*Photo: Google Street View screen capture.*

A 2,500 square foot licensed Rolex store will replace the Xi Shi Lounge at Vancouver's Shangri-La Hotel. Rolex will feature an Alberni-Street frontage, and is the latest major store announcement for Vancouver's burgeoning 'Luxury Zone'.

Xi Shi Lounge opened within the Shangri-La Hotel in 2008, at the base of Vancouver's tallest building. The lounge closed over the weekend. During the day, the venue served afternoon tea on Blue Willow china, and featured classical piano music on weekends. In the evenings, the space featured live music, snacks and cocktails, and was sometimes rented out to third parties to host events.

Last week, a local event planner who regularly hosted events in the space posted on Facebook that the lounge was closing, revealing that Rolex would take the space. Other sources confirm that the condominium corporation was the original source for revealing that Rolex would replace Xi Shi Lounge.

*Click map for interactive version, via Google*

Rolex will join several other luxury retailers that have recently opened nearby. In December of 2015, Brunello Cucinelli, Versace and Strellson opened across the street at the base of the 745 Thurlow Street office tower. Italian brand Moncler also opened in December across from Brunello Cucinelli on Thurlow Street, and a three-level Prada flagship is under construction at the southeast corner of Alberni Street and Thurlow Street. Pricey luxury brand Stefano Ricci will open next to the Trump Tower on nearby West Georgia Street and according to franchisee Manuel Bernaschek, Ricci will open in the summer.

Luxury brands that have recently opened in the area include North America's largest Christian Dior store (12,000 square feet) as well as Jaeger-LeCoultre and Lao Feng Xiang. Established luxury brands in the area include Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Tiffany & Co., Gucci, St. John, Omega, Wolford, Burberry, Montblanc, and others.

Canadian Retail News From Around The Web: February 1, 2016