates, is also a major bus hub.

[eternallyme]

Originally Posted by Harley613

HAHAHAHA. That blog is just way too funny.

I'm really really really hoping for a Simons...Rideau Centre is a flawless location, it's serviced by STO and Simons holds serious appeal for the younger demographic that frequent Rideau Centre.

I wouldn't be surprised if the space was used as Temp space for certain stores while the expansion proceeds though....

I agree with splitting it and redesigning it. Either it would end up with 3 mid-sized anchors, or a mid-sized and a large anchor (but more like 150,000 square feet instead of 240,000). What could fit in 150,000 square feet? or 2 times about 75,000? Also what fits in 25,000 or so?

4th floor of current Sears: move the Food Court there. Also preserve space there for perhaps an urban supermarket behind the necessary new escalators. There would be no outside access, so it would need to be designed for mall-based movements.

2nd and 3rd floors: Have one or two smaller anchors. Take advantage of the entrances from the Mackenzie King Bridge (3rd) and below ground (2nd) floors.

Another smaller or mid-sized anchor could also open in what is now the food court, fronting Rideau Street.

[toaster]

Hopefully Simons and H&M.

[MountainView]

I think the Sears space at Rideau could go one of two ways.

1 - Nordstrom swoops in and takes the entire space and finally moves into the Canadian market. This is would be relatively easy for both Nordstrom and Cadillac Fairview, as they wouldn't have to pay to segregate space and only some new remodeling would have to be done.

OR

2 - Cadillac Fairview splits up the space and lures H&M to finally enter the Ottawa market. I think H&M could easily pull of 2-4 Ottawa locations but we'll be happy with one for now. Further, Simons could also choose to enter the Ottawa-Gatineau market as well... both of these two retailers taking a 75,000sq/ft chunk each. This would leave about 90,000sq/ft left for other uses and new tenants. I admit, it would be nice if the foodcourt were moved, allowing some nice store fronts along Rideau, but I don't see them doing that for a while.

It will be interesting to watch what unfolds!

[reidjr]

I would love a whole foods to move in.

[eternallyme]

Originally Posted by reidjr

I would love a whole foods to move in.

That would be a great idea IMO on the 4th floor part of the current Sears, with the food court there as well. Let an anchor have the 2nd and 3rd.

[McC]

Am I missing something? A grocery store on the fourth floor seems ridiculous to me, both from a customer perspective (I would want groceries closest to the exit both for myself and other customers!) and from a mangement/logistics perspective (getting all the deliveries of fresh produce and dairy up there seems a hassle!)