News   GLOBAL  |  Apr 02, 2020
 8.4K     0 
News   GLOBAL  |  Apr 01, 2020
 39K     0 
News   GLOBAL  |  Apr 01, 2020
 4.7K     0 

Went to WEM last night. Say what you want about the Toyota Dealership and whether it belongs in the mall or not, it doesn't look that bad *EDIT* on the exterior of the mall, and at least it helps modernize an otherwise dated and quiet section of the mall
 
Last edited:
JD Sports opened in WEM about a week ago


 
"It turns out that Edmonton is a market for luxury retail." Lol, nice little condescending opening sentence. He sounds surprised that Edmonton is not a city of Mark's Work Warehouse flannel and steel toed boots wearing hicks. Especially given we already had an LV inside of Holts so the standalone store isn't new, its just bigger that what we used to have.
 
A gigantic Shoppers Drug Mart is coming soon to Phase I second level. Granted, there's a Shoppers on every corner in this city, but I hope this will blow 'em away.

More WEM "grand openings" and "coming soons":

20220423_141613.jpg

20220423_141538.jpg

20220423_151511.jpg
 
Can we get a return of Holt Renfrew? I know WEM was trying to lure them from downtown when HR was still in Manulife Place. WEM needs additional "exclusive" retailers: there are Hudson's Bay and Simons stores in other malls in Edmonton but Holt's would be a destination store for WEM.
 
Holt divested from this market (similar to Ottawa, Winnipeg, QC) as it was not a 'top tier' market or part of their new business plan to focus on the big 3.
 
Holt divested from this market (similar to Ottawa, Winnipeg, QC) as it was not a 'top tier' market or part of their new business plan to focus on the big 3.
What Holt's said at the time was that they only wanted to operate full-sized stores. The Manulife Place location was less than a third of the size of their standard store.

It was a HUGE loss to downtown having both Holt's and Hudson's Bay pull out, but there were many of us hoping that Holt's would return to the market if given the right premises and opportunity. Holt's would be a welcome addition to WEM. Interestingly, Simons would probably be a big supporter of adding Holt Renfrew to the mall: I remember an interview a few years back in which Peter Simons was asked about operating a store in Rideau Centre in direct competition with Nordstrom. He said it was actually good for Simons to have Nordstrom there as it positioned that mall as an upscale "fashion destination."
 
What Holt's said at the time was that they only wanted to operate full-sized stores. The Manulife Place location was less than a third of the size of their standard store.

It was a HUGE loss to downtown having both Holt's and Hudson's Bay pull out, but there were many of us hoping that Holt's would return to the market if given the right premises and opportunity. Holt's would be a welcome addition to WEM. Interestingly, Simons would probably be a big supporter of adding Holt Renfrew to the mall: I remember an interview a few years back in which Peter Simons was asked about operating a store in Rideau Centre in direct competition with Nordstrom. He said it was actually good for Simons to have Nordstrom there as it positioned that mall as an upscale "fashion destination."

Funny enough, there's enough people (including yours truly) who are in favor of Simons opening in downtown Edmonton.
Granted they apparently have location/proximity rules in place with the Londonderry Mall location ruling the NE, but rules can be broken!
 
Big 3? plus Calgary if I not mistaken.
Still in Calgary and a slightly odd market for them given their new direction, but they have a few things working for them there in terms of corporate presence, upper end tourist spending en route to Banff and their store was more inline with their current requirements.
 
What Holt's said at the time was that they only wanted to operate full-sized stores. The Manulife Place location was less than a third of the size of their standard store.

It was a HUGE loss to downtown having both Holt's and Hudson's Bay pull out, but there were many of us hoping that Holt's would return to the market if given the right premises and opportunity. Holt's would be a welcome addition to WEM. Interestingly, Simons would probably be a big supporter of adding Holt Renfrew to the mall: I remember an interview a few years back in which Peter Simons was asked about operating a store in Rideau Centre in direct competition with Nordstrom. He said it was actually good for Simons to have Nordstrom there as it positioned that mall as an upscale "fashion destination."
The 'full sized stores' was a red herring. They specifically said they want to focus on their key markets and we simply didn't make the cut.

 

Back
Top