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prosperegal said:
I'm wondering if they're moving their more casual pieces over to 100 Bloor, while keeping more formal/higher end designer pieces at the main store?
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I can't figure out what they're doing. As a dude - let's say you want to come to Holts and buy a new wardrobe - how annoyed are you going to have to be to do half your shopping at one store, and schlep outside in the snow to another store to buy a couple of suits.

I get wanting to make a statement in the mens marketplace, J. Crew has done this with their freestanding stores and Club Monaco is now getting in on the game too, but this seems REALLY hair-brained to me. I actually kinda get the feeling that Holts is either grasping at straws or trying out some stuff in the few years they have a near monopoly on luxury spending to see what moves the needle.
 
pw20 said:
I can't figure out what they're doing. As a dude - let's say you want to come to Holts and buy a new wardrobe - how annoyed are you going to have to be to do half your shopping at one store, and schlep outside in the snow to another store to buy a couple of suits.
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first world problems...
 
GKW said:
first world problems...
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It is... but... if you're shelling out that much on clothes - why go to Holts if its going to be a crappy experience? Quite frankly - I'd rather order off of Mr Porter and have them delivered straight to my house.
 
I'm not sure that two separate stores makes it crappy. Many of their menswear customers might already shop at both the main store and Harry Rosen, so the new outlet wouldn't be an inconvenience. Maybe they find that men typically shop for work and for casuals on different trips. Maybe they are targeting men who generally don't go in Holt Renfrew for whatever reason. Hard to say at this time when we have no details.
 
Not surprising that it is closing these two tiny stores, especially with a much larger Nordstrom set to open in Ottawa in 2015. I'm not familiar with the Quebec City store (Ste. Foy?), but the Ottawa store was in a terrible location at 240 Sparks and I think Holt Renfrew was having no luck finding an appropriate new location.

Holt Renfrew to close stores in Quebec City, Ottawa
(Toronto Star)
 
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Skeezix said:
Not surprising that it is closing these two tiny stores, especially with a much larger Nordstrom set to open in Ottawa in 2015. I'm not familiar with the Quebec City store (Ste. Foy?), but the Ottawa store was in a terrible location at 240 Sparks and I think Holt Renfrew was having no luck finding an appropriate new location.
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It is sad considering their first store opened in Quebec City in 1837. But it is a smaller market.
 
I remember when they had a little satellite store in Place Ville Marie in Montreal. I got a Polo rugby shirt there, and kept the bag for ages...
 
This news is anything but surprising and I applaud Holt Renfrew for paying the compliment to these stores by suggesting they were performing well when it's hardly a state secret that Quebec City and Ottawa have been struggling for some time. The closure of the Ottawa store also touches on another problem which will confront Nordstrom's in the very near future: the stingy reputation of Ottawa shoppers and their propensity for driving luxury department stores out of business (dare I mention the disaster that was Les Ailes?) Location is certainly a complicated thing in retailing but the fact remains that if Holt Renfrew thought there was potential for profitability in the Ottawa market, they would have simply relocated rather than leave outright. Demographically, Ottawa gives the impression of being a fruitful market for luxury goods but one has to keep in mind that the high-income ratio of earners is skewed by the overrepresentation of public sector employees. Apart from government, there isn't a large corporate presence in Ottawa which means there isn't a lot of people with deep pockets who will shell out for high street fashion. In all likelihood, Nordstrom will have to seriously modify it's offerings at the Rideau Centre location in order to generate enough revenue to make it worthwhile.
 
mustangjay said:
This news is anything but surprising and I applaud Holt Renfrew for paying the compliment to these stores by suggesting they were performing well when it's hardly a state secret that Quebec City and Ottawa have been struggling for some time. The closure of the Ottawa store also touches on another problem which will confront Nordstrom's in the very near future: the stingy reputation of Ottawa shoppers and their propensity for driving luxury department stores out of business (dare I mention the disaster that was Les Ailes?) Location is certainly a complicated thing in retailing but the fact remains that if Holt Renfrew thought there was potential for profitability in the Ottawa market, they would have simply relocated rather than leave outright. Demographically, Ottawa gives the impression of being a fruitful market for luxury goods but one has to keep in mind that the high-income ratio of earners is skewed by the overrepresentation of public sector employees. Apart from government, there isn't a large corporate presence in Ottawa which means there isn't a lot of people with deep pockets who will shell out for high street fashion. In all likelihood, Nordstrom will have to seriously modify it's offerings at the Rideau Centre location in order to generate enough revenue to make it worthwhile.
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I've only been to the Ottawa store once. Not only was it difficult to find and not exactly in a spot with high foot traffic but the store itself looked like it was stuck in the 90s. It reminded me of the Yorkdale store back in the day. It did not feel welcoming/a good place to shop - it felt really stuffy and I wanted to leave as soon as I walked in. The hours were awful, too. I think it closed at 4 PM on Sunday. Glad to come home to Bloor Street/Yorkdale.
 
marsh said:
Its not clear from the press release but I'm wondering if they are making the new Bloor Street location a stand alone mens store which would leave room to expand at the existing location.
Will be interesting to see. They are way behind when it comes to e-commmerce though.
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But they've said that they're keeping some menswear at the main store?
 
So when does the main renovation start for the Bloor street store ?
 
Guys, we are years away until all this is done. So bloor will be a construction site for years to come. It's great for the street on the long term, for now thoigh, there is going to be some growing pains.
 
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