Halifax Retail

[icetea93]

Halifax Retales has announced that Lawton’s will be leaving Halifax Shopping Centre this August. This isn’t surprising as the mall is highly productive and has a limited amount of space to work with.

This vacant space along with the space beside it leftover from when Victoria’s Secret downsized will open up a prime 15,000 square foot space in a prime area. I suspect Uniqlo has already grabbed this space.

That makes me wonder what their strategy is with clearing tenants from around the Gap corner, another large parcel, and probably the only “quiet” corner left in the mall. Another tenant that should be next for Halifax based on national expansion is Abercrombie & Fitch who has recently has a huge rebrand and resurgence and announced new stores in Ottawa, Winnipeg and London ON recently.

[HalifaxRetales]

I kinda thought the GAP corner was being setup for Uniqlo
but agree this new corner also couild be it

while not confirmed it very much feels when versus if for Uniqlo

Originally Posted by icetea93

Halifax Retales has announced that Lawton’s will be leaving Halifax Shopping Centre this August. This isn’t surprising as the mall is highly productive and has a limited amount of space to work with.

This vacant space along with the space beside it leftover from when Victoria’s Secret downsized will open up a prime 15,000 square foot space in a prime area. I suspect Uniqlo has already grabbed this space.

That makes me wonder what their strategy is with clearing tenants from around the Gap corner, another large parcel, and probably the only “quiet” corner left in the mall. Another tenant that should be next for Halifax based on national expansion is Abercrombie & Fitch who has recently has a huge rebrand and resurgence and announced new stores in Ottawa, Winnipeg and London ON recently.

[connect2source]

I wonder if JD Sports is eyeing the HSC. I know they plan to open in the big Dartmouth mall but I could easily see them opening up two locations in the HRM. They've been expanding very aggressively in other Canadian markets.

[icetea93]

Originally Posted by connect2source

I wonder if JD Sports is eyeing the HSC. I know they plan to open in the big Dartmouth mall but I could easily see them opening up two locations in the HRM. They've been expanding very aggressively in other Canadian markets.

I’m sure they are, but I don’t think they’d be too high on the radar for HSC compared to what other brands likely want space. With sportchek/atmosphere already and JD already exisiting in the city, I think they’ll continue to focus on new to Atlantic Canada fashion retailers

I have often wondered though if HSC were to expand, if demand was there, how they would do so…

[connect2source]

Originally Posted by icetea93

I have often wondered though if HSC were to expand, if demand was there, how they would do so…

There are plans in the works to re-develop the Mumford Transit terminal across the street with several towers. Logically, this would be a great area to expand the HSC retail footprint with perhaps an outdoor lifestyle pedestrianized retail area. Other than that they could expand the existing mall by putting areas of the parking underground. HSC is performing well and an expansion would ensure Halifax gets new-to-market retail that other similar sized cities are currently getting.

I still feel putting Winners in such a prime spot was an error, I'm confident if Simons was aware of Hudson's Bay's demise at the time of leasing they would have created a larger store with perhaps two floors.

[icetea93]

Originally Posted by connect2source

There are plans in the works to re-develop the Mumford Transit terminal across the street with several towers. Logically, this would be a great area to expand the HSC retail footprint with perhaps an outdoor lifestyle pedestrianized retail area. Other than that they could expand the existing mall by putting areas of the parking underground. HSC is performing well and an expansion would ensure Halifax gets new-to-market retail that other similar sized cities are currently getting.

I still feel putting Winners in such a prime spot was an error, I'm confident if Simons was aware of Hudson's Bay's demise at the time of leasing they would have created a larger store with perhaps two floors.

Good points. HSC is the premier mall of Atlantic Canada, and they’re at the point of having to boot retailers to make room for more in-demand ones. It’s also much smaller than most premier malls in other markets, so they could use some extra square footage for sure.

[Haliguy]

Originally Posted by connect2source

There are plans in the works to re-develop the Mumford Transit terminal across the street with several towers. Logically, this would be a great area to expand the HSC retail footprint with perhaps an outdoor lifestyle pedestrianized retail area. Other than that they could expand the existing mall by putting areas of the parking underground. HSC is performing well and an expansion would ensure Halifax gets new-to-market retail that other similar sized cities are currently getting.

I still feel putting Winners in such a prime spot was an error, I'm confident if Simons was aware of Hudson's Bay's demise at the time of leasing they would have created a larger store with perhaps two floors.

I always figured they would connect the 1st level together around the back of the mall from the food court to where the Dollarama is.

[icetea93]

There is a new permit application at Halifax Shopping Centre for a substantial renovation to an existing space for a “clothing retailer”. The valuation is near a million dollars, which leads me to think this is the large, combined Lawton’s and adjacent space. The valuation is too high for a typical mid-sized space. Lawtons is scheduled to close next month. The permit intentionally does not list the new retailers name, but things are looking good for Atlantic Canada’s long awaited Uniqlo!

[HalifaxRetales]

Originally Posted by icetea93

There is a new permit application at Halifax Shopping Centre for a substantial renovation to an existing space for a “clothing retailer”. The valuation is near a million dollars, which leads me to think this is the large, combined Lawton’s and adjacent space. The valuation is too high for a typical mid-sized space. Lawtons is scheduled to close next month. The permit intentionally does not list the new retailers name, but things are looking good for Atlantic Canada’s long awaited Uniqlo!

exactly what I thought when I saw that permit

[connect2source]

Any hard evidence to suggest it will be UNIQLO? I've heard nothing of it in their expansion details sometimes discussed on Retail Insider.

[icetea93]

Originally Posted by connect2source

Any hard evidence to suggest it will be UNIQLO? I've heard nothing of it in their expansion details sometimes discussed on Retail Insider.

No hard evidence other than it’s inevitable at this point. They’ve been expanding aggressively and Halifax (a market with Simon’s, Zara, a full IKEA, etc.) is overdue when you look at where they have been opening/announcing this past year. I believe it’s likely that they have been in negotiations for a long time with HSC and that’s the reason HSC chose not to renew Lawton’s lease. as we know, the shopping centre is low on space and very full, for better or worse I expect them to continue to push retailers out who aren’t big draws/money makers.

Beyond that, I can’t think of any other clothing retailers that require a space that large that aren’t already present in the mall and are expanding in Canada

[OldDartmouthMark]

I know nothing about Uniqlo, so forgive my asking, but what would they bring to HSC that is head and shoulders above any other clothing retailer (and tangentially, why should I be excited about it)?

[icetea93]

Originally Posted by OldDartmouthMark

I know nothing about Uniqlo, so forgive my asking, but what would they bring to HSC that is head and shoulders above any other clothing retailer (and tangentially, why should I be excited about it)?

Good quality basics. Not super trendy like Zara, much better quality than H&M. Excellent clothing lines for great price points. Not as exciting at Simon’s for sure, but IMO a huge draw for the mall and the city. People will travel for Uniqlo as they do for ikea, Simon’s, Aritiza, etc. A larger draw for the city/mall than Lawtons that’s for sure

They have their own patented tech lines such as Airism which are very popular for hot weather. Also have heatgear for winter at low prices.

[HalifaxRetales]

Originally Posted by connect2source

Any hard evidence to suggest it will be UNIQLO? I've heard nothing of it in their expansion details sometimes discussed on Retail Insider.

We are the next logical Canadian Market

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by icetea93

Good quality basics. Not super trendy like Zara, much better quality than H&M. Excellent clothing lines for great price points. Not as exciting at Simon’s for sure, but IMO a huge draw for the mall and the city. People will travel for Uniqlo as they do for ikea, Simon’s, Aritiza, etc. A larger draw for the city/mall than Lawtons that’s for sure

They have their own patented tech lines such as Airism which are very popular for hot weather. Also have heatgear for winter at low prices.

Thanks for that!

I hope they come here!

[eastcoastal]

Originally Posted by OldDartmouthMark

I know nothing about Uniqlo, so forgive my asking, but what would they bring to HSC that is head and shoulders above any other clothing retailer (and tangentially, why should I be excited about it)?

Straightforward Japanese streetwear basics at pretty good prices with occasional collaborations with designers that would otherwise be out of reach for most people's wardrobe budget. It used to be that sizing ran very small, but they've sorted out "North American sizing" as different from their Japanese heritage, and they're quite popular with people looking for wardrobe staples that are "stylish" but not overly styled or avant garde. I've found good fitting dress shirts for work and some basic tees in the past after stumbling upon their store in Montreal. Since the in-person visit, I've ordered a couple times online.

[Keith P.]

I just checked their website and am hesitant to agree with your assessment of their sizing. A pair of men's casual shorts in size L has a 32" waist. Go up to XXL and they are less than 38". Those seem very small indeed. To be fair, their collared shirts seem more conventionally sized.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by eastcoastal

Straightforward Japanese streetwear basics at pretty good prices with occasional collaborations with designers that would otherwise be out of reach for most people's wardrobe budget. It used to be that sizing ran very small, but they've sorted out "North American sizing" as different from their Japanese heritage, and they're quite popular with people looking for wardrobe staples that are "stylish" but not overly styled or avant garde. I've found good fitting dress shirts for work and some basic tees in the past after stumbling upon their store in Montreal. Since the in-person visit, I've ordered a couple times online.

Interesting. Thanks!

[someone123]

I'm not a big clothing shopping person but I like Uniqlo. They have a lot of simple reasonable stuff, plus they do rotating t-shirts with different franchises (bands, TV shows, famous artists, video games, etc.).

[eastcoastal]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

I just checked their website and am hesitant to agree with your assessment of their sizing. A pair of men's casual shorts in size L has a 32" waist. Go up to XXL and they are less than 38". Those seem very small indeed. To be fair, their collared shirts seem more conventionally sized.

Those are "relaxed" lengths for elasticated or adjustable pants, like sweatpants... so, they'd get larger. I wouldn't trust them without trying them on first. Pants with a fixed waist size tend to go from 28 to 38 inches... and I'd feel more comfortable trusting those measurements.