[Moncton] Retail Thread

[habs33]

shows how often i go the mall lol

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Makes no never mind to us since they closed their CF Champlain store about 6-8 months ago.

[Nashe]

Originally Posted by habs33

shows how often i go the mall lol

There was nothing you could buy there that you couldn't get cheaper online.

[MonctonRad]

Thai Zone at the Mapleton Centre is now closed (non payment of rent).

Not a big surprise to me. It never seemed busy. I think the new Mexi's at the Mapleton Centre however is doing OK

[MonctonRad]

Telus has acquired Mobile Klinik. They intend to keep it as a separate company under their umbrella, and expand it to 200 locations nationwide.

A rare good news story during the retail apocalypse.

[DyAm00394]

The main admin over on Retail Talk & Share has posted some update pictures of the vacancies/soon-to-be vacancies at CF Champlain.
You can check them out here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1690...9245886641439/

I do believe the total (after the current store closures) will be 12.

And also a source has mentioned on that post that Fruits & Passion is now closed?! The employees (of which one of them is the source's family member) got the call yesterday. So with that, it will be 13 in total.


Update: The store manager confirmed that they are still open, but only until July 31st. So they are closing their Moncton location.

[MonctonRad]

Thanks.

I suppose the situation at CF Champlain could be worse, and really, this is not the fault of the Moncton market or of Cadillac Fairview (aside from their purportedly high rents).

What we are witnessing is a paradigm shift in retail, especially with regard to higher end bricks and mortar outside of the top twelve retail markets in the country. The change has been coming for some time, provoked by online retail (like Amazon), but exacerbated by the COVID crisis.

Major cities like Toronto or Montreal will continue to have higher end fashion malls because that's where most of the wealth in the country resides. The Eaton Centre and Yorkdale Mall aren't going anywhere. Once you start getting into cities with a metro population less than 500,000 however, I think higher end retail will become less viable (unless the city is a major tourism destination). Higher end retail in Moncton therefore is at risk.

CF's experiment with Champlain Place as a fashion mall might be coming to an end. CF therefore has to decide where to go with Champlain Place. Will they keep the mall but downscale their ambitions, or will they sell the mall to a more generic management company. I suspect we will know the answer within the next year or so...........

[MonctonRad]

I see that they have finally installed the permanent signage for Easyhome (former Aaron's) at the Northwest Centre. It only took them something like nine months.........

A little thing I know, but with the pandemic and the retail apocalypse, you have to take pleasure in the little things.

[josh_cat_eyes]

If Cadillac Fairview were to sell CF Champlain, here’s a list of potential buyers:
Primaris REIT - Owner of Regent Mall and McAllister Place
Ivanhoe Cambridge - Owner of MicMac Mall
RioCan REIT - Owner of Charlottetown Mall & Corbett Centre
Crombie REIT - Owner of Avalon Mall in St. John’s. The real estate arm of Sobeys.
Cushman & Wakefield - Owner of Halifax Shopping Centre

Personally I think Primaris & Ivanhoe Cambridge are they best options. They have good management history. Both NB malls have done an excellent job replacing the vacancies brought on by the departures of major anchor tenants. (Target, Sobeys & Sears)

[DyAm00394]

Originally Posted by josh_cat_eyes

If Cadillac Fairview were to sell CF Champlain, here’s a list of potential buyers:
Primaris REIT - Owner of Regent Mall and McAllister Place
Ivanhoe Cambridge - Owner of MicMac Mall
RioCan REIT - Owner of Charlottetown Mall & Corbett Centre
Crombie REIT - Owner of Avalon Mall in St. John’s. The real estate arm of Sobeys.
Cushman & Wakefield - Owner of Halifax Shopping Centre

Personally I think Primaris & Ivanhoe Cambridge are they best options. They have good management history. Both NB malls have done an excellent job replacing the vacancies brought on by the departures of major anchor tenants. (Target, Sobeys & Sears)

I agree Primaris & Ivanhoe Cambridge are the best options. However something to note, Ivanhoe Cambridge is apparently looking to reduce their exposure to retail in their vast profile and was looking to sell off some of its retail properties. It was mentioned in this recent article (towards the bottom, under "other struggles" heading): https://www.retail-insider.com/retai...summer-of-2020

Landlords are also making changes at this time. Montreal-based Ivanhoé Cambridge laid off 60 employees last month including COO Roman Drohomirecki. In February the president of retail Claude Sirois was let go. The landlord is said to have been looking to reduce its exposure to retail in its vast portfolio for the past couple of years and that it was looking to sell off some of its retail properties. A French language report in La Presse indicated that ‘if the price is right’, Ivanhoé Cambridge could still divest some properties including its recently overhauled Montreal Eaton Centre.

So if they are trying to reduce their retail profile, then I guess Primaris will be the best option. And I agree with you that they have good management history and both NB malls they own are doing great with replacing vacancies. It's especially noticeable with what they've done with McAllister Place over the past few years.

• Target departed (it was replaced with: H&M, Party City, Dollarama, Goodlife Fitness, and Guest Services).
• Sobeys departed (it was replaced with: Marshalls & Homesense).
• Sears departed (it was replaced with: Mark's, The Brick, and Urban Planet).

They also did a great job in getting some of the smaller vacancies filled up at McAllister. Some examples being: Mountain Warehouse, Labels, House Of Chan, T&P Elegant Nails Spa, D&S Hair, and PYT Hair (seasonal pop-up, that now has a permanent spot. But is still operating seasonally it appears). They've also brought in a Kurves Brow Bar kiosk. So they are doing a great job with McAllister in my opinion.

Also they've invested in updating the look of the mall (particularly the former Sears space, the current Marshalls/Homesense, and former Target parts of the mall). As well as updated entrance 6. The mall looks more modern and updated now (compared to before).

Overall, I think Primaris will be a good candidate to purchase Champlain Place (if CF decides to sell the mall). Plus if Primaris buys it, they will then own all 3 of the big NB malls.

We shall wait and see what happens with Champlain Place.

[Freddypop]

Originally Posted by josh_cat_eyes

If Cadillac Fairview were to sell CF Champlain, here’s a list of potential buyers:
Primaris REIT - Owner of Regent Mall and McAllister Place
Ivanhoe Cambridge - Owner of MicMac Mall
RioCan REIT - Owner of Charlottetown Mall & Corbett Centre
Crombie REIT - Owner of Avalon Mall in St. John’s. The real estate arm of Sobeys.
Cushman & Wakefield - Owner of Halifax Shopping Centre

Personally I think Primaris & Ivanhoe Cambridge are they best options. They have good management history. Both NB malls have done an excellent job replacing the vacancies brought on by the departures of major anchor tenants. (Target, Sobeys & Sears)

Rio Can is on record that they are focussing on the big city properties in Toronto, Montreal, Alberta, and VanCity and are looking to sell their assets in Atlantic Canada. This was their statement before the pandemic. I can only guess that their interest in CF Champlain would be tepid at best

https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/rio...nned-1.4316923

[MonctonRad]

Finally, some good retail news........

https://www.retail-insider.com/retai...NxwPrzaE7xPPyQ

LL Bean has been pleased with their first cross border expansion into Canada, and plans to open four more retail stores in Ontario this year. The next phase after this will be expansion into the Maritimes.

This is the good new. The bad news is that Moncton may already have missed out on this opportunity.

Kastner said the company plan is to have up 20 stores across the country. Next year, it is looking at opening in the Maritimes because there’s a very strong L.L. Bean customer in that region due to the proximity to the corporate base in Freeport, Maine.

“Right now, we’re looking at opportunities in the Halifax area. So we will open one next year and then after that we’ll start to look at other opportunities. We’ll start to move West. We’re going to continue the growth. It’s going to be calculated. Location has to be right. The centre has to be right. And the demographic has to be right. We’re still targeting 20 stores,” said Kastner.

So, 2021 may see an LL Bean store in the Maritimes, but most likely in Halifax. With an anticipated 20 stores nationwide, this does not absolutely preclude a New Brunswick store too, but the odds are relatively long.

CF Champlain will likely be hot on the trail of this (one of the upcoming Ontario locations will be in a CF property). Another obvious potential location would be the old Cabela's store on Mapleton (assuming Bass Pro would want to sell to a competitor).

I'm not overly optimistic since Halifax seems to be the front runner, but we will have to keep a close eye on this file over the next year..........

[MonctonRad]

Here's a picture of the new LL Bean store in the Georgian Mall in Barrie ON.



All of the existing or proposed LL Bean stores in Canada (so far) have been either mall based or in outlet centres.

If they follow this trend in the Maritimes, this would mean that in Halifax, the likely location would be at HSC, MicMac Mall or Dartmouth Crossing.

If they also choose to open an NB store (in Moncton), the likely location would be CF Champlain, especially since one of the new stores they will be opening in Ontario later this year will also be located in a CF property. This experience might expedite lease negotiations for LL Bean. I think anywhere else in metro Moncton (including the old Cabela's store) would be very unlikely.

The newly vacant VS & Pink location in CF Champlain might do the trick nicely and, if necessary, I'm sure a couple of adjacent retailers could be convinced to relocate in the mall if necessary.

[josh_cat_eyes]

Originally Posted by Freddypop

Rio Can is on record that they are focussing on the big city properties in Toronto, Montreal, Alberta, and VanCity and are looking to sell their assets in Atlantic Canada. This was their statement before the pandemic. I can only guess that their interest in CF Champlain would be tepid at best

https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/rio...nned-1.4316923

One reason why I mentioned RioCan is they apparently sold 50% share in the Charlottetown mall to Killiam properties. Maybe something like this happens with Champlain Place. I’m not sure what big residential property owners are out there, but I’m sure there will be lots of interest if it does hit the market.

[DyAm00394]

Addition Elle is Now Closed at CF Champlain. They were supposed to close by August 15th, but it appears the Moncton location will not be re-opening for liquidation of stock. Apparently all of their merchandise they had is being shipped to a store in Ontario.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1690...4138739485487/

[MonctonRad]

Other retail tidbits which may affect CF Champlain...........

1) - It's looking increasingly likely that David's Tea will be shifting to an all online format as part of their bankruptcy restructuring.

2) - Le Chateau has come out and stated that it is increasingly unlikely that they will survive the current crisis.

3) - Saje Natural Wellness is experiencing a period of corporate turmoil, with new leadership, the closure of some stores in the US, and the closure of their corporate offices in Vancouver. There is no indication (yet) however of them filing for bankruptcy protection.

[Djeffery]

Originally Posted by josh_cat_eyes

One reason why I mentioned RioCan is they apparently sold 50% share in the Charlottetown mall to Killiam properties. Maybe something like this happens with Champlain Place. I’m not sure what big residential property owners are out there, but I’m sure there will be lots of interest if it does hit the market.

If there is residential development potential for CF Champlain, then CF would probably do that themselves, like they are planning to do at several other CF properties. I think we may have touched on that upthread a month or so ago (unless that was another thread)

[MonctonRad]

New info on David's Tea:

https://globalnews.ca/news/7160002/d..._rzA6EA7rnGr6c

They will be closing all of their US stores, and 82 of their Canadian stores, leaving 100 stores remaining in Canada. They plan on pursuing aggressive lease renegotiations on their remaining stores, and potentially will close additional locations if the renegotiation process does not progress favourably.

Where does this leave the CF Champlain store? Well, on the surface, they have a slightly greater than 50% chance of remaining open, but CF tends to charge very high rents, and are aggressive negotiators. As such, I am expecting the Moncton location to close.

[MonctonRad]

Scholar's Choice closing all but three of its stores in a restructuring
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/scholar-...ring-1.1463704

The company, a division of Educator Supplies Ltd., says it will close nine locations in Ontario, three in Alberta and one in Nova Scotia.

The three remaining stores will act as regional sales and distribution centres to support the shift in the business.

The locations to remain open will include its head office in London, Ont., as well as stores in Winnipeg and Moncton.

So, Moncton has dodged the bullet (for a change).

[MonctonRad]

Recent job advert on indeed.com for a team leader at RW&Co at CF Champlain.

https://ca.indeed.com/jobs?q=Retail&...ca98186bb9cf7e

This is good evidence that the relocation of this store at Champlain Place is still a go, despite the turmoil and downsizing at the Reitmans Group.

[MonctonRad]

I guess its official, David's Tea at CF Champlain is permanently closed.