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Hudson's Bay Company

You're at the low-end of average. Lol. Under 5'8" is considered short. I hate shopping in Canada. A) It's geared toward women and B) it's geared toward larger-sized men (by larger I mean m-xxl and 30-waist and above). It's mind-boggling when I see a pair of skinny jeans in a size 42! When a new line comes out I can't be frugal and wait for a sale as all the s/p and xs/tp are gone by then. Same with size 8 shoes!

Hey, you really hurt my feelings!!! :p
Statistically, the medium height for a Canadian is 174cm (men) and 161cm (women). So I am actually about the average size.

You are absolutely right about the discounted clothes for oversized people. So many times I joked something like "I wish I were 200lbs with a 40 inch waistline so that I can benefit from the deep discounts!". Oddly, clothing manufacturing seem never learn their lesson and keep over supplying large clothes!
 
Puma Canada announces the launch of Puma brand shops in The BAY

Canada NewsWire

TORONTO, March 16, 2012

The Bay stores to introduce both Men's and Women's PUMA Sportlifestyle collections in 10 doors this Spring 2012

TORONTO, March 16, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - PUMA Canada announced today that it will launch Sportlifestyle shops in 10 of the most prominent Bay locations across Canada beginning this weekend.

The PUMA Sportlifestyle shops, featured in both the Men's and Women's departments will feature highlighted and unique collections of apparel and accessories, presented in an exciting new shop design concept that accentuates the colour, fun, innovation and inclusiveness that benchmarks the PUMA brand. The shops will vary from 250 to 500 sq feet in each department and will create a contemporary visual shopping experience consistent with The Bay's own transformative approach to lifestyle and fashion retailing.

The Puma Sportlifestyle shops will launch in locations that include Toronto's flagship Queen Street store, Montreal's heritage Ste Catherine Street store, along with high profile stores in Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa, Mississauga and 4 other doors across the country.

To coincide with the launch of the PUMA Sportlifestyle shops, PUMA Canada also confirms that it will launch the Sportlifestyle footwear collections in selected Bay locations across the country this spring, and to look for announcements of several exciting exclusive footwear collections with The Bay in upcoming months.

"PUMA Canada is thrilled to have the opportunity to introduce our brand into The Bay this Spring and is very proud to be a part of the exciting evolution of their shopping experience. In our mission to become the most desirable and sustainable Sportlifestyle Company, developing a brand presence in Canada's legendary retailer is both a major asset and strategic benchmark. We are very pleased with their commitment to PUMA and will both benefit from the investment", states Ritch Benford, Sr Vice President, PUMA Canada.

"We are delighted to partner with PUMA on such an exciting initiative and offer our customers an enhanced experience when shopping the collections of this Sportslifestyle brand," says Wayne Drummond, SVP Hudson's Bay Company. "These shops fit perfectly with The Bay's approach on lifestyle and fashion retailing and we are delighted to bring them to The Bay this Spring."
 
Spoke with one of the menswear employees at the Bay today. Apparently the Queen St. store will expand the Topshop/Man over the second and third floors at over 20,000 sf and 'should be open by October'. They also have a Vancouver shop in the works that will be the 6th largest in the world.
 
haha. Thanks!
I walked past it many times but refused to go inside because of the funny name! Why is it called "short man's world"? I am 5'9'', not really "short" even in Canadian standard. Couldn't find the right shirt usually because they are too fat/big/wide, not because I am too short.

I know that Top Man (and H&M, Zara) are pretty popular among Asians because their clothes are slimmer. Europeans seem to prefer more fit/tigher outfit compared North American men. I had to alterate several of my shirts bought from Banana Republic etc just to make them fit better.

I will try the store you recommended next time, now knowing it is not really for short men :p

I still refuse to go inside based on the shoes they display on their website: http://www.shortmanbrowns.com/shoes.html

Yikes. If you're into H&M/Zara/CM/TopMan, I seriously doubt that this store will hit the spot.
 
This must mean that The Room at the Bay Queens Street is doing okay.

'The Room' Coming to The Hudson's Bay Company in Montreal, Fall 2013

Retail Insider
Montreal will get its own version of 'The Room' at its downtown Hudson's Bay Company (aka The Bay) store in the Fall of 2013. Given Quebec language laws, it may have to be called 'Le Salon' or something similar.

Regardless, the space will be approximately 20,000 square feet and will carry many first-rate women's fashion designers. The Room is already in Bay stores in Toronto (21,500 sq ft, opened October 2009) and Vancouver BC (~25,000 sq ft, opened September 2011).

One issue with the Montreal Room is some of the staple designers from the Toronto and Vancouver Room locations are already carried at either La Maison Simons or Holt Renfrew. This means there will likely be label wars in a market that already has constrained wealth (Montreal generally lags behind Toronto and Vancouver in terms of retail sales).
 
Staff were packing up ties and dress shirts on the main floor today in preparation for renos to that section.
 
HBC in talks to bring Bloomingdale’s to Canada

MARINA STRAUSS — RETAILING REPORTER
From Tuesday's Globe and Mail
Published Tuesday, May. 01, 2012 6:00AM EDT
Last updated Tuesday, May. 01, 2012 6:01AM EDT


Hudson’s Bay Co. is in talks with New York-based Bloomingdale’s to bring the luxury department store to Canada.

The move to provide space to Bloomingdale's as a “store within a store” would represent a pre-emptive strike on the part of HBC chief executive officer Richard Baker, who is aiming to grab a bigger piece of the high-end fashion retail market before other foreign players arrive, industry sources said.

U.S. upscale department store chain Nordstrom Inc. (JWN-N55.86-0.19-0.34%) is speaking to landlords in Canada to find space for its first stores in this country. But attractive retail space is at a premium and a bevy of merchants are chasing a limited number of choice locations, putting pressure on incumbents such as the Bay to move quickly to raise their profile and fight off rising competition.

“It’s the Bay’s way to fight fire with fire,” said Jeffrey Berkowitz, president of Aurora Realty Consultants, which advises retailers on picking real estate space. “It’s part defensive, and it’s part offensive. Nobody wants to be the one left behind.”

Mr. Baker, who would not comment, has already had a hand in reshaping the Canadian retail landscape since acquiring HBC in July of 2008. In a landmark $1.8-billion deal last year, the CEO sold most of the company’s discount Zellers store leases to U.S. rival Target Corp. The purveyor of cheap chic will open its first stores in Canada starting early next year, raising the stakes for a wide range of domestic retailers.

At the same time, the U.S. real estate magnate is racing to improve the ailing Bay under the leadership of seasoned merchant Bonnie Brooks, and the efforts are starting to pay off. She’s added an array of higher-end lines to the Bay, dropped poor sellers and introduced affordably fashionable TopShop boutiques in a licensing agreement with its British parent.

Now sources say Mr. Baker is in discussions to seal a similar deal with Bloomingdale’s, which is owned by Macy’s Inc. (M-N41.02-0.16-0.39%) While the Bay has moved more upscale, it’s not generally as pricey as Bloomingdale’s, which is closer to Nordstrom in its price positioning. HBC’s U.S. department-store chain Lord & Taylor also doesn’t have as expensive an offering as Bloomingdale’s.

Bloomingdale’s, which doesn’t break out its results, has outperformed its parent’s namesake stores, holding on to its well-off customers with contemporary and stylish lines, said Mark Cohen, marketing professor at the Columbia Business School in New York and a former chief executive at Sears Canada Inc.

He said the Bay, along with Sears, Canadian Tire Corp. and others, is feeling the heat to fortify itself against anticipated stresses from the arrival of both Target and Nordstrom, if the latter comes here.

“I think Bloomingdale’s would be a welcome brand in Canada in select markets,” Prof. Cohen said.

The Bay is contemplating putting Bloomingdale’s shops within its Toronto store on Bloor Street West as well as inside one store apiece in Vancouver and Calgary, the sources said. Bloomingdale’s could begin rolling out in-store boutiques in Canada as early as the fall, they said.

The move would help Mr. Baker to fill space productively at his massive downtown Bay stores, Prof. Cohen said. “He’s got way too much space.”

Bloomingdale’s, which launched an e-commerce site in Canada last year, has benefited from a pattern of high-end North American retailers faring better than their mid-priced counterparts as affluent shoppers recovered faster from the recession than others, said Ian Thomas of retail specialist Thomas Consultants in Vancouver.

“Canadians are wealthier and healthier now on a per-capita basis than Americans,” he said. “Canadians have a greater appetite now for luxury goods.”

And foreign retailers have an appetite for Canada. Its shopping malls outperform their U.S. counterparts by almost 50 per cent in sales per square foot, Colliers International reported last week. While the average mall performance in the U.S. in 2011 was just above $400 (U.S.) per square foot, Canadian malls generated an average of almost $600, it found.

Nordstrom executives have said they’re looking for store locations in Canada but finding it tough to find them. The company is believed to be in negotiations with mall owner Cadillac Fairview over three outlets whose leases it recently bought back from Sears in Vancouver, Calgary and Ottawa.

About Bloomingdale's

Owner: Macy's Inc.

Founded: 1872.

Products: Upscale clothing, fashion accessories, home furnishings.

Locations: 41 stores, four outlets in the United States. One outlet in Dubai.

Going global: E-commerce program launched last June ships to 91 countries.

Main competitors: Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue.
 
If The Bay concludes a deal with Bloomingdales I would like to see the entire Bloor street store converted into a Bloomingdales. It doesn't make sense to create a "store within a store" at that location.

Also since HBC is trying to go upscale I don't understand why they maintain the "The Bay" as its main operating brand. They should revert to their formal name - HUDSON'S BAY CO. - which has a more upscale sound and look to it.

200px-HBC_Logo.svg.png


versus this:


The_Bay-logo.jpg
 
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Also since HBC is trying to go upscale I don't understand why they maintain the "The Bay" as its main operating brand. They should revert to their formal name - HUDSON'S BAY CO. - which has a more upscale sound and look to it.

200px-HBC_Logo.svg.png


versus this:


The_Bay-logo.jpg


Yes, in this consumer landscape where 'local' and heritage are important signifiers of quality and integrity it would seem to make more sense to focus on the '1670y-ness'/Canadiana aspect of its brand. 'The Bay' may have made sense in the 1970s and 80s at a time when it was preferable to whitewash such things but that boat has sailed and I'm amazed that nobody there seems to have realized it.
 
I think The Bay logo has been ruined by association with painfully boring and stupid mall anchor stores. They should definitely take advantage of their heritage logo and stripes.

I think they're aware of this, because they roll out a lot of seasonal HBC-branded items during major holidays, but they need to be more aggressive. The yellow Bay logo needs to disappear fast, along with a lot of brands that still need to be dropped.
 
For those that have trouble finding shirts that fit because you're "smaller" in Canadian terms. Try Club Monaco slim fit shirts. I'm about 5'10" 150lbs and they fit great.
 

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