Concord Pacific Ltd. is building a high-end retail centre at the corner of Alberni and Thurlow streets that some believe will be the linchpin in transforming the street into a hub for affluent shoppers.
According to a source close to the deal, Global diamond mining and retail giant De Beers is opening its first Canadian store at the corner of Alberni and Thurlow streets in Vancouver later this year.
The store will be part of the Carlyle complex, which, when completed, will include other high-end retail chains.
New York-based Tory Burch plans to open a store this fall at the Carlyle, the chain's Calgary store manager, Stephanie Koo, confirmed to Business in Vancouver.
Chic French fashion house Christian Dior is also rumoured to be securing space in the development, which is on the southeast corner of the intersection.
Charles Gauthier, executive director of the Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association, told BIV that his association is lobbying the City of Vancouver to invest money in:
- widening Alberni Street sidewalks by reducing "generous" traffic and parking lanes;
- introducing pedestrian-friendly lights to accompany the existing cobra-style streetlamps; and
- adding street furniture and trash bins to encourage people to linger.
Street closures for fashion shows and merchant-sponsored events could then take place, he said.
The street is also known for high-end restaurants, and the Carlyle development is expected to add another, which would take space currently occupied by the Keg, midblock between Alberni and Robson on Thurlow Street.
What sticks out like a sore thumb in the otherwise high-end transformation of the site, which formerly housed a 7-Eleven store and a community college on the second floor, is a Dollar Tree Canada (DTC) store in the basement.
Urbanics Consultants Ltd. president and retail analyst Phil Boname told BIV that it would be smart for Concord Pacific to negotiate with DTC to get it to relocate.
But DTC president Joseph Calvano told BIV that he has yet to be approached. No one from Concord Pacific responded to BIV's request for an interview by press time.
Regardless of whether the dollar store stays, Boname believes it is smart for Concord Pacific to make the rest of its Carlyle development focused on affluent clientele.
That's largely because the T-shaped district that starts at Burrard Street and winds up Alberni Street to Thurlow Street has evolved over the past seven years into one of the city's most expensive hubs for high-end shopping.
Tiffany & Co., Hermes, Coach and Louis Vuitton anchor the strip at Burrard Street; Burberry and Escada bookend the Thurlow Street end. Mid-block, Brooks Brothers sells high-end suits and m0851 sells high-end handbags.
Boname said the location is also ideal for high-end retail because Bentall Kennedy is building a 370,000-square-foot office tower across the street on the southwest corner of the intersection. Its 24-storey tower will include tenants such as McCarthy Tetrault LLP and SNC-Lavalin, which have high-salaried employees.
"That will be a substantial office tower and a class building that adds further credibility to high-end retailing going into that area," said Boname.
Bentall Kennedy has yet to reveal the tower's ground-level retail tenants, but word on the street is that it's looking for high-end retailers.
West Hastings luxury retail a major Alberni Street competitor
Alberni Street is unlikely to be the pre-eminent high-end retail strip in Vancouver – even if Bentall Kennedy lures iconic brands to its 745 Thurlow Street tower.
Urbanics Consultants Ltd. president and retail analyst Phil Boname believes West Hastings continues to be a draw for both high-end shops and tourists despite challenges in recent years.
Escada moved to a smaller Thurlow Street store last year after 21 years at 757 West Hastings Street. Boss closed. And Chanel left its decades-old streetfront at 900 West Hastings Street in mid-2010 to move into Holt Renfrew (see "E-commerce puts squeeze on department stores" opposite). Part of the old Chanel space remains empty nearly three years later.
"The West Hastings Street high-end retail scene has diminished somewhat in the last two to three years," Boname said, "but I wouldn't strike it off completely."
He then rattled off names of high-end retailers in the area, including:
- Leone;
- Cartier;
- Birks;
- Montecristo Jewelers; and
- Palladio Jewelers.
One reason that district has faltered in the past decade is that it targeted diminishing cruise passengers. Vancouver's cruise sector in 2012 attracted less than 60% of the traffic it did during the sector's peak in 2002.
Another reason, Boname said, is the federal government's reluctance to make its Sinclair Centre a home for more high-end stores. He said the government instead has focused on the site as a home for government services such as the passport office and the employment insurance office.
Charles Gauthier, the Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association's executive director, added that he believes the area will remain a high-end district because landlords are willing to wait for the right tenant.
