Canadian Retail Thread

[Djeffery]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

their stores around Vancouver are all large, that will leave a huge amount of space to fill.

Same in London. Their store in Masonville Place takes up 2 large spaces on 2 floors. They've done good filling the spaces left by Mexx, Express, Target and Sears, will be interesting to see what they do with this.

[ericlewis91]

Originally Posted by Djeffery

Same in London. Their store in Masonville Place takes up 2 large spaces on 2 floors. They've done good filling the spaces left by Mexx, Express, Target and Sears, will be interesting to see what they do with this.

I have a feeling uniqlo will take this space over... (but I am just guessing... since they want to open all across Canada)

[SpongeG]

I read last week before Forever 21 declared it, that some mallsin the USA were making deals to give them reduced rent cause they have such large spaces and no prospective tenants lining up to get in their malls. In some malls Forever 21 is the only anchor store.

[big W]

Yes that may save some US stores but they are closing all the Canadian stores.

[wave46]

It is sort of morbid and fascinating to watch the retail collapse of the last half decade.

Which always makes me wonder: Was it just a giant bubble? The giant shopping malls and centres, the clothing stores upon clothing stores. Where's the bottom?

With respect to Hermes, I'm mostly underwhelmed - for all the banter about luxury, I'm quite underwhelmed by what 'luxury' has to offer these days. I sat in a $100k Mercedes once and thought to myself - "Someone would pay $100k for this?"

Maybe it's a sign of how good 'ordinary' things are these days.

[WhipperSnapper]

Lot of stores virtually selling the same thing with little individuality. There were always going to be winners and losers. The nature of retail has always led to hits overleveraging themselves to expand quickly only to succumb to fading trends.

[SpongeG]

I was reading an article about Generation Z and shopping and they don't like the idea of fast fashion, it's bad for the environment etc, they are embracing thrift store shopping, just watch any younger YouTuber and they will do thrift hauls, etc. They just can't afford to buy things so they make their dollars stretch and they would rather buy a solidly made item from a thrift store than a throwaway cheap t-shirt and Forever 21's demographic was teens/twenty-somethings and without them, it was bound to happen. Plus the quality of their stuff has gone down really badly in recent years.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by wave46

Maybe it's a sign of how good 'ordinary' things are these days.

It depends on the item but I think in many areas modern economies of scale and competition are such that it can be hard to make custom expensive goods that actually are superior in any significant way.

An extreme example is something like an iPhone. If a rich guy has $1M to spend on an iPhone he's not going to be able to get anything significantly better than the mass market stuff on sale for much less. He could encrust it with gems or something. He won't be getting one that runs 2x faster.

[WhipperSnapper]

bad for the environment is an understatement. It consume a ton of energy to make and I believe it's now the number one creator of trash. It makes all the individually package foods and disposable cleaning products look positively green.

[hipster duck]

Originally Posted by someone123

It depends on the item but I think in many areas modern economies of scale and competition are such that it can be hard to make custom expensive goods that actually are superior in any significant way.

Thanks to Chinese manufacturing practices and the kinds of intricate supply chains that are only feasible in places like the Pearl River Delta, consumer goods are both cheaper and much more durable than they used to be. It's obvious in cars, but also in pretty much everything else. It's hard to imagine any country competing against China on just about anything that involves sourcing and assembling various parts.

One area where I have noticed a glaring lack of improvement is on the quality of renovations. It's not just new condos that look haggard after 4 years, but in my home search in Toronto, I'm encountering property after property where the engineered hardwood floors have visible gaps, the siding is several inches out of level, and nobody can seem to drywall a corner properly. These are in properties that are close to a million dollars. If this is a general indication of the quality of Canadian workmanship, maybe it's a good thing we don't make anything anymore!

[WhipperSnapper]

That's installation which comes with a construction market that can't keep up in part to no one choosing to take up a trade unless It's already in the family.

For me, it's more the quality of the products. Some of the top suppliers of cabinets are charging a fortune for veneered particleboard.

At least you get somewhat smooth walls in Toronto. They don't even try in other places. Orange peel finish. Are buyers ever gullible.

[dreambrother808]

Originally Posted by someone123

It depends on the item but I think in many areas modern economies of scale and competition are such that it can be hard to make custom expensive goods that actually are superior in any significant way.

Thats the issue for me. I've regretted most of the money I’ve spent on luxury goods. I expected them to last longer, to be of significantly better quality. That is either not the case or the increase in quality comes at a highly disproportionate cost.

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

I was reading an article about Generation Z and shopping and they don't like the idea of fast fashion, it's bad for the environment etc, they are embracing thrift store shopping, just watch any younger YouTuber and they will do thrift hauls, etc. They just can't afford to buy things so they make their dollars stretch and they would rather buy a solidly made item from a thrift store than a throwaway cheap t-shirt and Forever 21's demographic was teens/twenty-somethings and without them, it was bound to happen. Plus the quality of their stuff has gone down really badly in recent years.

We probably have enough clothing (and baby items) on this planet to last another 50 years if they both stop getting made now. The amount of clothing some people go through is insane. Thrift stores are full, 3rd world countries are denying shipments, etc.

[svlt]

Originally Posted by someone123

It depends on the item but I think in many areas modern economies of scale and competition are such that it can be hard to make custom expensive goods that actually are superior in any significant way.

An extreme example is something like an iPhone. If a rich guy has $1M to spend on an iPhone he's not going to be able to get anything significantly better than the mass market stuff on sale for much less. He could encrust it with gems or something. He won't be getting one that runs 2x faster.

Phones are a good one, I think cutting edge technological limitations make things like Vertu and Porsche Design phones totally pointless. If you're a very rich person with any sense, just get the best iPhone available.

Cars too, at the medium-luxury scale (a mid range MB or Lexus for example) I'm already feeling like I'm getting about the best I would really want or even lust for.

Clothes I do wish as a whole people invested a little more into longevity rather than trends, notwithstanding the people that can't actually afford it. My spouse is guilty of this and I try to remind her that all those disposable made in China shoes and garments she buys and wears for one season is a lot of waste. I've hardly bought any clothing in years. The $100 premium shirts and $500 shoes that last a decade just make so much more sense than cycling through fast fashion at several hundred a season.

[hipster duck]

Originally Posted by svlt

Clothes I do wish as a whole people invested a little more into longevity rather than trends, notwithstanding the people that can't actually afford it. My spouse is guilty of this and I try to remind her that all those disposable made in China shoes and garments she buys and wears for one season is a lot of waste. I've hardly bought any clothing in years. The $100 premium shirts and $500 shoes that last a decade just make so much more sense than cycling through fast fashion at several hundred a season.

I hear you, but I think that's easier for men than women. Men just need a few well-made timeless classics and well-fitting basics to look good. Women's fashion has made it so they have to chase trends and they just buy a new wardrobe of cheaply-made fast fashion every year.

The other thing about premium men's fashion is that its value only becomes apparent after many years. I have a pair of Moreschi leather shoes that I bought on sale for $200 about twelve years ago when I was out of university and had just landed my first job. I balked at the price because that was a lot of money for me back then, but the old Italian salesman basically said something like "kid, this is a great deal and one day you'll realize that it was worth it". He was right; they still look like new and are still just as stylish as the day that I bought them.

[SpongeG]

Ikea plans to open smaller stores in Toronto as consumers crave convenience

Aleksandra Sagan, The Canadian Press


Bedroom furnishings sit in a window display at the first city-centre Ikea of Sweden AB store in Paris, France, May 10, 2019. Bloomberg/Marlene Awaad

Ikea Canada plans to open its first smaller, downtown store format in the country in Toronto within the next two years.

The focus on the new formats for the retailer known for massive stores that can feel like walking through a home furnishings and decor labyrinth comes as urban consumers demand spaces closer to them that don't require a long drive.

"Customers are changing," said Michael Ward, who assumed the role as president of the retailer's Canadian arm at the start of the year after more than three decades with the company.

"We're moving with customers and one part of that is that we want to penetrate the big cities."

In 2018, Ikea announced it planned to add small shops to 30 cities around the world.


The smaller shops come in three different formats.

One of the first opened in Madrid, Spain, in 2018. The city shops focus on different categories, such as bedroom or living room and tend to be roughly 2,500 square metres (27,000 square feet).

In New York City's Manhattan borough, Ikea took a different approach, focusing on services. The planning studio format is the smallest — about 500 square metres (5,400 square feet).

The last store type — dubbed extra small — spans 5,000 square metres (54,000 square feet).

A typical Canadian Ikea store, by comparison, clocks in at between 25,000 and 35,000 square metres (269,000 to 377,00 square feet).

...

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/ikea-pla...ence-1.1343745

[esquire]

^ I'm surprised they didn't do it earlier.

It's ironic that one of the mainstays of urban living is the biggest of the big box stores. When I was younger and in my prime Ikea years as a student, I actually didn't buy as much as I otherwise would have from there given that the store was so far out.

[Djeffery]

We have a big dirt pile along the 401 in London that should be hosting the grand opening of our IKEA store right about now. They announced the store 2 years ago, then put it on hold a year ago, and haven't said another word about it since. They said they were still proceeding with the land purchase and are committed to the market, but it's been 15 months since they made this announcement. Interesting that the rest of the development has stalled as well. Costco is still moving ahead with their new store to replace the current one on the site (originally a Price Club from the 80's), although it will be a year late or more when it finally gets built, but no word on the new movie theatres, Sail or other retailers planning to move in.

[urbandreamer]

People still go to movie theatres?

[SpongeG]

of course, but now that you can get the popcorn delivered (LOL) its less of an incentive