Agent Provocateur to open free-standing Canadian flagship
/British lingerie retailer Agent Provocateur will open a flagship store at Canada's most luxurious retail plaza. Located within The Colonnade at 131 Bloor Street West in Toronto, Agent Provocateur will occupy two small retail spaces next to Escada.
According to the City of Toronto Building Application website, Agent Provocateur will occupy spaces #110 and #116 within The Colonnade. According to lease plans provided by landlord Morguard, the combined space measures 1,258 square feet. Click the image to the right for a pdf of the complex's entire retail lease plan.
Agent Provocateur is considered to be a luxury lingerie company. It was founded in 1994 by the son of British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood. It is known for its potentially racy ad campaigns, including the video below starring Kylie Minogue, below (caution, potentially not safe for work).
There are currently three small Agent Provocateur boutiques in Canada. All are concessions within Holt Renfrew's flagships in Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto (Bloor Street). Each concession measures about 150 square feet, substantially smaller than the new Toronto flagship. Holt Renfrew's first Agent Provocateur concession opened in March of 2012 in Vancouver, followed by Montreal in October of 2012, and Toronto in November of 2013.
Vancouver was once home to Canada's first and only free-standing Agent Provocateur store. The franchised location opened on Alberni Street in late 2007, and it closed in the summer of 2011. Sources say that the franchise owner lacked retail experience, contributing to the location's failure.
There are 11 free-standing Agent Provocateur stores in the United States, as well as four concessions within Bloomingdale's stores.