274 replies to this topic

[Blair M.]

Very likely to be a Walmart within a couple of years.

[Mike K.]

Not a Blockbuster?

[Ismo07]

I heard, and really not sure how credible this is, that The Bay has a very low lease there.  While other Bays might close, the deal they have there is so low, they would stay open with empty shelves.  Not sure what to make of that...

 

 

Very likely to be a Walmart within a couple of years.

 

The Walmart Centre has a nice ring to it...

[Mike K.]

Anchor tenants typically pay low lease rates because theoretically they're supposed to be the main draw for a shopping centre or retail plaza.

 

But you also have to take into consideration how massive The Bay's footprint is. So the lease rate might be low, but they're still paying a huge amount every month.

 

No business will lose money no matter what the costs are. If The Bay cannot pay for itself, and the lease is up, the store will close.

[Blair M.]

Remembering that the good old days of the beaver pelt trading Hudsons Bay Company are long gone, and all decisions are now made by https://www.nrdcequity.com/ in the United States - the very definition of a somewhat soulless equity investment company.

 

As saliently noted above, if it doesn't make financial sense The Bay is gone from downtown Victoria very shortly after it demonstrates that it's performing below whatever financial metric NRDC Equity Partners has applied to The Bay Centre store.

 

Like retailers everywhere, The Bay has put a substantial focus on their online presence. Their online inventory is 20 or 30 times what their physical in-store inventory is. 

It does seem obvious that the Mayfair store will shortly be the only Bay store in Victoria, and anybody not purchasing from the Mayfair location (with its thousands of parking spaces) is very likely already an online Bay customer - if they're a customer of The Bay at all.

 

I could also see The Bay opening at some point on the Westshore, either in conjunction with the Mayfair location, or in place of it.

[Mike K.]

The Bay is hugely popular among office workers in a downtown location. It’s easy to navigate, it has business casual, business and casual garb. Easy for quick gifts. Good brands.

The loss of office workers is impacting that store.

[Victoria Watcher]

That’ll be it for GoodLife in the CRD unless they open a new gym.

 

That's quite something, to exit the region entirely.  They have 450 centres across the country.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 04 August 2024 - 09:19 AM.

[mbjj]

For older women, Hudson's Bay is the only place to buy unmentionables, lol. There really is no where else with the huge selection and proper fitting technique. 

[Matt R.]

Try Adam and Eve, just down the road.

[lanforod]

The real unmentionables.

[Matt R.]

There is some truly crazy stuff in there, tbh. Great staff.

[mbjj]

There is some truly crazy stuff in there, tbh. Great staff.

Granny panties? 

[lanforod]

Probably but only in black with some special accessories.

[Matt R.]

Granny panties? 

Absolutely. Edible, non edible, etc.

[Mike K.]

A large fashion retailer has closed, opposite La Senza.

Does anyone recall what store that was? It would have been at the southeast corner of the main axis on the ground floor, looking out onto the elevators.

Speaking of elevators, one of the two elevators at the Bay remains out of order. It can take quite a while to wait for it, to then get down to the parkade below.

At the east end of the ground floor, from the escalators to the end of the mall, only the dental clinic, the dollar store and the lotto kiosk remain. The rest of the spaces are vacant now.