G
ganjavih
Guest
In other news, American Apparel will be opening a store soon @ 338 Yonge St (just next door to Sunrise Records).
That's good. There seem to be more empty stores than usual along that strip of Yonge these days.
In other news, American Apparel will be opening a store soon @ 338 Yonge St (just next door to Sunrise Records).
Excuse my ignorance, but what is Lee Valley?
That's good. There seem to be more empty stores than usual along that strip of Yonge these days.
You can double or triple the least rate over a short period of time. Same thing as being thrown out.Commercial leasing doesn't work that way - the tenants leave when they go out of business or decide not to renew the lease. The landlord cant just throw them out.
Malls see bright future
Yorkdale, Square One are renovatingShrugging off department-store turmoil
Mar. 29, 2006. 10:12 AM
DANA FLAVELLE
BUSINESS REPORTER
Who says the traditional shopping mall is dead?
Both Yorkdale Shopping Centre and Mississauga's Square One are in the middle of major renovation projects. Owner Oxford Properties Corp. plans to spend $74 million over the next two to three years.
"This is a particularly large investment because it's part of a larger program," Paul Brundage, executive vice-president of real estate management for Oxford Properties, said yesterday.
The malls are among $6 billion in real estate Oxford owns or manages on behalf of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, a big pension fund for civic employees.
Both malls have added extra space in recent years. Now they're upgrading existing space.
"It's like your house. You have to invest to preserve the value of the asset," Brundage said.
It's also part of keeping up with changing times in retail. In recent years, the traditional shopping mall has faced competition from online retailers and suburban power centres. Now, the mall is grappling with turmoil in department stores with ownership changes at Hudson's Bay Co. and Sears Canada.
But Brundage said the fallout may present an opportunity for the malls.
The country's last two department-store chains have traditionally acted as "anchors" for mall owners. But increased competition from American big-box retailers and European specialty chains has hurt department-store sales.
"It's a very dynamic environment," said Brundage. "Obviously, we're monitoring both HBC and Sears very closely. We see it as an opportunity for us to possibly get that real estate back and re-merchandise it with different types of tenants that would prefer to be in an enclosed mall."
The situation varies from mall to mall, he added. A Bay store in one mall could be a strong performer, while a Bay store in another mall may perform poorly. Supermarket chains are looking at going back into malls, he added. Oxford Properties recently signed a deal with Loblaw Cos. Ltd. to build a grocery store on the lot outside the Scarborough Town Centre.
At Square One, upgrades include better flooring, lighting and so-called street furniture, or the seating outside the stores. But the biggest improvement will be in the signage and other visual cues.
"We're a very large mall, and the biggest complaint we get from customers is it's difficult to get around," said Square One general manager Nance MacDonald.
The mall is being visually divided into three distinct "environments" intended to help customers find their way around, she said.
At Yorkdale Shopping Centre, the older part of the mall is being upgraded to look and feel more like the $60 million addition that opened last April, said general manager Jay Lee.
With a six-storey glass atrium, limestone floors, benches and real trees, the newer section is like an upscale city street. The addition houses 40 new stores, including the city's first Apple Computer store.
"We had incredible results with the new addition," said Yorkdale's Lee.
"We wanted to build on that momentum."
Both mall managers played down concern about Sears and the Bay.
Even if the department stores left, the malls would have no trouble renting the space to other retailers, said Square One's MacDonald.
Many new retail concepts that come to Canada open their first stores in the Greater Toronto Area and quickly move to the biggest malls, particularly fashion-driven retailers and chains aimed at teens, MacDonald said. Cheap-chic European fashion retailers Zara and H&M and cosmetics specialty chain Sephora are classic examples.
Some retailers have learned they fare better in a traditional shopping mall than either online or in suburban power centres, MacDonald said.
Malls appeal to younger shoppers because they can get there by public transit instead of going by car to the power centre with Mom and Dad, she noted.
As well, in the fashion world, online retailers can't compete with the ability to touch and feel an item before buying it, she said.
La Senza eyes global expansion as profits rise
Mar. 30, 2006. 12:44 PM
CANADIAN PRESS
Lingerie retailer La Senza Corp. (TSX: LSZ.SV) told investors Thursday that it is eager to pad out its international profile, a day after posting an annual profit of $17.7 million.
"International expansion is going to continue at the current pace, without question," CEO Irving Teitelbaum said during a conference call with analysts.
"Our cap-ex (capital expenditures) budget will be the strongest cap-ex budget over the last three years and the most aggressive — and yet still allows the company to fund its strong dividend payments out of cash flow."
He declined to specify how much capital is earmarked for growth, but noted the firm plans to open 28 new stores.
Another 20 outlets will be given a makeover, while seven are slated for closure as it converts its Silk & Satin stores to its La Senza Express banner.
La Senza's stock hit a 52-week high Wednesday after the lingerie retailer pushed up its quarterly dividend 25 per cent and said sales and profits rose substantially in the latest fiscal year.
The Montreal-based chain said it earned $17.7 million, or $1.30 per share, in its 2006 financial year, ended Jan. 28. That compared to a profit of $81,000, or one penny per share, in the previous year.
In response, its board boosted its dividend from 16 cents per share to 20 cents per share, for shareholders of record on April 12.
Excluding losses related to the closure of its U.S. operation, La Senza's earnings were $19.7 million, or $1.44 per share, for the year, compared to $7.6 million or 57 cents per share in its 2005 financial year.
The company's loss from discontinued operations amounted to $4.6 million in the fourth quarter, and total earnings for the three-month period were $11.3 million, or 82 cents per share.
Fourth-quarter sales rose 15.5 per cent, to $133.4 million, while full-year sales increased 15.8 per cent, to $410.9 million.
Sales at stores open for more than a year rose by 8.2 per cent over the year.
During Thursday afternoon trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange, its shares were flat at $21.
I don't know, something about that makes me guffaw, in a British-comedy sort of way...Mayor Mutton