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Toronto non-mall retail (Odds & Ends)

  • Thread starter marksimpson7843
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Just some St Lawrence/Old town retail status updates for anyone interested..

-new building permit for a bakery (Petit Patisserie) in the base of Abbey Lane Lofts where the Dinner and DVD used to be

-George Brown Chef School (217 King street East): all windows removed as well the the cement ledges of the windows. It's a great looking building, and I hope the new windows do the building justice. Also, some serious interior gutting.

-Harvest house moves out of retail space in the King George Sq condo(168 king street east) condo to a much smaller space across the street.

-Fit for living gym at The Esplanade and Berkely moves out (xfers membership to Waterside sports club-Queens Quay)

-new TD Bank in the Market Square (80 Front Street e): Dry wall is complete/near complete.
 
Construction of the "re-newed" Gas station (Esso I believe) on the north-east corner of Sherbourne and Front is now coming along at a quick pace. The pump islands are roughed in cement, and the island roofs (two of them) are up. Should be open fairly soon..
 
Tidbit of the day...

Teroni's is opening two new locations. One in L.A. (no joke) and the other in The Courthouse! Yup, the Courthouse on Adelaide St E will be turning into a giant Teronis! The upper levels will still be used for club nights and special funcitons, but the restaurant space will become a Teroni's. BTW, the Teroni's on Victoria St will stay open, but will likely become a coffee/breakfast/lunch sort of place only.

There's also a new Lettieri opening at Adelaide St E & Victoria very soon and a Starbuck's opening up in the new Canada Life building.
 
The sign about Terroni moving into the Adelaide Street Court House has been up for weeks.

Maybe Whole Foods is considering opening 2 locations, but considering the five options (possibly more) you listed?
 
re: sobeys

Pukegreen and Darkstar,

I haven't seen any progress either. I aswell recall when the hydrobox went up in the back, as well when they put up those large beams of wood on the roof, which is more or less still sitting there.

In other related/unrelated news in the area that may be of interest..

-T&T Supermarket (Asian Supermarket) on Cherry and Polson now has signage on their lot (I haven't noticed it before). I can't remember what the building looked like before when it was Knob Hill Farms, but it looks like entrance work has been done (new glass windows), and from the outside, it looks like that they could be open for the scheduled fall opening..ample parking and the store is 41,000 sq ft..No doubt in my mind that the store will be a success.

-Gas station on Front and Sherbourne has no signage, but is now open..
Today I believe was there first day, yesterday there we sweeping up with last minute touches.

-other very near openings, bakery at Abbey Lane Lofts(signage is up), TD Bank at 80 Front.
 
From: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070605.wrbestbuy05/EmailBNStory/robNews/home
______________
Best Buy's two-step begins to click
MARINA STRAUSS
From Tuesday's Globe and Mail
June 5, 2007 at 4:19 AM EDT
TORONTO — When U.S. electronics giant Best Buy Co. Inc. [BBY-N] snapped up Future Shop in 2001, critics took shots at its decision to run with both retail banners in Canada as being an unnecessary expense.

But Best Buy has proven the naysayers wrong. The two-name strategy has worked, giving consumers yet another place to shop, company executives say. Over the past six years, the retailer has managed to almost double its market share to more than 30 per cent from 17 per cent of the domestic electronics market, they said yesterday.

In fact, the approach has worked so well that the U.S. parent is now copying the two-banner model in other countries that it is entering, said Bob Willett, chief executive officer of Best Buy International.

"It increases the choice to the consumer," Mr. Willett said after a presentation to the Retail Council of Canada annual conference. "There are whole segments of different behaviour and different customers in Canada. They don't all want the same thing. They don't all want to shop in the same boring environment."

Critics had warned that keeping two store chains would force the company to run different marketing and buying programs for the two banners, piling on costs and reducing acquisition savings.

But Mr. Willett said that the extra work has been worth it. The company has found ways to leverage its massive purchasing and distribution capabilities while still tailoring its products and services to diverse customer needs, he said. Meanwhile, Best Buy Canada's sales have soared to almost $5-billion, from $2-billion six years ago.

"You can't be all things to all men," Mr. Willett asserted.

Best Buy will soon be following a similar two-banner path in other countries it is entering or plans to enter, including Mexico, Turkey and Britain. It already has gone that route in China, where it acquired Jiangsu Five Star Appliance Co. about 18 months ago and is keeping that banner along with the Best Buy name.

And when Best Buy went about developing its business in China, it tapped into its Canadian team and expertise for help, he said.

Kevin Layden, president of the Canadian division, said the Future Shop chain has kept itself distinct from Best Buy in a number of ways. Future Shop has commissioned sales staff, more high-end goods and a larger immigrant shopper following.

Future Shop's commissioned sales people tend to have more dealings with customers, discussing various options available in the converging electronics world, he said. "It's very similar to the cultures they come from and their background," he said.

Future Shop also tends to attract more technically savvy consumers who want to talk about the latest gadgets and get advice on mixing and matching merchandise, he said. Best Buy customers "want a ready-made solution"-- the stores attract more women with self-serve displays and wider aisles.

The marrying of the two types of customers -- and chains -- in one company has helped achieve a market share percentage in the "low 30s" while other retailers have difficulty getting to 20 or 25 per cent share, he said.

Best Buy Canada thinks it still has room to expand. With 122 Future Shop and 47 Best Buy outlets, it plans about 135 Future Shop stores over the next couple of years, and as many as 100 or 120 Best Buys. It will soon start to test a smaller Best Buy format, which could be an engine of growth for that banner.

*****

Different strokes ...

In Canada, Future Shop and Best Buy have a combined market share of more than 30 per cent, almost double the 17-per-cent share that Future Shop alone had in 2001 when Best Buy Co. arrived, according to the company.

DISTINCTIONS

FUTURE SHOP

commissioned sales staff

more high-end home theatres

attracts more immigrant customers

attracts more tech-savvy customers

BEST BUY

more self-service, no commissioned sales staff

more ready-made electronics packages

attracts more women customers

wider aisles, more interactive displays
Click to expand...
 
From: http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/...d=9297e327-4315-4148-9b04-cd6411b71736&k=1167
___________
Best Buy to shrink store size
AIMS TO BROADEN REACH INTO SMALLER COMMUNITIES
Hollie Shaw, Financial Post
Published: Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Best Buy Canada, the biggest seller of electronics in the country, will explore a small-format outlet to extend its brand further into smaller communities.
The owner of the Best Buy and Future Shop chains confirmed yesterday that it will pilot a smaller store under the Best Buy banner, likely in fiscal 2008.
"We have a couple of 20,000 [-square-foot] stores in the real estate pipeline right now," Kevin Layden, president and chief operating officer of Best Buy and Future Shop in Canada, said yesterday at a Retail Council of Canada convention.
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Best Buy locations range in size from 25,000 to 36,000 square feet, while Future Shops average about 26,000.
Future Shop has 122 outlets and Best Buy 47, with a stated target of opening up to 65 stores in Canada. But extending the brand into smaller locations could expand the Best Buy Canada chain to 100 or 120 stores, Mr. Layden said.
Minneapolis-based Best Buy Co. bought Burnaby, B.C.-based Future Shop in 2001. While industry watchers speculated that the U.S. operation would eventually enlarge Future Shop stores and convert them to the Best Buy banner, executives soon saw the benefits of keeping two separate but distinct brands in the market.
Unlike the Best Buy brand, Future Shop has opened smaller stores in regional markets.
"Most brands top out at a 20% to 25% market share [in a given market], even the most successful," said Robert Willett, chief executive of Best Buy International. "With two brands you have that much more opportunity: You can't be all things to all men."
The executives said the chains have distinct personalities that tend to appeal to different sets of consumers. Best Buy has a higher percentage of female consumers and likely appeals more to women because of its wider aisles and self-service model. At Future Shop, customers are approached frequently by sales staff working on commission. At Best Buy, electronics tend to be sold in packages for a household, such as an entire home theatre system, while Future Shop is tailored more to individuals buying a single product, such as a set of speakers.
Future Shop stores also appeal more to new Canadians, Mr. Layden noted.
"There is an interaction between commission sales associates and consumers that appeals to new Canadians.... It feels familiar to them."
Combined, Best Buy and Future Shop have roughly one third of the electronics market in Canada, a vast jump from Future Shop's pre-takeover market share of 17%. Since then, annual sales have grown from $2-billion to almost $5-billion.
Having two distinct banners also appeals to a "customer-centric" philosophy that Best Buy has developed over the past couple of years, one that aims at better customer service and tailoring specific formats and stores to meet customer needs.
Best Buy has used customer research, mystery shoppers and the Geek Squad -- a fleet of employees who troubleshoot in the stores or at a customer's home on such things as computer setup, repair and wireless networking -- to improve service.
"Our industry is moving toward the service model, so when you buy your TV you can connect it with your PC," said Mr. Willett, adding the retailer's aim was "to create a connected world on behalf of the consumer."
Knowing consumer needs is also more important now that personal computers have a life cycle of seven to eight weeks before they are eclipsed by a newer, better model, he said.
Click to expand...
 
There was an article in one of the British Sunday papers last weekend saying that Tesco will be opening a chain of small ( 10,000 sq. ft. ) grocery stores in California soon. They've decided not to go head-to-head with Wal-Mart, but will exploit and expand from smaller niche markets. Will they be moving into Canada in due course, I wonder?
 
I doubt Tesco will open anytime here. The grocery industry very dominated by a few local and national chains here (Rabba, Loblaw, etc.), and the pie isn't big enough to be worth it.
 
A small tidbit: the jewellery shop (David) next to the entrance of Dragon City on Spadina at Dundas has closed, and is going to become a Dairy Queen/Orange Julius.
 
Read in the Star the other day that the House of Lancaster strip club on the Queensway in Etobicoke has been purchased by a church across the street and will be converted into a community centre!
 
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