Upscale menswear retailer Harry Rosen will completely renovate its flagship Vancouver location. The Pacific Centre store upgrade is timely, as an unprecedented amount of competition is set to enter Vancouver's upscale menswear market within the next 48 months.

To learn more, we interviewed Harry Rosen's CEO, Larry Rosen. Mr. Rosen informed us that the interior of Pacific Centre's Harry Rosen will be entirely renovated, and will include a substantially expanded footwear department. Men's accessories will also expand, as both footwear and accessories have seen considerable growth within the company. Newly built shops-in-store for designers Giorgio Armani, Canali, Brunello Cuccineli and others will open. Plans for shops-and-stores and other details weren't completely finalized at the time of our interview, so we'll update you when we learn more.

Zegna boutique, located across the hall from Harry Rosen (for reference, see lease plan below)

Interestingly, Pacific Centre's Harry Rosen achieves the second-highest sales in the company. Only its 54,000 square foot Bloor Street flagship in Toronto sells more. Mr. Rosen wouldn't provide exact numbers, though he acknowledged that Vancouver's Harry Rosen store sells "well over" $1,000 per square foot.

Lease plans provided by Pacific Centre's landlord, Cadillac Fairview, show Harry Rosen occupying 21,645 square feet. A separate (and very successful) 5,000 square foot Ermenegildo Zegna store, operated by Harry Rosen, is located across the hall. Rumours of an expanded Pacific Centre Harry Rosen location were quashed by Mr. Rosen.

Pacific Centre's Harry Rosen is only the fifth-largest in the company. Besides its 54,000 square foot Toronto flagship, its Yorkdale Shopping Centre store has expanded to almost 31,000 square feet. Its 22,000 square foot Montreal store will grow to about 33,000 square feet by the end of 2015, while its Downtown Calgary store spans over 30,000 square feet.

Harry Rosen will face considerable new competition when Nordstrom and Saks Fifth Avenue open in Downtown Vancouver. Opening in the fall of 2015, Nordstrom's 230,000 square foot store at Pacific Centre will feature many of the same upscale menswear designers as Harry Rosen. A source informs us that Saks Fifth Avenue will likely occupy between 130,000 and 150,000 square feet of the Downtown Vancouver Hudson's Bay building, and will possibly open in early 2016. About 20,000 square feet of Saks could be devoted to menswear. Holt Renfrew will also renovate and expand its Pacific Centre store, substantially expanding its 25,000 square foot menswear department. We'll discuss Holt Renfrew's expansion next week.

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