By Lee Rivett and Craig Patterson

Downtown Vancouver, which is usually busy during the day, is a virtual ghost town as people isolate at home amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The ‘non-essential’ retailers, restaurants and other businesses in the city have shut down for the most part, with some restaurants open for take-out while some are even selling grocery items.

Retail Insider’s Lee Rivett toured parts of Vancouver’s downtown core and took photos for this article. The following is a description of what was seen, including some details of what is to come — retail will see significant changes amid restructuring and bankruptcies as some stores will never reopen, while other new stores will be unveiled once the situation reaches normalcy or as some are calling it, the ‘new normal’.

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DUNN’S TAILORS. PHOTOS: LEE RIVETT

The tour begins at the corner of Granville Street and Pender Street, where menswear retailer Dunn’s has announced that it will never reopen. Prior to COVID-19, sources had said that the retailer was struggling and was looking to close. The clearance is likely to continue in a few weeks when stores are permitted to open again, and bargain hunters looking for store fixtures may also want to have a look.

*Avenue Road (Furniture) at 301 W Pender street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The Avenue Road furniture store at 301 W. Pender was featured in Retail Insider in 2018 when it opened. The store is a stone’s throw away from Victory Square park leading towards the Downtown Eastside and Gastown.

*Holt Renfrew at Granville Street and Dunsmuir Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The 190,000-square-foot Holt Renfrew store at the northwest corner of Granville Street and Dunsmuir Street has closed temporarily, and the main floor is currently boarded up to prevent thefts. The Vancouver Holt Renfrew store was the chain’s top performer prior to its closure. Affluent Chinese shoppers were the store’s most lucrative demographic. Given that we don’t know when borders will be opened again for tourism, this Holt Renfrew store could take a further financial hit in the months to come. Below are more photos taken outside of the Holt Renfrew store at CF Pacific Centre.

*Regular Holt Renfrew cladding (Chanel) with boarded windows to the right which were painted white. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Feuille (Next to Babor Beauty Spa) on HOWE Street across from Holt Renfrew during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above: The upscale streetwear retailer Feuille has shut temporarily and its facade has been boarded up. The retailer carries merchandise that is sometimes priced into the thousands of dollars. Feuille also operates the impressive two-level Off-White store in Vancouver’s ‘Luxury Zone’ which was featured in Retail Insider when it opened in April of 2018.

*Miniso on Granville Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The shuttered Miniso store on Granville Street has seen better days. Retail Insider has received several concerning emails from Miniso franchisees. It remains to be seen what the future of Miniso will be in Canada — when the retailer entered the country in 2017, it said that it planned to open 500 stores, possibly the most aggressive retail expansion in Canadian history. Many franchised locations have already closed permanently while corporately owned stores may reopen in a few weeks.

*Swimco on Granville Street (in Hudson Building) during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Calgary-based swimwear brand Swimco has boarded up its facade as it has shut temporarily. Last year Retail Insider featured owner Lori Bacon on a podcast.

*Cafe Crepe on Granville Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Aritzia on Granville Street (part of the CF Pacific Centre) during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above: the Artizia store at CF Pacific Centre has shut temporarily. CF Pacific Centre itself can be entered at certain times of the day, though only a handful of food retailers are operating within.

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H&M OFF GRANVILLE STREET (PART OF THE CF PACIFIC CENTRE). PHOTO: LEE RIVETT

The H&M flagship store, above, expanded last year by adding a third level on the concourse level of CF Pacific Centre. At almost 40,000 square feet, the H&M store is the second-largest in Canada. Until 2007, Holt Renfrew occupied the space prior to moving up the street to its current and much larger location.

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NORDSTROM OFF HOWE STREET AT ROBSON STREET (PART OF THE CF PACIFIC CENTRE). PHOTO: LEE RIVETT

Above: Nordstrom’s Vancouver flagship store, which opened to much fanfare in September of 2015, has boarded up parts of its facade until it is permitted to reopen. Until recently, the Vancouver store was said to be the company’s top performer, though a new Nordstrom location in Manhattan is expected to surpass Vancouver’s numbers. Given the uncertainty around tourism in Vancouver, the city’s Nordstrom store could take a sales hit in the months to come and even beyond.

*Sephora and Harry Rosen off of Dunsmuir Street and Howe Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The photo above is looking south from the corner of Dunsmuir Street and Howe Street. The Sephora store at the corner, located within CF Pacific Centre, will be relocating to another space within the mall when construction is finished (and stores are permitted to reopen). Amachris Corporation is building out the Sephora space.

Luxury menswear retailer Harry Rosen, which operates a highly productive location above Sephora, was said to be seeing sales per square foot in the $2,000 range prior to the temporary shutdown. Menswear, generally, is expected to see a sales hit as some men may work from home more in the future.

*Hotel Georgia and Hawksworth Restaurant and the CF Pacific Centre Atrium from Howe Street and Georgia Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The photo above is looking towards the intersection of W. Georgia Street and Howe Street. The glass ‘igloo’ atrium at CF Pacific Centre will soon be demolished for what sources speculate will be a flagship Apple store. Below is a closer look at the soon-to-be-lost glass igloo.

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CF PACIFIC CENTRE ARTIUM FROM GEORGIA STREET BEING DECONSTRUCTED. FOUR SEASON HOTEL BEHIND IT. PHOTOS: LEE RIVETT

*Empty Art Gallery plaza on Georgia overlooking CF Pacific Centre’s Nordstrom and Microsoft during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: lee Rivett*

The north plaza at the Vancouver Art Gallery is an important meeting place. It was deserted on a sunny Saturday afternoon, which is indeed unusual. CF Pacific Centre and Nordstrom can be seen behind it.

*Hudson’s Bay at Georgia Street and Seymour Street not boarded up during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above and below: the 637,000-square-foot Hudson’s Bay store at the northeast corner of Granville Street and W. Georgia Street has been shuttered temporarily. The store was in line for further renovations at some point. Prior to the COVID-19 shutdown, we were going to report that for the first time, menswear had been introduced into luxury department ‘The Room’ on the store’s second level. Some had speculated that Saks Fifth Avenue could occupy part of the building as is the case in Toronto, and now some are questioning if Saks will even keep its Canadian stores operational particularly given low sales numbers at the CF Sherway Gardens store in Toronto as well as at the CF Chinook Centre location in Calgary.

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HUDSON’S BAY FACADE DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC. PHOTOS: LEE RIVETT

*Sasso Moda on Georgia Street (across from Hudson’s Bay) during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above: A shuttered fashion boutique at the northeast corner of W. Georgia Street and Seymour Street. Most of the block will eventually be demolished for a new development that insiders have said will be “spectacular” and “unlike anything in Canada” to date.

*Sasso Moda COVID-19 Signage with bare shelving within. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Foot Locker on Robson street at Hornby Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above: The tour takes a turn onto Robson Street, where artists have painted murals on some boarded up store facades. The Foot Locker store occupies a prominent location at the northwest corner of Robson Street and Hornby Street. The 800 block of Robson Street has been under construction to permanently close the street to vehicle traffic, which will shift vehicle movements in parts of the downtown core when construction is finished in the fall.

*Salvatore Ferragamo on Robson Street off Hornby Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Italian brand Salvatore Ferragamo is the last remaining luxury brand on Robson Street. The temporarily closed store was the first Ferragamo location in Canada when it opened in the late 1980’s. In the 1980’s as well, a ‘Les Musts de Cartier’ store was located on the 700 block of Robson Street and other upscale fashion brands located on the 1000 and 1100 blocks of Robson Street at a time when some referred to it as Robsonstrasse.

*Victoria’s Secret at Burrard Street and Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

A massive Victoria’s Secret flagship store has temporarily closed at the northeast corner of Robson Street and Burrard Street. Some are questioning if the store will eventually close, and some are questioning the fate of the chain generally. Industry insiders speculate that Japanese retailer Uniqlo could eventually replace Victoria’s Secret at that corner.

*Lululemon Store at Burrard Street and Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Lululemon’s flagship store at the southeast corner of Robson Street and Burrard Street has shut temporarily. The store will be expanding into an adjacent space on Robson Street that was until a few months ago occupied by Australian footwear retailer UGG. The UGG brand was in the process of shutting its remaining three Canadian stores prior to the pandemic closures. Below is another photo of the same Lululemon flagship store.

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LULULEMON STOREFRONT ON BURRARD STREET AND ROBSON STREET DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC. PHOTOS: LEE RIVETT

*Kiehl's Since 1851, Rocky Mountain CHOCOLATE and Sunglass hut on Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The photos in this section of this article were taken on the 1000 block of Robson Street. Many facades have been boarded over and artists have painted murals. Some are saying that some retailers on Robson Street may never reopen, which is also the case for many streets and malls across the country.

*Aldo Store on Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Indigo and Aldo Stores on Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Canadian retailer Indigo probably should have included artwork on its boarded up facade — graffiti has ensued and has otherwise been an issue in parts Vancouver for years. Indigo opened its Robson Street store in 2018 after remodelling a space formerly occupied by Forever 21. The Forever 21 brand exited Canada last year after its US parent company filed for bankruptcy.

*Sephora Store on Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above is the impressive two-level Sephora store on Robson Street’s 1100 block. The store opened to much fanfare in the fall of 2014. A construction site next to it will house at least one large retailer.

*Banana Republic and Aritzia at Intersection of Thurlow Street and Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Retailers at the corner of Robson Street and Thurlow Street have closed, with boarded up storefronts featuring artwork at the three-level Banana Republic store as well as messaging at Artizia’s flagship store. Below are more photos of both stores.

*Banana Republic at Thurlow Street and Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Artizia at Thurlow Street and Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*MUJI On Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above and below are photos of the Muji store on the 1100 block of Robson Street. When it opened in December of 2017, it was the largest Muji store outside of Asia with more than 14,000 square feet of space. Last year an expanded 20,000-square-foot Muji store in downtown Toronto took that title.

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MUJI ON ROBSON STREET. PHOTO: LEE RIVETT

*Laduree, Steve Madden and Nelson Bailey on Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The photo above shows vibrant artwork on the boarded up facade of the Steve Madden store on the 1100 block of Robson Street. Next to it is Ladurée which opened to long lineups in the spring of 2016. Below is a closeup photo of Ladurée, which is taking online orders on its recently revamped Canadian website.

*Laduree on Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Reigning Champion and Eddie Bauer on Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above is a photo of the temporarily closed Reigning Champ and Eddie Bauer stores on the 1100 block of Robson Street. It remains to be seen if Reigning Champ reopens and if it does, for how long.

*Paul French Bakery and Cafe Construction signage on Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

French bakery concept Paul was set to open its first Canadian storefront on the 1100 block of Robson Street in the near future. It is across the street from Ladurée, and both businesses are owned by the Holder Group.

*Uncle Tetsu Construction signage on Robson Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Downtown Vancouver’s first Uncle Tetsu Japanese cheesecake location will eventually open on the 1100 block of Robson Street. Its first location opened at Metropolis at Metrotown a couple of years ago.

*Chopard Boutique on W Georgia Street across from Fairmont Vancouver during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The next leg of the tour includes Vancouver’s ‘Luxury Zone’ area, which spans the area between the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver to the East and the Shangri La and Trump hotels to the west. The Chopard store on the 900 block of West Georgia Street has been boarded up temporarily.

Below are several photos of shuttered retailers at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. Owned by Larco, the retail component of the hotel features five major luxury brands: Louis Vuitton, Dior, Omega, Gucci, and St. John Knits.

*Fairmont Vancouver during COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Gucci boutique at Fairmont Vancouver during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above: The Gucci store at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, featuring frontage both on W. Georgia Street as well as Hornby Street, is shut temporarily. The store is said to be moving to a new 8,000-square-foot space in the area in 2021.

*Dior Boutique completely empty from within Fairmont Vancouver during COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above and below: The 9,600-square-foot two-level Dior flagship is shut temporarily. The store was the largest Dior location in North America when it opened in the summer of 2015. In the fall of 2019, a 14,300-square-foot Dior flagship store opened at 131 Bloor Street West in Toronto and that store currently holds the title of the largest Dior location on the continent.

*Dior Boutique doors boarded at Fairmont Vancouver during COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Louis Vuitton Boutique doors not boarded at Fairmont Vancouver during COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above and below: The 10,000-square-foot two-level Louis Vuitton flagship at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver has shut temporarily, and merchandise has been removed from within. The store was the largest Vuitton ‘Maison’ in Canada when it expanded in 2011. A year later, Louis Vuitton opened an 18,000-square-foot, two-level Maison at 150 Bloor Street West in Toronto.

*Louis Vuitton Boutique completely empty at Fairmont Vancouver during COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Louis Vuitton Boutique at Fairmont Vancouver during COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above: Louis Vuitton’s Burrard Street facade — the brand has been at the Hotel Vancouver for nearly 20 years and was only about 4,000 square feet when it first opened.

*Hermes at Burrard Street and Georgia Street is closed but not boarded up during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The photos above and below are of the impressive Hermes flagship store which opened in September of 2019. We featured the store, as well as the history of Hermes in Vancouver, in an expansive article last year. Hermes occupies nearly 6,000 square feet at the southwest corner of Burrard Street and W. Georgia Street within The Burrard Building, which also houses Tiffany & Co. (seen in the photos above) as well as Birks-operated Graff and Pakek Philippe boutiques, Rimowa, a Jimmy Choo boutique featured in this publication, and another jeweller which has not yet announced its new store facing onto Alberni Street.

*Hermes gates closed to public during COVID-19 Pandemic at Burrard Street and Georgia Street. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Papyrus (previously closed) and Coach on Burrard Street near Robson street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above is the storied 755 Burrard Street building. A Coach store features an art-filled boarded up facade — in the 1990’s, a Chanel boutique occupied the wider space where Coach is while the smaller space to the right was once home to a franchised boutique for french luxury brand Celine. The Papyrus space at 755 Burrard Street had already been vacated by the tenant following its bankruptcy several months ago.

*Old Hermes location and Tiffany & Co at Alberni Street at Burrard street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The photo above was taken from in front of the Louis Vuitton store, looking down the 1000 block of Alberni Street. To the right of this photo is a Tiffany & Co. flagship store occupying nearly 10,000 square feet of space over two levels. The corner retail space on the left of this photo was until recently occupied by Hermes prior to its relocating to its larger space at 717 Burrard Street. French jeweller Cartier will replace Hermes in the corner location of the 755 Burrard building.

*Old Hermes location with empty displays visible from windows during COVID-19 Pandemic. Cartier will replace it. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Old Italian Kitchen location, Jimmy Choo and Rimowa on Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The photos above were taken on the 1000 block of Alberni Street, considered to be the heart of Vancouver’s ‘Luxury Zone’. Over the past seven years, luxury brands have opened boutiques in the area which has made it a destination.

*Jimmy Choo and Rimowa on Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Suki’s, Vacheron Constantin and MontBlanc on Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Vacheron Constantin and MontBlanc on Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above: French luxury conglomerate Richemont Group operates several luxury brands on the 1000 block of Alberni Street. Richemont’s other Canadian store clustering is located at the Yorkdale Shopping Centre in Toronto.

*Alberni Street near burrard Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Black + Blue restaurant and Kobe restaurant on the 1000 block of Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Thierry Restaurant on the 1000 block of Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Oliver Peoples on Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Upscale optical retailer Oliver Peoples opened one of its two Canadian stores last year on the 1000 block of Alberni Street in Vancouver. The little store is impressive inside, though it’s currently hidden behind the painted boarded up facade.

*Hublot, De Beers and Tony Burch on Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above is The Carlyle retail complex on the 1000 block of Alberni Street. A 2013 renovation saw substantial updates that included a marble facade as well as the addition of luxury brands. Those include watch brand Hublot, diamond brand De Beers, women’s fashion brand Tory Burch, Italian luxury brand Prada, French luxury brand Saint Laurent, Italian fashion brand Moncler, and in the laneway behind, an impressive Off-White store.

In years past, The Carlyle was an underwhelming complex housing a 7-Eleven convenience store as well as a Dollar Tree location which opened in 2012. In the late 1990’s, duty free retailer DFS Galleria opened a 25,000-square-foot store at The Carlyle, though it had to shutter as it never got the rights to sell duty free goods. A former duty free store up the street had won those rights and it operated for years before seeing a spectacular downfall in sales after a tour bus parking space was removed from in front of it.

*Burberry on Thurlow Street and Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above: Canada’s first standalone Burberry boutique opened more than a decade ago at the base of the Shangri La hotel at the corner of Alberni Street and Thurlow Street. Last year the store was doing well in terms of sales, though the Alberni Street area was already starting to see a sales decline amid a reduction in tourism as well as a crackdown on money leaving China.

*Thurlow Street and Alberni Street intersection during COVID-19 Pandemic. Prada is on one corner to the left, and Versace on the corner to the right. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Thurlow Street and Alberni Street intersection facing east during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Brunello Cucinelli and Versace on Thurlow Street near Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Brunello Cucinelli opened its first standalone Canadian store at 745 Thurlow Street in 2015, and Versace opened its second standalone store in Canada next to it the same year. Plywood was being placed over the facade of the Versace store on Saturday.

*Versace on Thurlow Street near Alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Prada at Alberni Street and Thurlow Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

Above is the 8,500-square-foot two-level Prada flagship which is located at the southeast corner of Alberni Street and Thurlow Street in The Carlyle — the space is very impressive. Below are photos of the shuttered Saint Laurent and Moncler boutiques at The Carlyle which both face onto Thurlow Street.

*PradA, Saint Laurent and Moncler on Thurlow Street near alberni Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*PradA, Saint Laurent and Moncler on Thurlow Street and Off White in back lane (right with car parked in front of it) during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*Leone boutique closing signage (announced prior to COVID-19 Pandemic). Photo: Lee Rivett*

The tour now takes a turn to the upscale part of West Hastings Street. The photo above is of the soon-to-permanently-close Leone store at the Sinclair Centre at 757 W. Hastings Street (corner of Howe Street). We reported earlier this year that the storied store would shutter permanently after opening its impressive space in 1987.

*BIRKS on Granville Street during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

*The Post on Georgia Street with construction continuing during COVID-19 Pandemic. Photo: Lee Rivett*

The final two photos, above and below, are of the construction site of ‘The Post’ on W. Georgia Street in downtown Vancouver. Landlord QuadReal is developing the massive building which will eventually include a Loblaw City Market grocery store as well as a food hall and other retailers. Post-pandemic, it is unclear how people will embrace crowded food halls in Canada and elsewhere.

If you’ve made it to the end, thank you for reading our photo tour of downtown Vancouver. Feel free to comment below with any thoughts. What will downtown Vancouver look like when stores reopen again?

Lee Rivett, based in Vancouver, supports the digital distribution and technical backend operations of Retail Insider. This includes providing technical support for the editors during the digital publication cycle, streamlining virtual tools for the cross-country team and a variety of other duties which keeps the publication running smoothly.