Construction Signage at 1300 Ste-Catherine St W. in Montreal. Photo: Maxime Frechette

By Craig Patterson

Upscale Montreal-based fashion brand Mackage has secured a retail space in downtown Montreal for a new flagship store. When open, it will be the second Montreal-Area location for the retailer, and the fifth Mackage store in Canada.

Located at 1300 Sainte-Catherine Street West, the new Mackage is expected to include two retail levels in a multi-level building. It replaces a 3,000 square foot BCBG store which formerly occupied the space — BCBG closed all of its Canadian stores last year. Jeff Berkowitz of Aurora Realty Consultants represented Mackage in this deal (and other deals), and Manon Parisien of Aurora Realty Consultants acted on behalf of the landlord.

The new Mackage space is at a very prominent corner in Montreal. Located at the intersection of Sainte-Catherine Street West and Rue de la Montagne, Mackage will be across the street from the new ‘Holt Renfrew Ogilvy’ building, which is in the process of a renovation and expansion that will see it become the epicentre of luxury retail for the city centre.

A Swatch store occupies another corner at the same intersection, as does Forever 21 -- interestingly, the building in which the Forever 21 store is located, being diagonally across from the new Mackage, was an earlier location for Ogilvy prior to moving into its current building.

The beautiful stone building at 1300 Ste-Catherine Street W. that will house Mackage was built in 1880, and it also houses a COS store that opened in the fall of 2015 (the H&M brand’s second Canadian location).

Mackage opened its first freestanding Canadian store in October of 2015 at CF Carrefour Laval, near Montreal, spanning 2,133 square feet. In the fall of 2016, two Toronto locations opened — a 1,840 square foot unit at CF Toronto Eaton Centre, followed shortly thereafter by a 2,600 square foot store at Yorkdale Shopping Centre. Most recently, Mackage opened a 1,358 square foot boutique at CF Pacific Centre in Vancouver. It also has a store in New York City’s Soho area.

Rendering of the Mackage store at Toronto's Yorkdale Shopping Centre. Rendering: Burdifilek

Inside the Award-winning Mackage at Yorkdale. Photo VIA BURDIFILEK AND BEN RAHN, A-FRAME STUDIO

Toronto-based Burdifilek designs Mackage’s stores, and last year it won the prestigious International Store of the Year award for its design of Mackage's Yorkdale location. Mackage boutique interiors are reminiscent of a ski chalet with wood beamed ceilings and wood floors. Montreal-based Axxys Construction, a partner with Retail Insider, has been involved in building Mackage stores, including the award-winning Yorkdale space.

Mackage is in a growth phase that could see it operate 25 stores in the next five years. The company has reportedly partnered with InterLuxe holdings to facilitate financing for the rapid expansion. Mackage is also reportedly looking to open in Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Founded in Montreal in 1999 by Eran Elfassy and Elisa Dahan, Mackage is known for its detailed, tailored outerwear in leather, down and wool for men and women. It also boasts a successful accessories business, including a line of handbags featuring a signature arrow embellishment. The company is part of fashion conglomerate APP Group, which also includes upscale clothing brand SOIA & KYO (which will open its first standalone Canadian store this fall at Square One in Mississauga). In Canada, Mackage sells its products in a number of retailers including Holt Renfrew, Harry Rosen, Aritzia, La Maison Simons and Mendocino, among others. It is also available in the United States at upscale retailers including Bloomingdale's, Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus.

Craig Patterson, now based in Toronto, is the founder and Editor-in-Chief Retail Insider. He's also a retail and real estate consultant, retail tour guide and public speaker.

Follow him on Twitter @RetailInsider_, LinkedIn at Craig Patterson, or email him at: craig@retail-insider.com.

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