POPULARITY
8 episodes with yorkdale
3 episodes with yorkdale
2 episodes with yorkdale
2 episodes with yorkdale
2 episodes with yorkdale
2 episodes with yorkdale
2 episodes with yorkdale
2 episodes with yorkdale
2 episodes with yorkdale
Who else loves David Sedaris? I discovered him in 1997 when an old mentor/editor at Golden Words, my college humor papers, suggested I pick up his book 'Naked' to become a better writer myself. I found the essays sardonic, witty, uncannily observational, and laugh-out-loud funny. I couldn't believe how gently and elegantly he wrote about topics ranging from his obsessive compulsive tics to dropping out of school to (in the namesake essay) visiting a nudist colony. Like millions of people around the world I became obsessed with David Sedaris. I've read all of his books—'Me Talk Pretty One Day' (2000) being close to my heart and 'Calypso' (2018) being a recent fave. I even went to see him speak at Massey Hall in Toronto which is where I learned—first-hand!—that he waits hours and hours after every talk to happily chat and sign books from anybody willing to wait for him. (In my case my phone died about two hours before I had a chance to say hi. Years ago we had a sixty-second conversation about pie and he wrote 'Neil, I am so happy you are alive' in my book.) In this classic chapter of 3 Books—the all-time #1 most popular conversation ever on the podcast—I squeeze into the back of David's limo from the Four Seasons hotel in Toronto en route to the CBC building and then up to his bookstore event at the Indigo at Yorkdale. What was supposed to be a tight 20 minute chat evolved into a beautiful hour and a half conversation covering topics like the secret to getting old, artistic integrity after commercial success, why artists have a hole in their hearts, and, of course, the incredible David Sedaris's 3 most formative books. On this New Year's Eve let's flip the book back to Chapter 18...
In this episode of the Voice of Retail podcast, Yorkdale Shopping Centre's VP and GM, Michael Renault, provides insights into what makes Yorkdale a top shopping destination in North America. Located in Toronto, the center sees 18 million visitors annually and generates $2,400 per square foot, making it Canada's most productive mall. Renault attributes Yorkdale's success to its prime location, curated mix of luxury and essential retailers, and a commitment to experiential shopping. Initially opened in 1964, Yorkdale was designed to be a premier shopping destination, which is evident in its enduring appeal and expansive layout.Renault describes Yorkdale's strategy of creating immersive experiences rather than relying on large-scale attractions. By leveraging high-quality design and curation, Yorkdale enhances its role as a social and commercial hub tailored to Toronto's urban landscape. The team's support extends to retailers through design collaboration, innovative leasing practices, and a robust marketing program that bridges physical and online shopping.Looking forward, Renault envisions Yorkdale enhancing the entire visitor experience—from arrival to checkout—to foster a calming, engaging atmosphere. With new retailers like Simons on the horizon, Yorkdale aims to sustain its relevance and appeal. Renault concludes by emphasizing Yorkdale's broader role in Toronto's culture, not just as a shopping center but as a community destination. About MichaelMichael Renaud is the director and general manager of Yorkdale Shopping Centre, managed by Oxford Properties Group. With over 12 years at Oxford, Michael initially oversaw office properties before transitioning to retail portfolios in 2024.Yorkdale, co-owned by Oxford Properties and AIMCo, is one of Canada's premier shopping destinations, spanning 2 million square feet and featuring 270 stores, including Canada's largest selection of luxury brands. Oxford Properties manages a global portfolio of 150 million square feet across office, retail, industrial, and other property sectors. Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur. He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels, most recently on the main stage in Toronto at Retail Council of Canada's Retail Marketing conference with leaders from Walmart & Google. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fourth year in a row, Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail, RTIH has named him a top 100 global though leader in retail technology and Coresight Research has named Michael a Retail AI Influencer. If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael's cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.
Tools You Can Use - Essential Gadgets for Home Buyers & Realtors In Episode 67 of the TorontoLiving's Real Estate Podcast, hosts Mark Savel and Joey Virgilio dive into the chaotic yet insightful world of essential tools for home buyers and realtors. They discuss a range of gadgets including tape measures, flashlights, moisture meters, and EMF readers, sharing practical tips and personal anecdotes. The episode also features lively banter about their week, with foodie adventures in Yorkdale's food court and a reminder about the importance of the vacant home tax. Tune in for useful advice mixed with humor and real-life stories. Top Tools 1. Measuring Tape - https://www.amazon.ca/Craftsman-Measure-Self-Lock-25-Foot-CMHT37225S/dp/B07QG3ZXQC?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=A3DWYIK6Y9EEQB 2. Flashlight - https://www.olightstore.ca/baton-4-powerful-edc-flashlight-1300-lumens?srsltid=AfmBOoqN7NZoCZAy5S_iGjwgDLyGH4Dv7E_F4Hc8XQUtEdUoxBEZcrPu_9g 3. Electric Outlet Tester - https://www.homedepot.ca/product/klein-tools-gfci-receptacle-tester/1001012662?eid=PS_GO_140203__ALL_PLA-526641&pid=1001012662 4. Moisture Meter - https://www.amazon.ca/General-Tools-Instruments-MMD4E-Moisture/dp/B00275F5O2?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=A3DWYIK6Y9EEQB 5. Sound Meter - https://www.amazon.ca/Tadeto-Digital-Sound-Level-Meter/dp/B09G6HLNVV?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=A22D7Q75YKXJL2 6. EMF Reader - https://www.amazon.ca/Meter-TESMEN-Hound-200-Detector-Electromagnetic/dp/B0CKVZFT5T?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=A18WSJ5TNTJ1LS 7. Sun Tracker App - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/sun-tracker-ar/id1460472433 8. Colorsnap Visualizer - https://www.sherwin-williams.com/homeowners/color/color-tools/colorsnap-mobile 9. Home Styler App - https://www.homestyler.com/room-design-app 10. Door Shim - https://www.homedepot.ca/product/everbilt-brown-rubber-door-stopper-2-pack/1000100117?eid=PS_GO_140203__ALL_PLA-526641&pid=1000100117 (00:00) Introduction and Episode Overview (00:43) Meet Your Hosts: Marc and Joey (02:22) Weekly Catch-Up: Food Adventures (10:04) Real Estate Tools and Tips (12:14) Toronto News and Updates (19:53) Bank Competition and Renewal Season Tips (20:19) Lightening the Mood with a Hilarious Zoo Story (22:20) Apps, Hacks, and Gadgets for Home Buyers (23:11) Essential Tools for Realtors and Home Buyers (26:46) Advanced Gadgets for Home Inspections (32:17) Fun and Unusual Tools for Home Buyers (40:10) Practical Tips and Final Thoughts (43:11) Shoutouts and Closing Remarks Where You Can Find Us
Craig and Lee discuss La Maison Simons' ambitious expansion into Toronto, focusing on the retailer's move into spaces vacated by Nordstrom at CF Toronto Eaton Centre and the Yorkdale Shopping Centre. With a $75 million investment, Simons plans to open two new stores which could become the top-sellers in the chain. The expansion reflects Simons' strategy to grow its footprint and cater to the city's demand for diverse retail options. At CF Toronto Eaton Centre, Simons will occupy approximately 110,000 square feet over three floors, featuring a main floor presence and a new hallway connecting the north and south ends of the mall. This corridor, a first in the mall's history, will improve pedestrian access and enhance the shopping experience. In addition to Simons, a Nike flagship store and Eataly will also take up space in the former Nordstrom location, further enriching the mall's retail offerings. Yorkdale Shopping Centre will see Simons take over the first two levels of the former Nordstrom space, catering to the young, fashion-forward shoppers frequenting the mall. The new stores will include luxury designer departments and Simons' popular private label merchandise, aiming to significantly boost the retailer's sales. With these expansions, Simons continues its coast-to-coast growth, solidifying its position as a key player in the Canadian retail landscape. Craig finally speculates that Simons will open in the former Nordstrom building in downtown Vancouver, in a similar fashion to what was announced for CF Toronto Eaton Centre. Episode Sponsor: Salesforce – Turn today's shopping trends into tomorrow's retail success. Visit Salesforce to see the global insights from Salesforce to boost your bottom line. Discussed in this Episode: La Maison Simons to Open Stores at CF Toronto Eaton Centre and Yorkdale in Former Nordstrom Spaces Subscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig:LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/CraigPattersonTorontoInstagram: @craig_patterson_torontoTwitter: @RI_EICFollow Retail Insider:LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/Retail-InsiderFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/RetailInsider/Twitter: @RetailInsider_Instagram: @Retail_Insider_CanadaListen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcherShare your thoughts!Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!Background Music Credit: Hard Boiled Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Craig and Lee delve into the most read articles of 2023, providing insights into the retail industry's notable stories and trends. They begin by discussing Hudson's Bay Company's relaunch of Zellers, a major retail development that generated buzz and curiosity. The hosts evaluate the initial success of the relaunch and potential challenges in the future, such as low foot traffic and the popularity of Zellers' food trucks. The conversation shifts to Nordstrom's surprising exit from Canada in early 2023, leaving a void in the Canadian retail landscape. Craig and Lee explore the impact on Canadian workers, vendors, and shoppers while reflecting on Nordstrom's brief yet impactful presence. They also touch on the luxury wing expansion at the Yorkdale Shopping Centre, which is the most productive shopping center in Canada, and highlight other exciting retail developments to watch for in 2024, including Royalmount in Montreal and Oakridge Centre's transformation into Oakridge Park. The hosts wrap up the episode by discussing Unity Brands' strategic acquisitions, Furla's sudden departure from Canada, and the ever-evolving retail landscape. Subscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig:LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/CraigPattersonTorontoInstagram: @craig_patterson_torontoTwitter: @RI_EICFollow Retail Insider:LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/Retail-InsiderFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/RetailInsider/Twitter: @RetailInsider_Instagram: @Retail_Insider_CanadaListen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcherShare your thoughts!Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!Background Music Credit: Hard Boiled Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Here is the latest real estate wealth report for the area where I just prepared a report for a client. If you live in or near the area or know someone that does....make sure to share this with them. ★ Support this podcast ★
What you'll learn in this episode: What the difference between an artist and a designer is The barriers that can make it difficult for solo jewelry artists to enter the retail market, and how Colette overcame them What Colette has discovered about her creative process by working with George Brown College psychology students on a research project Why it's important for artists to avoid looking at trends in stores and on social media too frequently How a spontaneous haircut sparked Colette's creativity and paved the way for her future business About Colette Harmon Colette Harmon's one-of-a-kind accessories are a dazzling blend of crystal, mixed metals and semi-precious stones. With an appreciation for meticulous craftsmanship, the metal meshing and intricate beadwork in each of her statement pieces are an audacious departure from mainstream minimalism. Born in Sisters Village, Guyana, Colette studied fashion design in Toronto before apprenticing as a belt and handbag designer for a leather goods manufacturer. Harmon soon founded her own eponymous label, whose name became synonymous with maximalist glamour. Harmon's modern approach to vintage flair has earned her a devoted following of customers, fans and fashion stylists from across North America. Her pieces have been sold in Saks Fifth Avenue and Holt Renfrew Canada, and her work has been featured in Elle Canada, Flare, Martha Stewart Weddings and Nylon. She currently focusses on one-of-a-kind couture creations for select clientele. Additional Resources: Website Twitter Photos Available on TheJewelryJourney.com Transcript: Colette Harmon has seen many trends come and go over the course of her career, but she has never let that influence her work. She has always found an audience for her one-of-a-kind jewelry, even when her hallmark maximalism is supposedly “out.” She joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about why she defines herself as an artist; how she nurtures her creative vision; and how her job as a leather accessories designer led to jewelry (and how that experience may come full circle in the near future). Read the episode transcript here. Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is the second part of a two-part episode. If you haven't heard part one, please head to TheJewelryJourney.com. Today, my guest is Colette Harmon, who is speaking to us from Canada. Toronto to be more specific. I have to say I've never met her, and I've never seen her jewelry in person, but it's my kind of jewelry. It's over-the-top kind of jewelry. You may have seen it on a celebrity on the stage or screen, but if you've seen it, you'd remember it. Welcome back. Do people bring the dresses? Do they bring the materials or some things? Colette: Yeah, sometimes they do. If they bring the actual garment, then I can see how the neckline falls and how the piece of jewelry would sit on the dress. Sharon: Has somebody, a client or a stylist, ever come and tried the dress on and you just didn't like the dress? Forget the necklace; you just didn't like the dress on them. Colette: Oh yeah, but if they're wearing it, I can't say, “I don't like your dress.” Yeah, there have been people who have. Sharon: You told us that you like the fact that people like your stuff, that's pleasing to you. Colette: Mm-hmm. Sharon: What are some of the bigger obstacles you've encountered besides sales, let's say? Colette: In terms of? Sharon: In terms of anything. Being in the business, what are some of the obstacles? Colette: I mentioned before I found wholesaling difficult. Being a small business, I found that doing wholesale was challenging at times. Just being a one-woman show can be tough at times. There were times when I had people helping me, but often when you're creating—as I'm working with the students at George Brown, it was difficult to tell someone because I don't sketch. I create as I'm going. They are helping me create these pieces, but it's difficult to tell someone what you're creating if it's in your head. A lot of times I might say to them, “O.K., do this this way,” and then they start doing it, and then I see something else and they have to undo it. It's easier for me to create the original piece and then have someone duplicate it, as opposed to having people helping me create something. Sharon: You said the college is George Brown. That's the university? Colette: Yeah, it's a college here in Toronto. They're doing a case study of me where they're studying my creative process and documenting how I create. Sharon: What's the first step they documented of you creating? Colette: The first session was just an interview of me and my background. The piece that we're working on now—I brought a bunch of materials. I had no idea what I was going to do with them. So, they're watching how I work and how I put things together. They're asking me questions as I go on, like why did I do this? They're documenting how I go from start to finish, if that makes any sense. Sharon: Are they talking to a lot of creative people? Colette: I think what happened was Leah saw my work on Instagram. I'm not sure how she found me. She found me on Instagram, but I'm not sure how she found my work on Instagram. She was really inspired. In her words, she said she was blown away by my pieces. Because we're both in Toronto and she's been in fashion for a number of years, she wondered why she didn't know who I was. So, she contacted me and I went to see her. She asked me to bring some of my pieces, so I did. Then she came up with this idea and approached the college for a grant. There's myself, her, and two students she recruited, and they're documenting my creative process. Like I said, there really isn't a creative process. I feel like—what's that word when they say that—people will find out I'm a fraud because there really isn't a creative process. I can make it sound more than what it is, but I just play. I think everybody has a gift, and my gift is just the way I put things together. There isn't anything technical. Sharon: Can you tell us more about what you see the end product being with these students? Colette: That's the thing; I have no idea. I could send you a picture of the piece I'm creating now. I can tell you a little bit about that, but it would be— Sharon: I'll talk to you after the podcast about what we need for pictures. I want my listeners to know that usually I have a picture of somebody, even though I only post the audio, but I don't even know what Colette looks like. Colette: Oh, I can send you a picture. Sharon: Are you the exotic-looking one in the ads? Colette: In the ads? Which ads? Sharon: The ads for the website, let's say. Colette: On my website? Sharon: Are you the model? Do you have a model? Colette: Sometimes I model. I'm not sure which images you're referring to, but I think there are one or two images of me on the website. There are a couple of me on Instagram. I wouldn't call myself a model, but I do model my jewelry on occasion. A number of the images of myself were taken by a friend of mine, a photographer whose name is Michael Chambers. I've done some work with him over the years. I wouldn't call myself a model, but I have modeled my jewelry. I have a shaved head, and I can tell you the story about that. My cousin worked in a hair salon. One day I was visiting, and there was a gentleman there; his name was Stephan. He had this beautiful, long, curly blond hair. He looked at me one day and said, “You know, I'm going to shave your head.” I was young, and when you're young and crazy, I said, “O.K.” So, he took a straight razor—I would never do it again with a straight razor—and shaved my head. Then we did a photoshoot where he made bird's nests out of—I couldn't even remember what it was made out of. I think maybe feathers and all these different, crazy things, and he put them on my bald head and we did this photoshoot. But I didn't like it because I was young, and I was wearing a lot of hairpieces. Hair was very important to me and to everyone, so I didn't like it. I don't know if I told him I didn't like it, but I was like, “Oh god, what did I do?” I remember I came home, and my mom was like, “Why did you do that?” Everywhere I went, everyone hated it. This was a time when there were no bald women around. It was before social media. I didn't know that in Africa there are tons of women like that, but you didn't see any bald women around. I remember I would be walking by, and I would hear people whisper, “Maybe she has cancer.” A lot of people didn't like it because it was such a drastic change from what I looked like before. Now all of a sudden, you have no hair. But I kept it for spite. Just because people didn't like it, I thought, “I'm going to keep it.” I think I would shave it every week, like once a week or something. The more I did it, the more I liked it. Now that I'm saying it, I think that played a role with the jewelry because I would have this bald head, so the jewelry became more elaborate. Stephan saw it. My logo is now my head, like a silhouette. The silhouette of my head is my actual logo. I think he saw something I didn't see. Do you know what I mean? A friend of mine designed my logo. He took a picture of my shadow against the wall with the bald head. Then he took a picture of my jewelry and scanned it onto the image of the head. I would never change that. I think it's such a beautiful logo. I love my bald head, and I think it really works with the jewelry. It's so striking, for a lack of a better word. But I always remember after I did it, for years my mother kept saying, “Why don't you grow your hair?” Then one day she looked at me and said, “You know what? I think of all the hair styles you've ever had, that suits you the most.” I do have a nice-shaped head, if I can say so myself, but everybody always compliments me on my—I can't remember what your question was. I went off into a tangent, but I think you asked me. I don't think of myself as exotic, but I think other people might use that word. Sharon: The model on the website is Black. You're Black, right? Colette: Yeah, I can't remember what's on there. I think there are a couple of images of Black models on there. I think there are one or two of me on there with a shaved head, and then there are a couple on Instagram. Sharon: You're Black though, right? Colette: I am a Black woman, yes. Sharon: Do you sell a lot through Instagram? You mentioned it several times. Colette: Do I sell a lot on Instagram? Sharon: Mm-hmm. Colette: No, I never pursued doing sales on Instagram. That's why I was thinking of creating a collection of simple pieces like belts and bags, where I could sell online through social media. I find that the pieces I do, you have to try them on. If you're not able to try it on, I think a lot of things would end up coming back just because you have to be able to see the scale. I've never had a problem with returns. In all the years I've been doing this, I think I've only had one piece returned. It was a charm bracelet. It was a woman in one of the eastern states. She saw it in a magazine. She ordered it, and she sent it back because it was too big for her. She wasn't used to wearing that. It's a lot. You have to try it on. That's why I was thinking of doing some simpler pieces where I could sell in volume if some pieces come back, if one or two are returned. But I think the pieces I create now, a lot of them would end up coming back just because you need to try them on. Sharon: I never thought about that before, that if you don't have hair, you need something else. You need the jewelry. You need something to replace it in a sense, to draw the eye. Colette: I don't think you have to, but I think it works well with the jewelry. It's like a blank canvas. There is no distraction. Your eye goes straight to it. I have necklaces. I have a preference when I create. If it's a line, I always start off with the necklace, and then I create pieces that go with that. It always starts off as an elaborate neckpiece. Then I might simplify it or do some more simple pieces that are very similar: earrings or bracelets, a belt, maybe a beaded belt or a chainmail belt or something. But for me, it always starts with the neck. I used to wear earrings a lot when I was younger, but I haven't worn earrings in years. Now, I mainly wear necklaces. I don't like things on my hands, only because I work with my hands and I don't really like things on my hands. It's mostly neck pieces. I do a lot of belts, beaded and chain belts. A lot of the pieces I create in general are very versatile, where you can wear it on your neck or you can wear it on your waist. There are pieces I have that you can wear as a shawl; you can wear as a necklace; you can wrap it on your waist and wear it as a belt. A lot of the pieces I do are versatile. You can wear them many different ways. I do that purposely. I always try to create pieces that you can wear in multiple ways. Sharon: I'm surprised to hear that. What I have seen are the photos that are online, which are just repetitions of what's on your website. Were you influenced by the baldness? I went through a period where I was bald, but I had people come up and say— Colette: You did? Sharon: Yeah, I did. People came up to me and they would say, “Oh, I wish I had the guts to do that.” Do they come up and say that to you or anything? Colette: Not so much anymore. You see it now everywhere, whereas when I was doing it, when I started, there was hardly anyone. Now, nobody even notices. People just walk by, whereas when I first did it, people would actually stop and stare. Now nobody cares because you see bald women everywhere, especially on social media. There are bald women. You see it quite a bit. For how long did you wear your hair bald? Sharon: Probably for a year, a year-and-a-half maybe. Colette: What made you decide to do that? Sharon: Well, basically I was going through chemotherapy and I lost my hair, but it really made me understand how important hair was to a woman or a man, what you did with it and all that. I hadn't thought about it. Colette: Right, I think hair is important to a lot of people. People think, “Well, why would you shave it?” but I've never really cared about what people think about anything. As long as I like something, I don't care. Your thoughts are your thoughts. I don't mean you specifically, but whatever. Your thoughts are your thoughts and what you think about me is—why should I worry about what someone thinks about me? I've never really cared about what people say or think about how I look or about my appearance. Sharon: It's interesting. I think most people think, “What will somebody else think if I do A, B, C or if I wear—?” Colette: Yeah, I think so too. I think as I got older, when I stopped caring about what other people thought, it was probably at the age of 16. I remember if I went shopping with friends, if you're trying something on and they say they don't like it, I was like, “Well, I'm going to get it just because you don't like it.” If I like something, it doesn't matter to me who likes it or who doesn't like it. Sharon: I suppose you have to be that way with your jewelry. Your jewelry is gorgeous, but— Colette: It's not for everyone. Sharon: Exactly. Colette: It's not for everyone. There are a lot of people who think that's gaudy. Maybe it is gaudy, but I like it. I don't really care what people think. Sharon: It is an acquired taste. I flipped over it because I happen to like big, bold things, but there are some people who like delicate things. Colette: Who like delicate things, exactly. A lot of times, people will come to me and say, “Why do you do stuff like this?” People are always giving you advice, “Why don't you do this?” and “Why don't you look at this person and do what they're doing?” Why would I do that? That's her and I'm me. I have to be me. Why would I look at someone and imitate what they're doing? For me, I always have to be true to myself. I have to create what is in me. I think that's what makes us all unique; we're all different. I find a lot of times, everybody's trying to create or do what everyone else is doing. The last time I was out in the shops, it was maybe a couple of years ago. We have a mall here called Yorkdale. I was at Yorkdale Mall. I don't know if you're familiar with that. It's a high-end department store here in Canada. I'm looking, and there was—I can't remember the names, but I'll just say there was a Gucci chain bracelet. Then I would go somewhere else, and it was Yves Saint Laurent, but it was the exact same bracelet. It was just a different label. I'm not joking. It was the exact same. I don't understand that. I find everybody, even with jewelry, it's all the same. I don't know if it still is because I haven't really looked at anything, but it's all the same. I've heard people say that to me too, that when they're out, everything looks the same, like no one is different. I guess something sells, so everybody does it. There's some jewelry, I think it's Tiffany that does it. I don't know what it's called, but it's links and it has balls on the end. It's a chain link at Tiffany. I think Tiffany did it originally, but I see that everywhere, even high-end designers with the same link they just copied from Tiffany. I think, “Why not just create your own?” Anyway, I guess if something sells, everybody does it. Sharon: We're going full circle to why you're an artist and not a designer, why you call yourself an artist. I really appreciate your being with us today. I hope we can do this again. Thank you very much, Colette. Colette: Thank you so much for having me, Sharon. It was a pleasure. Thank you. Sharon: It was great. We will have photos posted on the website. Please head to TheJewelryJourney.com to check them out. Thank you again for listening. Please leave us a rating and review so we can help others start their own jewelry journey.
Craig and Lee discuss the fierce rivalry unfolding between Toronto's Bloor-Yorkville and Yorkdale Shopping Centre in the realm of luxury retail. Delving into the nuances of this competition, they highlight the contrasting strategies and advantages each entitiy brings to the table. While Yorkdale's dominance owes much to the streamlined approach offered by its single landlord, Oxford Properties, and its climate-controlled environment that appeals to shoppers during harsh Canadian winters, Bloor-Yorkville's allure rests on its unique offerings and potential for a personalized shopping experience. Craig and Lee also draw parallels to similar trends in the United States, where luxury shopping has transitioned from vibrant downtowns to suburban malls due to shifts in consumer preferences and city landscapes. Moving beyond Toronto's borders, the hosts elaborate on luxury retail expansion in cities such as Vancouver and Montreal. They spotlight upcoming developments like the Oakridge Park in Vancouver and Royalmount in Montreal, both poised to reshape luxury shopping landscapes in their respective regions. The conversation shifts to the challenges posed by fragmented property ownership in Bloor-Yorkville, contrasting with the more cohesive approach of shopping centres like Yorkdale. As Lee aptly points out, navigating through individual building owners and their unique personalities can complicate retailer placement and leasing negotiations, underscoring the distinct advantages of mall environments for luxury retail expansion. Subscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/CraigPattersonTorontoInstagram: @craig_patterson_torontoTwitter: @RI_EIC Follow Retail Insider: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/Retail-InsiderFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/RetailInsider/Twitter: @RetailInsider_Instagram: @Retail_Insider_Canada Listen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcher Share your thoughts! Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show! Background Music Credit: Hard Boiled Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Craig and Lee discuss the groundbreaking transformation underway at Toronto's Yorkdale shopping center, a conversation centered on the future of luxury retail within this retail hub. The focal point of their conversation is the extensive luxury retail expansion that's poised to redefine the mall's allure. Craig provides listeners with intricate insights into how approximately 100,000 square feet of prime retail space will be thoroughly revamped to accommodate a meticulously curated collection of luxury brand flagships. While exact tenant names remain shrouded in secrecy due to ongoing negotiations and non-disclosure agreements, the venture is anticipated to usher in a dozen or so high-end stores, with one potentially standout store boasting an impressive 15,000 square feet. Drawing on insights gleaned from an enlightening interview with William Correia, the visionary mall Director, Craig and Lee underscore the monumental scale of the ambitious undertaking. They reveal the staggering investment channeled into the meticulous renovation of the expansive central corridor. The conversation also delves into Yorkdale's strategic pursuit of exclusivity as Craig traces the gradual migration of luxury boutiques down the centre's corridor over the years. As the discussion progresses, the duo thoughtfully assesses the possibility of an oversaturation of luxury brands within the mall landscape, pondering whether Yorkdale might emerge as one of the globe's preeminent luxury shopping destinations, enticing affluent consumers and fashion aficionados from far and wide. Interviewed this episode:Yorkdale Launches Unprecedented 100,000 Square Foot Luxury Retail Expansion in Toronto [Feature/Photos] Subscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/CraigPattersonTorontoInstagram: @craig_patterson_torontoTwitter: @RI_EIC Follow Retail Insider: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/Retail-InsiderFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/RetailInsider/Twitter: @RetailInsider_Instagram: @Retail_Insider_Canada Listen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcher Share your thoughts! Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show! Background Music Credit: Hard Boiled Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
What's New in Beauty is a series where Nia Lee, CEO + Founder of Socialee Media Agency talks all things new and exciting within beauty, makeup, skincare, wellness — you name it!Check out today's episode and let me know your thoughts on all the latest beauty news. Timestamps are included below as well so jump to the topics that intrigue you the most.0:00-0:26 — Introducing the series0:27-17:54 — Cult Beauty announces promise to the UK government to no longer retouch or airbrush their content with the Body Image Pledge 17:55-32:17 — PATTERN Beauty partners with celebrity designer, Sergio Hudson, to create the first-ever Curl-Conscious Robe 32:18-47:54 — The Body Shop launches its first flagship, concept store located in Toronto at Yorkdale Mall Follow Nia on Instagram to connect & join the unfiltered conversation online! Support the show
Sandwiched between May Day and Cinco de Mayo in the first week in May is Star Wars Day, May the 4th. It's a portmanteau, “May the Force be with you” becomes May the 4th be with you. May the 4th. Star Wars is more than a good time at the movies for some people, but what drives someone to spend hours studying pictures and videos to figure out how to make movie accurate Stormtrooper costumes? You can call what the 501st Legion does cosplay, but that's actually too simplistic in their case because they have standards. Their costumes aren't just sorta accurate, they are screen accurate and if you're going to be an official member of the 501st Legion you have to measure up. Now it's not a contest, the community is very welcoming and helpful if you want to join up, but the point is that these people take their fandom seriously. The 501st is more than 4,000 members strong with garrisons across the U.S. and around the world, including the Canadian Garrison, which launched in 1999 and has over 200 active members. They show up at charity events, fundraisers, movie premieres, parades, promotional events, and conventions, and, as you can imagine, May the 4th is basically their Christmas. This week, we're joined by Santa. Jim Sobota, who is the C.O. of the Canadian Garrison of the 501st Legion, will talk to us about how he got involved in the organization, and what he finds appealing about dressing up as a Stormtrooper. He also talk about the difficulty level making movie-accurate Star Wars costumes, and how various members choose the costumes they make. Also, Sobota discusses what type of event he would like to do but hasn't done yet, and his favourite Star Wars movie or series. So let's see if the Fourth is with us on this week's Guelph Politicast! To learn more about the 501st Legion, go to their website. You will be able to see the Legion this week in-person on Thursday at the REC Room in Toronto, at the LEGO Store in Yorkdale on Friday, and at Heroes Cards and Comics in London and GNU Books in Oshawa on Saturday for Free Comic Book Day. The 501st Legion won't be there, but you can take part in Free Comic Book Day festivities at The Dragon in Downtown Guelph on Saturday. The host for the Guelph Politicast is Podbean. Find more episodes of the Politicast here, or download them on your favourite podcast app at Apple, Stitcher, Google, TuneIn and Spotify . Also, when you subscribe to the Guelph Politicast channel and you will also get an episode of Open Sources Guelph every Monday, and an episode of End Credits every Friday.
~This is the audio from a video podcast series, The Interview Series by Retail Insider Canada and is also available through our Retail Insider YouTube Channel . If you would like to subscribe to only audio interviews by Retail Insider, a separate "The Interview Series" podcast show is now available (link to Apple Podcast show). If you would like to subscribe to only Canadian retail discussions between Craig and Lee by Retail Insider, a separate audio "The Weekly" podcast show is now available (link to Apple Podcast show). ~ Craig and Ashkan, founder of St. Ash, discuss some of the challenges seen in Toronto's downtown luxury zone, the threat of Yorkdale, Nordstrom's exit from Canada and what's happening with Saks Fifth Avenue, and what's being seen with luxury retail in Paris and Milan. Interviewed this episode:Ashkan (Ash) Yousofpour, Executive at St.Ash Inc.St.Ash Inc. Subscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/CraigPattersonTorontoInstagram: @craig_patterson_torontoTwitter: @RI_EIC Follow Retail Insider: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/Retail-InsiderFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/RetailInsider/Twitter: @RetailInsider_Instagram: @Retail_Insider_Canada Listen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcher Share your thoughts! Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show! Background Music Credit: Hard Boiled Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
If you're listening to this it's too late. After a pre flight drip trip to Yorkdale, Mans are on route to TMB and #ProducerTaus might not make it back
Allan Perez is a co-founder & Chief Executive Officer of CanFirst Capital Management, a private real estate equity firm. CanFirst invests on behalf of institutional and private high net worth investors and has raised in excess of $800 million of equity capital since its inception. Allan's real estate career encompasses 40 years of senior executive positions with real estate organizations including The Prudential Insurance Company of America, Canderel Ltd., Dundee Realty Corporation and V&A Properties. His responsibilities included acquisition and disposition, development, marketing, leasing, e-commerce and asset management. In this episode we talked about: Allan`s First Steps in Real Estate Space Investing in Real Estate from scratch The Process of a Company Creation Asset Class Identification Deals` Structure and Scaling Fund Modelling Real Estate Market Changes Overview Macroeconomic Forecast Actual Industrial Trends Segments of Real Estate which are worth Attention Mentorship, Resources and Lessons Learned Transcriptions: Jesse (0s): Welcome to the working capital real estate podcast. My name's Jesper galley. And on this show, we discuss all things real estate with investors and experts in a variety of industries that impact real estate. Whether you're looking at your first investment or raising your first fund, join me and let's build that portfolio one square foot at a time. All right, ladies and gentlemen, my name's Jesse for galley and you're listening to working capital the real estate podcast. Our special guest today is Alan Perez. Alan Perez is a co-founder and chief executive officer of canned first capital management. A private real estate equity firm can first invest on behalf of institutional private high net worth investors and has raised an excess of 800 million of equity capital since its inception Alan's real estate career encompasses over 40 years of senior executive positions with real estate organizations, such as Prudential insurance company of America, candor, REL Dundee Realty, corporation, VNA properties, and others, his responsibilities included acquisition, disposition, development, marketing, leasing e-commerce and asset management. And probably most importantly for me, Alan was my sessional professor as one of my courses in my MBA. I believe it was real estate finance, Alan, how you doing? Allan (1m 15s): Great, Jesse. Thanks for having me here. Jesse (1m 18s): Yeah, it's been great. You know, one thing I have, I'll always remember from that class and I assume, you know, sometimes memories, you know, you over time, you can't remember if the, if they were actually true, but I've still told enough people that were when you first got started. I remember you saying it was basically a handshake agreement at a Tim Horton's when you're buying your first industrial site. I don't know if that's accurate if I got the right guy. Allan (1m 44s): Yeah, yeah, no, it was, I mean, it was, it was roughly a 20 odd years ago when we launched the company, both my partner and I at the time were just starting out in this new incarnation and, you know, working out of our living rooms in our bedrooms and getting offices set up and got a call from a broker that we had done a lot of business with and said, you know, there's this little building out by the airport. Not sure it's for you guys, but do you want to come have a look at it? So we went out on a, on a rainy midweek afternoon and drove around the building said, yeah, it looks okay. When went over to the Tim, Horton's very Canadian thing to do sat down in the classic back of the napkin, sat there. And you know, no artist runs that point. We just penciled out a few things and said, yeah, this could make sense. And so that was really the first, the first transaction for our company. And this was back in 2002, it was a $5 million deal. We raised $3 million in debt financing and raised another 2 million from friends and family and our savings and, and off we went. Jesse (3m 5s): So take us back a little bit from when you first got into the industry. I think it was McGill university is where your Alma mater. And did you know at that time that you wanted to go into the real estate space? Was it, was it that early on? Allan (3m 21s): No, I don't think so. You know, it was, you know, it was an interesting time look, I think like all of us who went through a university days, you come out and some are fortunate enough to know that they want to do this or that for the rest of their lives. And then there were people like myself who really had no idea, you know, my, my father had, had been involved in real estate in different capacities. He had developed some residential properties in Montreal, which is where I grew up. And so heard a little bit about it at the dinner room table as it were. I did a finance and marketing major at McGill. One of the courses actually that did really stand out for me, there were two of them. One was the equivalent of, I guess the finance 1 0 1 course, which can be at times a bit dry, but it was fortunate enough to have a professor that kind of really got me turned onto that. And, and the other was a, a real estate course with this professor who was an outside the box kind of thinker and had this infectious enthusiasm about the industry. So, you know, it got me thinking a little bit about it, but to be honest, when I came out of Miguel, didn't really know that that's what I wanted to do, fell into an opportunity right out of McGill to join Prudential Prudential at the time was the world's largest insurance company. I don't know that that's the case today, but more significantly from my perspective, as we entered the eighties, they really were on the verge of becoming, they did in fact, become one of the most active real estate developers in north America during that decade. And, you know, in Canada, we were a small part of that, of course, but in the states they were building everything. You could imagine, office buildings, industrial buildings, business parks, shopping centers, residential, anything, and everything under the sun. And so historically in Canada, the company had been primarily a residential mortgage lender, as many insurance companies where they were morphing into becoming more of an equity based investor and developer in, in commercial real estate. So I kind of arrived for truancy as it were at a time when there was a lot of transition in what the company wanted to do in Canada. And so I was really the beneficiary of being able to jump in at that point in time. And what was really interesting as from my perspective is that because of the company's background in Canada, historically, they really didn't have a big team of commercial real estate experts. So, you know, I really had the chance to jump into some projects and probably take on far more than I should have been taking on that, given my non-existent background in commercial real estate, because there weren't a bunch of people who actually had that expertise in the company. So it was really an exciting time to, to be there. And, you know, early on we were involved in, in, we built a suburban office building in Montreal. We, we developed some industrial product as well on the, on the loan side, there were a couple of foreclosures that we took back that we were working through. So it was really an interesting time. And, and, you know, as I said, I, I kind of fell into it. Didn't know that this was what I was going to be sitting here talking about 40 years later, but I fell in love with the industry pretty early on. Jesse (7m 3s): Yeah, fair enough. I mean, it seems like trial trial by fire is pretty, pretty common in our industry in general. So it makes sense now from the Montreal, I don't think we've ever talked about that you grew up in Montreal. So for it makes sense that you had worked for Cantarell. Was that in Montreal as well? Allan (7m 20s): Actually, it was not. So we got to know when I was at Prudential, we got to know candor quite well. They were, we had retained them on a number of projects to a property manager for us to help us build out spaces. So they became really an integral part of what we were doing at the time three years into my stint at Prudential, I was offered a transfer to Toronto. They had a, the company had a site in downtown Toronto that it wanted to develop a joint venture with another institutional investor. And there were other projects on the books in Toronto and really not a whole lot planned for Montreal at that time. So they offered me the transfer and the relationship that we had developed with Canada REL survived that. So, and, and in fact there was talk of me potentially staying in, joining them in Montreal, but I thought, you know, what seemed like a great opportunity to go to Toronto, try this out. And so I moved at the end of 1983 and it was there until 1987, at which time I did join Kendra Jesse (8m 28s): Right on. So it seems that from there you're in Toronto and what these various roles prior to can first, I guess it used to be done D I assume, dream rate. And now today with the various roles that you had prior to starting or building out the, what you have today in the company today, I assume those, those roles influence the way that you make decisions today. If, if you could take us back to when you kind of made that move from working at a shop to starting to say, Hey, you know, we can start raising capital for our own investors. Allan (8m 59s): Yeah. So one of my philosophies, and certainly I, I think it was, you know, maybe more by observing the industry as I was early on and, and learning the business was really trying to understand every facet of the business and become a generalist as opposed to really being a specialist in one, in any one area. And that was probably colored by the fact that when I looked at a lot of the senior people in the industry, they were really good quarterbacks. You know, they understood every, every piece of the puzzle fit together. And I thought that's pretty good and not necessarily the best around the table at any one discipline, but certainly able to dialogue and communicate and really sort of lead, you know, lead projects in a certain direction. So for me, I guess it's something that maybe by osmosis sunk in. And so, you know, in my time prior to, to launching Ken first, I was able to really be involved in every facet of the commercial real estate project. And so, yeah, so if you look at the resume was acquisitions development, asset management, property management, leasing financing, you name it. And so we had a company called BNA properties in which I was a partner really was a sort of a boutique real estate investment development firm. And in 1997, we sold the company to what was then Dundee Realty corporation, which is a 400 dream office today and became part of that organization, which was in its very, very early stages. So it was actually quite an, an interesting and exciting time to be part of that and spent four years there. And again, learnt a lot. The company was growing in leaps and bounds. And I think for me, it was, you know, I was just moving into my early forties as, as the, the new millennium began. And I think I was at that philosophic fork in the road where I had to decide, do I keep going on this path, which I'm sure it would've turned out wonderfully well. And the company obviously dreams done fabulously well don't or do I go out and try it on my own and see if I can make that work. Right. And so, and it really was, you know, w really was a conversation with my now partner who was also a trainer at the time with me. And we just got to chatting one day about what we both like to do going forward. And it sounded similar. And it really was about being able to focus on the parts of the industry that we most like, which was really raising capital, managing that capital and the capital and all the way through that, of course, being able to be actively involved in the deal flow. Because I think for most of us or many of us in this industry, we've all got a bit of that deal junkie in us. And so, so for me, it was an opportunity to really marry up all the facets that I really liked about the industry. And for the first time, I guess at that point, not just take a job, but actually create a job for myself. And, and that was really the, the, the Genesis for, for health for came to be. Jesse (12m 27s): That's great. Do you feel Allen? Like my, my perception from talking with a lot of professionals in our industry, that there's a lot of people that, you know, work in real estate know a lot about real estate, but then there's a different type of individual that's that entrepreneurial individual that wants to invest in real estate and even further start an investing business. Do you find that, that that's true, that the ones that end up going off maybe, or have a little bit of a different breed or there's a little bit more of an entrepreneurial bent to those types of individuals? Allan (12m 56s): I think, you know what, by the very nature of the beast, I think you have to have that, you know, you have to have the ability to say, look, I'm going to start something from scratch. And I got, I, I walked away from a terrific job and a terrific organization and great, great people and, you know, had I stuck around there, I'm sure I would've had a great career and no regrets. I think you have to, you know, and listen to some people are hard wired that way and, you know, terrific. And I know a lot of successful people like that, I think, yeah. I think you have to, if you have that, a little bit of that entrepreneurial bent and that little voice in the back of your head that says, you know what, let's see if we can do this. I think that's what spurs you on to take that leap of faith. And it is a leap of faith. You know, listen, I I'll tell you when I made that move to sort of walk away from a pretty good job. And, you know, I kind of took solace from the fact that, you know, if it didn't work out, I was probably still young enough that I could go back and get a real job. And so, you know, that, that helped propel me to take that, but it is a leap of faith. Anyway, you cut it, you know, the day you walk out of that organization with a nice title on your business card, you walk away from that. And you know, what you don't really know is will you be able to navigate and transact without that fancy title on your business card? And so, so I think that was a big part of it for me, was just being able to say, yeah, you know what? We're not that the, the edge of the cliff and be a jump now and, you know, close your eyes and hope it works out. So, but yeah, I think you have to believe, you have to believe in yourself obviously, but that's kind of motherhood, but I think you have to also believe that you have an idea or a plan that is going to appeal to other people who will want to actually participate with you in that. Jesse (15m 11s): So from that point, you, you and your partner, you move to, to create this company and invest what were next steps for you? Was it deciding which asset class you wanted to invest in? Was it, you know, let's figure out roles and responsibilities who knows the investors, who does the deal? What did that look like? Allan (15m 28s): Yeah. You know, listen, I, I, I wish I could tell you, excuse me. I wish I could tell you that it was a very formal process. You know, I think that the decision we had to make was what part of the asset class, excuse me, that we wanted to participate in a bit ironic in that. I think both of us came from a background, which was probably much more office oriented than it wasn't gastrique oriented. But one of the things I think we've come to appreciate in our respective careers was that the office business was a really capital intensive business and was really what I call, you know, a big player business. You have to have deep pockets to play that game. As we all know, I mean, you know, vacancy costs a lot of money to carry vacant space costs a lot of money to release and we capitalized. And what we were really looking to do was to build a platform, almost like a private REIT, where we could raise capital where we could make distributions to our investors while they waited, while we all waited for hopefully a happy ending. And, and we thought, you know what? Industrial might be better suited to that because the, the volatility is more muted. Again, the costs of sharing vacant space cost of retenanting vacant space, much, much lower relative to the office space business. And I think we felt that the time there was probably less capital chasing that. So for all of those reasons, you know, we went in that direction. I can tell you, and I don't know who it is, but I've told this story before someone early on said to us really industrial, not very sexy business, we said, that's okay. You know, we get it and we're going to give it a shot and see what happens. So, and I can tell you that for the last five years, I wish it was still an unsexy business, but so that's really how we got into it. Was we just sort of made that decision and said, yeah, let's, let's go in that direction and see what happens. So Jesse (17m 38s): At the point where, you know, you identify, or you start to identify properties that you're looking at, you mentioned kind of a, you know, a small version of a, of a public REIT. So the way that you structured these deals, was it kind of, was it a private placement style, limited partnership, general partnership structure when you first started out? Allan (17m 58s): Yeah. So our, our first deal, so the deal that we talked about early on that the Tim Horton's deal was just a one-off syndication. And, and at the time I think our aspirations were to really build a syndication business and go out and find a deal and do the deal, find another one. And on and on and on, we did that deal. And while we were doing that deal, we started a conversation with, with the, the head of a merchant bank who, with who, you know, we had a relationship newest in our previous lives and vice versa and said to us, you know, what are you guys up to? And we told them and said, sounds interesting. Let's do, why don't you come in and we'll meet and we'll chat about what you're doing and what happened. The next step was really quite fortuitous for us. And that was that they liked our business plan and their take on it basically was tell you what we're going to take out of the money raising business for the next few years, we're going to give you money and we'll commit capital to you. They brought along actually another institutional investor that they had done work with. And, you know, basically that was the origins of our first fund, which we launched in late 2002 and alongside their commitment. We also went to our private investors and said, it looks like we're doing this. Do you want to be part of that? So, so the institutional investors effectively put up about $35 million. We raised $10 million privately. And, and we were off to the races with our first fund of $45 million, which back then was quite a lot of money for us. So, you know, that was really the beginning of us getting into the fund business. And yes, so everything was done by offering memorandum and, and these were all limited partnerships that were set up and, and we were off to the races. Jesse (20m 2s): So Allen, for, for those that aren't as familiar with the, the fund model and how it works. I mean, the syndication is, is fairly simple to understand it's typically closed ended. You're you're doing an asset specific raise. Oftentimes when you do the fund model or when you did the fund metal model at the time, was it something that you would have a rolling people that could join on a rolling basis? Was it something that you had a target in mind in terms of the raise and that this merchant bank really already hit that target and you were just kind of bringing on original investors, what did, what did that look like? And it hasn't changed the, to what you do today. Allan (20m 39s): That's a good question. I mean, look, we, you know, as I said, we, we did this $5 million deal. It got the ball rolling as it were. And, you know, we figured, well for this years, this is what we're gonna do. We're gonna do five and 10 or $15 million deals and then see where the world takes us. So when, when, you know, when these investors came along and said, you know, here's $35 million, I can honestly say we had sat there and said, Jesus, is that a good numbers out of bad numbers are too high or too low. You know, when you're, when you're starting out and you go into the trough, it all looks good. Right? And so the one caveat though for us, which was important was we said to them, listen, you know, we have nurtured a group of private investors who are, you know, they were there on the first deal and we have undertaken to do more with them. We're not going to turn our backs on them. And so, you know, as long as we can all cohabitate together, we will do this. And that was a condition of us doing the fund and, and the institutional investors agreed. And they said, listen, their only caveat was, you know, we don't want 45 year investors calling us on a regular basis, as long as you can speak for them with one voice. We're good with that. And so we said, yeah, that was fine. So really what we had was we had two institutional investors, each of which was a separate limited partner. We had, I don't remember how many private investors, but probably about maybe 30 or 40 all wrapped up in one limited partnership. So in fact that we have three limited partnerships, we were the general partner for each of them. And, and all three of the limited partnerships were rolled up into one master limited partnership of which we were also the general partner. So we were really the voice for the privates and it was, and that's really the model that we have continued to use for the last 20 years. Jesse (22m 33s): Have you seen that market change over the, over the time that you've been in the industry? Because we see a lot in the states, I've had people on the show that have, you know, they, their perspectives exemptions are slightly different, but I think it's kind of the same thing, whether you're dealing with the sec or you're dealing with Canadian securities, that, that model where you're, you're not in the public markets you are doing exemptions, is that changed over the last, whether it's five years or from when you started started way back when, Allan (23m 3s): You know, I think some of the, some of the laws, some of the rules have changed. I can't tell you that it's, it's had a sea change effect on us. You know, I mean, these things change gradually over time and, you know, the documents get a little bit thicker each time you're out raising capital because there's that much more generally legal verbiage. But, you know, at the end of the day, you know, it's still, it's still a very similar model, you know, and again, we go to the offering memorandum route versus a prospectus route, and the latter of which involves the OSC, you know, much more stringent in terms of documentation requirements. What you can say, what you can say, you know, involves more in the way of forecasts, all of which of course have to be audited. So it's, it's a different kind of game when you're playing in that, in that arena, we have managed over the years to just continue running, you know, our model, the way we started out 20 years ago. Jesse (24m 8s): And when you continue to go down that road or you technically exempt market dealers at that point, or are you guys, is that you're not getting involved in that those types of securities at that point? Allan (24m 18s): We're not, we're not, we're not getting involved in those types of issues. Jesse (24m 22s): Okay. I want to pivot to the darling of the industry, as we mentioned before, it seems to be industrial. You know, the last couple years has it, it's just been crazy for both industrial and for multi Rez, we see an asset valuations increased quite substantially. I've seen just boots on the ground, net rents. When I first started only seven, eight years ago, compared to today, you know, it's pretty wild when you're like, wait, is that industrial? What, what are your, what are your thoughts over, over what you've seen over the last two years? And I guess in answering that, you know, you've been around for right now, 2008, 2001 93. So you've, it's not your first time seeing a change in the cycle. So how have you guys been digesting the last, the last couple of years? Allan (25m 7s): Yeah, look, it's a great question. And you know, I'm going to start by answering your last question first because, you know, we, we all know the, the four most dangerous words in any investment businesses. It's different this time, you know, and I've, I've said this over the years and, and I still believe that any investment in any investment business in the world is cyclical peaks. The troughs change cycles change. They look different, they feel different, but at the end of the day, they're still cyclical because if they weren't, Evelyn would pile in and we all make a ton of money doing that. So, but the issue really is that this cycle that we've been in to talking about 93 talking about 2008 and 2009, and in 2008, 2009, wasn't even cataclysmic in Canada, right? I mean, there was a global financial crisis. The real impact up in Canada was debt markets seized up. And without debt markets, there was virtually no transactional activity during that period of time, but it's not like asset values fell through the floor at that point. So we've had a pretty long and a pretty good run. And if you've only been in this business 10 or 15 years, that's all you've ever seen. And you start to think it's a pretty good business. It is still cyclical and things will go up and things will go down. You know, look, we are clearly in unchartered waters, you know, in the industrial sector, e-commerce has been a huge, huge driver that was ramping up nicely up until 2020, and then absolutely exploded at that point. And I've read, I read somewhere that in 2020, we had the equivalent of e-commerce growth, which was equal to the last 10 years of growth of e-commerce sector. So currently supply chains, as we continue to see it today, we're not set up for this. They were not ready for this. And the great benefactors of all of that was really the industrial market or the great manufacturer was, and that market wasn't ready for it and still is not ready for it because we keep falling behind in terms of supply and demand. We're not building space nearly quickly enough rents seem to go up weekly, monthly, you know, and this is now classic supply demand that we're seeing, right? I mean, people say, well, how, how high our rent's going to go? And I don't have that kind of crystal ball, but when you look at the intersection of the supply and demand curve, it keeps suggesting higher and higher rents until something changes until supply catches up until demand cools down. You know, the growth in e-commerce is not going to continue at the pace that we've seen in the last two years. People are going to start going back to stores and actually walking in and walking out with something as opposed to ordering it from, from home in their pajamas at 11 o'clock at night. So, so look, I've never seen this and I don't think anyone in our business has ever seen this and the fundamentals have never been better, but it will change. The thing about the industry that I think is somewhat comforting about that last statement is I don't think it will change overnight, you know, in our businesses, as opposed to say the office building business, it's easy to turn off the supply tab fairly quickly, but it takes six to nine months or 12 months if you're building an Amazon multi-story facility to build a building. And so I think if supply were to get too far ahead of, of demand, you know, that tap would get shut off and, and mitigate any, any serious imbalances. But look, the truth is if you look at, you know, this country, we have 1.5, 1.6 billion square feet of industrial space across the country vacancy rate today is somewhere between one to 2% equilibrium is generally considered to be around five. So we are a long way from equilibrium right now. And so, so I think there's, there's still some, you know, there's, there's runway for sure. But if you're a user, it's a tough, tough time out there right now, because there's nowhere to go and you don't have a lot of leverage with your landlord. Jesse (29m 41s): Yeah. Fair enough. In terms of like one thing for us, just trying to understand this where it's kind of a, somewhat of a natural disaster, not a, not a pure recession as we've seen in the past. And I'm still trying to understand from just in brokerage and investment, how we are, you know, forecasting the next year, that the next two years where, you know, the question of whether you're going to have more inflation with the interest rate, environment's going to be like, I mean, without the crystal ball, if you, you know, looking forward, how are you planning for the fact that yeah, we might slowly come out of this and hopefully it's not as anemic as it was in oh eight, you know, to, you know, 10 years on a recovery, but how do you see this playing out from a macro economic point of view or even just a national, Allan (30m 26s): Yeah, look, I, I think that, you know, our markets are fairly efficient and, and so, you know, you have the demand drivers on one side and, you know, short of a major economic recession, which I don't really see coming anytime soon. I think you're going to have, you know, demand is going to continue to move along at a reasonable clip. I think it will really be incumbent on the development community. And in many cases with the assistance of municipalities across this country, to be able to get more product to the market, there's no shortage, there are no shortage of sites. There are no shortage of developers. There's no shortage of capital for that, but it takes time and there is a lag there for sure. And I think that, you know, I think for the foreseeable future, that's going to be the challenge. But I do think that, you know, over, over the next three to five years, I think you'll see probably a more normalized environment, which, you know, probably a little bit unhealthy right now what we're seeing. I mean, you know, you talk about, you know, how, how you sort of deal with that going forward, look as an investor. When you, when you're looking at cap rates dropping on a regular basis, you have to scratch your head and say, well, I don't want to be caught without a chair when the music stops. And again, I've seen this movie before and I still got the scars, certainly from the late eighties, early nineties, which was, as I say to younger people like yourself, wasn't, wasn't a recession. It was really a depression in real estate, the likes of which we've never seen before. I don't see that happening now for a whole bunch of reasons, not the least of which is I think that the world is a different place today. And I think many in the real estate community are probably more conservative in their approach to, to development, to debt and to pricing expectations. And maybe what we saw in the late eighties, early nineties, but, you know, things will change. And so for us, you know, the key is not getting too far over our skis when it comes to looking at opportunities. And, you know, I think when I, when I look back over the last few years of prices, we've paid for assets and you know, what looked like a ridiculously stupid place two years ago. Now it looks like a steal. Are we going to be saying the same thing two years from now? Don't know Jesse (33m 9s): They have the old, I should've bought five of those in terms of the, the actual trends of where, where you see industrial going. I'd love to get your thoughts on, on some of the, where you see tenants and with what the wants are today. That might be different from five or 10 years ago. But just in general, I, I questioned, you know, comes on this idea that, because we, you said before the supply and demand issue where we are looking for more development, we're looking for fewer and fewer sites or buildings, do you buy into this idea that we're going to see more repurposing or rezoning of existing sites from whether it's retail to industrial office, you know, to industrial or even hoteling to apartment units? Like, do you think we're going to see that? Or is it, or is that more of a kind of a, you know, something you read in the news, but the practicality might not be there? Allan (34m 2s): No, I, I think that's real and I think it's true. And it goes back to, you know, what you see in the appraisal reports, which is, you know, what is the asset worth on a highest and best use basis and what was highest and best use 10, 15, 20 years ago for a site might not be the same today. Look, when you look at suburban office space, as an example, you know, there's lots of it out there, certainly in the GTA. I think last time I checked vacancy rates were in the teens. You know, you have the whole trend of people not going back to their offices so quickly. Maybe now they will. But, you know, I think many are going to probably adopt some type of a hybrid approach to, to, you know, working, going forward. And so, you know, I, and so you have that as, as part of the backdrop where it might be an outdated retail property. And then on the other side of that, you have industrial rates that have slowly been creeping up, you know, where up until, I don't know, five years ago and bounced around in a very narrow range for the preceding 20 years. And all of a sudden everything changed. You know, we we've got a project just like that. As an example, in, in Meadowvale right now, we acquired the site last year. It had some older two-story walk-up office buildings. They were 70 odd percent leased, but likely not huge demand for that product going forward. And we really looked at it on the basis land value and what we thought would make for a terrific industrial site off a major artery close to the 4 0 1 close to the airport. And so we're moving forward. So there's an example of a site that is being repurposed into what we believe will be a higher and better use. So, yeah, I, I think you're going to see a lot of that. Look, I mean, there's been talk of repurposing shopping centers to, you know, e-commerce fulfillment centers and logistics facilities and whatnot, which is what the economy needs and wants right now. You know, the challenge in some cases, if you're not doing a tear down, is the bones that you're working with and no different than, you know, looking at an old house and saying, I'm going to renovate it. In some cases you might just be better off knocking it down and starting over again. And I think in some cases that may be what happens in some cases, it might be that it's completely workable. I mean, I, I would say this, I haven't seen a lot of that yet in Canada. I certainly have read about examples of that type of thing in the states. But yeah, I, I think that it's, you know, you'll see a lot more intensification on, on retail sites with industrial, with apartments and residential. You look at, you know, arguably the most successful shopping center in this country at Yorkdale. And, you know, I believe that Oxford's got significant multi-phase development activity planned for that site, which will make it even harder to find a parking spot, but, and I'm sure I'm going to get a call from Michael Turner over that one. So I think that's what you're going to see. A lot of this is, you know, look, if you're in the industry as a, as a provider and deployer of capital, you're trying to figure out where the demand is coming from, and that's the demand that you're going to be catering to. That's the demand you're going to build to. So yeah, whether it's it's repurposing buildings, whether it's intensifying sites or whether it's just a complete knockdown and start over again, I think you'll see all of that Jesse (37m 37s): Right on. Well, Alan, I want to be mindful of the time there's four questions. We ask every guest a kind of a rapid fire before we do that though. Is there an area that you've you feel in our market that people aren't talking enough about or an opportunity, you know, whether, you know, throw it out, student housing, self storage, is there something that you don't think is getting enough press right now? Allan (37m 59s): Yeah, look, I think there, I don't know about not getting enough press, but certainly, you know, in, in the commercial real estate space, you know, self storage is, has always been an interesting segment of that market. To me, I think it's, it's still in its early stages. I think it's an industry that's fairly fragmented in terms of ownership. You know, again, I, I, I think there's probably a consolidation opportunity there and I think there probably going to be some good development in that space, because I think a lot of the trends that we're seeing in the economy are going to lend itself to people wanting to have that kind of space and use that kind of space. So, you know, I, I think there are segments certainly in our market that, that probably don't get as much air time as some of the other ones. Jesse (38m 57s): All right. Allen, look for questions. If you're ready to go all through all that. Yeah. Okay. All right. What's something, you know, now in real estate or in business that you wish you knew when you started out, maybe at that Tim Horton's. Allan (39m 12s): I know I should have watched all the other podcasts already prepare for discretions. Yeah. I think that, you know, look, if you're saying well, in the benefit of hindsight, you know, I think that over the last 20 years or so, you know, clearly for the most part, we've been in an expansionary cycle. And so probably an aggregation strategy that, you know, in hindsight would have been more aggressive when I think back to all the deals that we've said no to over the years, kind of look at that and say, I wish I'd said yes a few more times, but you know, you'll only have the information you have at the time to make the decisions. But yeah, listen, if I had that crystal ball, I would have said no to virtually nothing. Jesse (40m 11s): All right. Number two, for younger people coming into our industry from a mentorship perspective, especially, you know, given the environment we're in right now, what would you recommend to those, to those individuals? Allan (40m 22s): Yeah. So I think, look, the industry is in a great place and you know, there's a lot of growth. There's a lot of activity. There's lots going on in the industry. The one thing I would say is this, you know, th that first job out of school might not be your dream job, but I've always likened the industry like any industry to a club and no different than trying to get into a club on queen street at midnight on a Saturday where she had people lined up a hundred deep and I'm like, what are they giving away in this place? The whole, the whole thing is about getting into the club. Because once you get into the club, you can move around, but you got to get into the club. And so the analogy for me is for young people is, you know what? Getting into the industry, get into the club. That first job may not be your dream job may not be the one that's going to make you independently wealthy, but once you're inside, you know, get a couple of years of experience, build up your resume. And then before, you know, it, people are gonna know who you are, your phone's going to start to ring, and you're going to have opportunities to do other things, but you gotta get in the door first, Jesse (41m 28s): What's a book or a resource that, you know, has helped you over the years or something that you constantly are recommending to other people. I'll say, I'll say aside from real estate and financing investments from Peter Lindemann. Allan (41m 45s): Absolutely. You know, that's, it's a great, great question. And if I have time to think about, I'd give you a great answer maybe, but what I would say is this, you know, it constantly amazes me when you look, when you read. And I read, I do read a lot of business books. I mean, I read a lot of different kinds of books, but, but sticking to the business stand for a moment. You know, one of my favorites is, was the big short. And when you read books like that, which to me almost read like fiction, cause you sit there and say, how is this possible? How could people have done this? And I think to me, the takeaway there is, you know, we're in business, we're all out there trying to make a living. And I think doing the right thing, doing the ethical thing in the long run is always I think, going to work out. But I think it's also important to realize that there are a lot of bad actors out there and, and you can never just assume that people will do the right thing because often Greek gets in the way. Jesse (42m 57s): Fair enough. All right. Here's the real tough question. First car make and model. Allan (43m 4s): Well, that's very funny. You should ask that question because we were actually talking about it yesterday and it was, it was, I'm trying to think of what context it came up in. It was, I think I was chatting with one of my kids about this. So my first car was back then. It was a Datsun, which I guess now is Nissan. Yeah, it was a, B two 10. And it was a sporty kind of car was not super expensive. I was just out of university, but what was cool about it? Which back then was cool was it was a two-tone car. So the top half was black and the bottom half was great. And I loved that car. And sadly, I went away with a couple of friends and I left it for my sister who totaled the car. And thankfully she walked away without a scratch, but the car was district. Jesse (44m 0s): That's great. That's the first, that's it on the program. All right. Well, ladies and gentlemen, my guest today has been Alan Perez, Alan, thanks for being part of working capital. Allan (44m 10s): Thank you. Jesse (44m 20s): Thank you so much for listening to working capital the real estate podcast. I'm your host, Jesse for galley. If you liked the episode, head on to iTunes and leave us a five-star review and share on social media, it really helps us out. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram, Jesse for galley, F R a G a L E, have a good one. Take care.
Last week, about 100 parents showed up at Yorkdale Mall to protest against the latest round of school closures imposed by the Ontario government. It might be the first time in Ontario, since the pandemic began, that many organized protesters are visibly observant Jews, including parents of students at Jewish day schools. Ontario is unique in North America for keeping schools closed for so long—since the pandemic began, students have lost 27 weeks of in-person learning. Yet as virtual school continues, shopping malls such as Yorkdale have been allowed to continue operating, albeit with reduced capacity. For some parents, this most recent shutdown was the last straw. Among those aggrieved parents is Aubrey Freedman, the organizer of the Yorkdale protests, who has young sons enrolled in Netivot HaTorah Day School. Freedman and her children join to discuss their motivations for protesting, their frustration with the province and what daily life is like in a house with four kids stuck at home. What we talked about: Watch a clip of the Yorkdale protest on YouTube Learn about the back-to-school protests at backtoschoolontario.ca Read about the learn-in protest on Jan. 11 on Facebook Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.
Hundreds of people camped out for hours at Yorkdale and Union Station seeking a free COVID-19 rapid test; people in Ontario are reportedly waiting days for a COVID-19 PCR test while symptomatic; and, a Barrie, Ont. man said the toe cap of his hockey skate shattered after it was struck by a puck during a men's league game.
In this episode, Boni and Felix select which NBA players they would take to explore the city of Toronto in this exclusive "audio" tour of their favourite spots in the city.Show notes:Scorpio traitsNBA games from week 3 and 4Which NBA player would you take with you on a hot air balloon ride?Which NBA player would you hang out with at the CN Tower?Which NBA player would be sitting in the passenger seat during a 2-3 hour drive?Which NBA player would you take to Centre Island?Which NBA player would you take to the Eaton Centre or Yorkdale mall?Which NBA player would you take to Niagara Falls?Which NBA player would you take to watch a movie with?Which NBA player would you take to the AGO (Art Gallery of Ontario)?Which NBA player would you take to Kensington Market?Which NBA player would you take to Banff, Alberta?Which NBA player would you partner up with in a 2 vs 2 pick-up game?Which NBA player would you choose to be your best man at your wedding?Full Court Press with Boni and FelixShop with our partners at hoopn:https://hoopnbrand.com/ and use code "FULLCOURT" for 15% off your orderFollow us on Instagram: @fullcourtpress.to / @hoopnbrand
hear me talk about the 2 men who was shooting @each other in YD one gun man runs from mall onto 401 ramp before getting caught shoutout: ig@auhouseofallure website:@auhouseofallure.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/talkdatingz/message
We back at it after a week hiatus! Salute to Manic Studios Toronto! SONGS OF THE WEEK FABOLOUS- BALL DROP https://youtu.be/UFFseMs3h74?t=35 BUGGZ ICE HOCKEY - https://youtu.be/nlAguL_1BOw BABY KEEM KENDRICK LAMAR - FAM TIES https://youtu.be/o8Xhxq7GTZw?t=135 News Stories - HOLD YOUR HEAD TO HATI NEW ORLEANS AND THE REST OF THE STATES GOING THRU FLOODING - Drake CLB Drops - Charges dropped on J Noble case. Crooked cops stories - Kids doing TikTok video in Yorkdale mall while lockdown for shooting. Intro Beat Eastend Clips: https://www.instagram.com/eastend.clips/ Guttzy Guttz: https://www.instagram.com/theguttzyshow/ Gucci 416: https://www.instagram.com/g_u_c_c_i_416/ Friday Ricky Dred: www.instagram.com/fridayrickydred/ 6ix Views: www.instagram.com/6ixviewsto/ We Love Hip Hop Network: www.instagram.com/welovehiphopnetwork/
In todays episode, the boys sit down with Paul Mason AKA Fashion Santa. We talk to Paul about his early days of modelling where we walked for the likes of Gucci, Armani, Versace and all the massive designers. We also discuss how the Fashion Santa brand came to be, and his fall out with Yorkdale over the trademarking of the "Fashion Santa" brand. This episode is filled with crazy stories and lesson. TUNE IN!Thank you to everyone who tunes in to our podcast, we love every single one of you and we appreciate it so much. Please don't forget to like this video and subscribe to our channel to see what else we have in store for Season 4!Hosts Instagrams:Ernesto: https://www.instagram.com/Ernestogaita/Anthony: https://www.instagram.com/Anthonysorella/Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/Thembhpodcast/Guest Instagram:Fashion Santa: https://www.instagram.com/fashionsanta/
The "WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!" Sports Podcast With MJ, Peter and Ray
We're back!!!
With a career spanning almost 2 decades, Sabrina Rinaldi, a celebrated makeup and hair artist throughout Montreal and Toronto is now represented for the first time in the U.S. In 2011 and 2015, Rinaldi received the P&G beauty award for best makeup artistry and won for best beauty art direction and makeup for a beauty feature in 2016. Sabrina has also contributed her talents to Harper's Bazaar, Cosmopolitan, Flare, Fashion, Elle Canada, Elle Quebec, Glow, Dress To Kill, The Kit and Lou Lou Magazine. Her advertising work has included campaigns for Refinery 29, Tresemme, Revlon, Garnier, Ogilvy, Lise Watier, Giorgio Armani, Addition Elle, Reitmans, Simons, Yorkdale, Hudson's Bay, and Harry Rosen.Hosted by: @mrsethee and @rashistyles
Today on Virgin Mornings with Adam Wylde, TJ & Jax, Adam needs some advice (14:43), spending money on specific things (24:02) and is Producer Jesse a bad person(30:34). Listen to Virgin Mornings every weekday from 6am - 11am on 99.9 Virgin Radio Toronto. Catch Ghosted on Tuesday's & Thursday's at 8am! Follow us on Instagram: @VirginRadioToronto, @AdamWylde, @OnAirTJ, @JaxOnAir, & @Jesse.Blake
Lala been doing some spring cleaning and found a box of old CDs and tapes. Mad rnb, hiphop, and reggae classic albums and mixtapes. Speaking of which, do y'all remember running the radio-coordinated voicemail message back in the 2000s?
Literally one day after Premier Ford announced a lockdown claiming it was serious and to get the third wave under control, video emerged of the Yorkdale Mall in Toronto brimming with activity. Since then, there have rumours that new stricter measures will be headed our way, which just shows how ineffective this "lockdown" would have been otherwise. We are so boned, and we have provincial and federal leadership to blame. Yorkdale Mall video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYFN0...
More #CovidChaos. If you found a secret diary, would you read it?? Parking lot sex doesn't end well when you're alone! How much time have we spent dreaming of post-pandemic vacations AND the Yorkdale uproar!
This is Part 2 of a 2 part interview. Daniel Henderson began his hospitality career in Waterloo, Ontario. Graduating from both Chef Training and Food & Beverage Management programs at Conestoga College, he pursued his Red Seal Qualification at the Waterloo Inn and Conference Centre. Striving for change, Daniel moved west to Vancouver Island where he began studying the art of Sushi under several Japanese Chefs. Landing in Victoria, B.C. with the Oak Bay Marine Group, Daniel worked his way through the Island at several Japanese Sushi Restaurants until finally managing the Sushi Bar at beautiful April Point Resort and Spa. Ready for his next challenge, Daniel returned to his roots in Ontario in 2004, to French and Mediterranean kitchens. He worked at the Cambridge Inn and Conference Centre as Executive Sous-Chef and as Chef for Blackshop and Sole restaurants. It was in 2008 that Daniel took his passion back to the Asian cuisine and joined Bento Sushi as their Corporate Chef. In his role at Bento, Daniel managed culinary development for over 1300 chefs in over 400 locations across North America including 4 restaurants in Manhattan, New York. With Bento, Daniel opened more than 75 locations as well as led all culinary development during Bento's rapid expansion to the North Eastern United States. During his time at Bento, Daniel's sushi training also brought him to Japan where he experienced the art of Sushi first hand. While leading the culinary team at Bento, Daniel completed his Certified Chef de Cuisine designation in 2012. Alongside his C.C.C., Daniel's other achievements include having won the Alumni of Distinction award from Conestoga College and being nominated for the Ontario College Premier Award in 2013. Moving on from Bento, Daniel led the Food & Beverage team at Holt Renfrew in 2014, helping define dining and food moments and refining Food & Beverage concepts within the luxury retailer, while leading the opening of 2 Holts Café locations in Yorkdale & Vancouver. Shifting to the growing digital consumer demand, Daniel took his next step joining Chefs Plate in 2015 – Canada's leading direct-to-consumer meal kit delivery service. In his role as V.P. Culinary Innovation, Daniel led the Culinary, Sourcing, FSQA and Operation teams with a focus on rapid production development to provide Canadians fresh, speed scratch dinner solutions for time starved families coast to coast. Daniel led these teams to acquisition when Chefs Plate was acquired by the world Meal Kit leader, Hello Fresh in October, 2017. Today, Daniel works at Loblaw Companies Limited as Senior Director, Product Development – Meal Solutions. Currently, Daniel leads the Culinary, Sourcing, FSQA and Operations teams within Meal Solutions at Loblaw under the PC Chef brand - focused on helping Canadians solve dinner through both digital & traditional store fulfillment channels. The recent pandemic has led the Meals team to launch pcchef.ca – a next day delivery service of PC Chef and local restaurant meal kits with daily delivery. Instagram: @chef.hendo.eats Podcast Artwork by Zak Hannah @zak.hannah
This is Part 1 of a 2 part interview. Daniel Henderson began his hospitality career in Waterloo, Ontario. Graduating from both Chef Training and Food & Beverage Management programs at Conestoga College, he pursued his Red Seal Qualification at the Waterloo Inn and Conference Centre. Striving for change, Daniel moved west to Vancouver Island where he began studying the art of Sushi under several Japanese Chefs. Landing in Victoria, B.C. with the Oak Bay Marine Group, Daniel worked his way through the Island at several Japanese Sushi Restaurants until finally managing the Sushi Bar at beautiful April Point Resort and Spa. Ready for his next challenge, Daniel returned to his roots in Ontario in 2004, to French and Mediterranean kitchens. He worked at the Cambridge Inn and Conference Centre as Executive Sous-Chef and as Chef for Blackshop and Sole restaurants. It was in 2008 that Daniel took his passion back to the Asian cuisine and joined Bento Sushi as their Corporate Chef. In his role at Bento, Daniel managed culinary development for over 1300 chefs in over 400 locations across North America including 4 restaurants in Manhattan, New York. With Bento, Daniel opened more than 75 locations as well as led all culinary development during Bento's rapid expansion to the North Eastern United States. During his time at Bento, Daniel's sushi training also brought him to Japan where he experienced the art of Sushi first hand. While leading the culinary team at Bento, Daniel completed his Certified Chef de Cuisine designation in 2012. Alongside his C.C.C., Daniel's other achievements include having won the Alumni of Distinction award from Conestoga College and being nominated for the Ontario College Premier Award in 2013. Moving on from Bento, Daniel led the Food & Beverage team at Holt Renfrew in 2014, helping define dining and food moments and refining Food & Beverage concepts within the luxury retailer, while leading the opening of 2 Holts Café locations in Yorkdale & Vancouver. Shifting to the growing digital consumer demand, Daniel took his next step joining Chefs Plate in 2015 – Canada's leading direct-to-consumer meal kit delivery service. In his role as V.P. Culinary Innovation, Daniel led the Culinary, Sourcing, FSQA and Operation teams with a focus on rapid production development to provide Canadians fresh, speed scratch dinner solutions for time starved families coast to coast. Daniel led these teams to acquisition when Chefs Plate was acquired by the world Meal Kit leader, Hello Fresh in October, 2017. Today, Daniel works at Loblaw Companies Limited as Senior Director, Product Development – Meal Solutions. Currently, Daniel leads the Culinary, Sourcing, FSQA and Operations teams within Meal Solutions at Loblaw under the PC Chef brand - focused on helping Canadians solve dinner through both digital & traditional store fulfillment channels. The recent pandemic has led the Meals team to launch pcchef.ca – a next day delivery service of PC Chef and local restaurant meal kits with daily delivery. Instagram: @chef.hendo.eats Podcast Artwork by Zak Hannah @zak.hannah
The first episode of The Kick Up Podcast with Dreday, Nick, and Marcus. Listen to their conversation talking about if Fresh Prince is overrated, stories about them creating an animal retreat, Tyson vs Jones fight, stories about going to Yorkdale, and More! Available on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2PBYhXlHuMtTCOaPVBEA39 Available on iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/splash-network/id1195764012 Follow Dreday! Twitter - https://twitter.com/DreSplash_ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/dresplash/?hl=en Follow Marcus! Twitter - https://twitter.com/VCT3ch Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/vct3ch/ Follow Nick! Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/nicknubian/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/search?q=7th&src=tyah
Welcome to the The Voice of Retail, I'm your host Michael LeBlanc, and this podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada and with the support of omNovos, Canada's digital customer engagement company. omNovos makes Personalization EASY by helping you connect with your customers, connect with your data, and connect with your systems. Learn HOW at www.realcustomerengagement.com.On this episode I catch up with Claire Santamaria, Vice President, Yorkdale Shopping Centre and talk about how Canada's most productive shopping mall is dealing with the COVID-19 crisis and looking ahead to the busy holiday season leveraging decades of experience and a strong team to help bring the year home.Next live from New York I interview a long time friend, colleague and retail industry veteran Bill Bass, CMO at Full Beauty Brands. Bill shares lessons learned leading eCommerce at brands such as Sears.com and Lands End, the strategic moat of plus size fashion and invaluable insights into the state and future of eCommerce.But first, lets check in with Claire from Yorkdale******Thanks to Claire and Bill for being my guests, and omNovos for their support on this episode. If you liked this podcast please subscribe on Apple, Spotify or your favourite podcast platform, rate and review, and be sure and recommend to a friend or colleague in the retail industry.I'm Michael LeBlanc, Founder and President of M.E. LeBlanc and Company Inc. and you can learn more about me on www.meleblanc.co or of course on LinkedInUntil next time, have a safe week!
We love our chick-fil-a, under the assumption that Yorkdale was closed to the public, Nat drops the nugget on how we could game the system to still get those delectable waffle fries. We made a grocery run to Costco and it actually wasn't that bad, but we saw A LOT of people wearing masks; is this the wisest move in protecting the public or are we propagating unnecessary measures that remove masks from hospitals. Among the many chit-chats, we recall the moment where Nick "made a Canadian" out of Natalie in the early days.
Shopping malls across the GTA have officially closed, save for stores and restaurants deemed essential by the province. For the second time in a week, the site of two heritage homes on Wellington, near Spadina caught fire. Plus, the owner of Sugo may have to file for bankruptcy at the end of this global pandemic, but it hasn't stopped him from delivering free meals to people in Toronto who need it most.
This week Craig & Lee talk about Canada's top mall announcement, Toronto's Yorkdale Shopping Centre to open Louis Vuitton flagship, French Bakery ‘Paul' and German book publisher ‘Taschen' coming to Vancouver and Holt Renfrew re-rebranding their restaurants nationally.Retail Insider Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.Sponsored by JLL Canada: What's your ambition? Visit JLL.ca to see how JLL Canada is here to create rewarding opportunities and amazing spaces around the globe where people can achieve their ambitions.Discussed this episode:Toronto's Yorkdale Shopping Centre Sees Remarkable Success as Canada's Top MallLouis Vuitton to Open Yorkdale FlagshipBRIEF: French Bakery Concept Entering Canada, Holt Renfrew Rebrands All Restaurants, including:*French Bakery Concept ‘Paul' to Enter Canadian Market*Luxury Book Publisher Taschen Opens Vancouver Retail Space*Holt Renfrew Rebrands In-Store RestaurantsSubscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig:LinkedIn Instagram TwitterFollow Retail Insider:LinkedIn Facebook Twitter InstagramListen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcherGoogle PlayShare your thoughts!Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!
We sit down over coffee from commercial photographer Brian Berkowitz of Long Island, NY. He also the co-owner of Shooting Spaces Podcast. He shares his transition from real estate photography to commercial work. He flys in to shoot a Gucci Pop Up Shop in Yorkdale Mall.
This week Craig & Lee talk about Canada’s top mall announcement, Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre to open Louis Vuitton flagship, French Bakery ‘Paul’ and German book publisher ‘Taschen’ coming to Vancouver and Holt Renfrew re-rebranding their restaurants nationally.Retail Insider Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.Sponsored by JLL Canada: What’s your ambition? Visit JLL.ca to see how JLL Canada is here to create rewarding opportunities and amazing spaces around the globe where people can achieve their ambitions.Discussed this episode:Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre Sees Remarkable Success as Canada’s Top MallLouis Vuitton to Open Yorkdale FlagshipBRIEF: French Bakery Concept Entering Canada, Holt Renfrew Rebrands All Restaurants, including:*French Bakery Concept ‘Paul’ to Enter Canadian Market*Luxury Book Publisher Taschen Opens Vancouver Retail Space*Holt Renfrew Rebrands In-Store RestaurantsSubscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig:LinkedIn Instagram TwitterFollow Retail Insider:LinkedIn Facebook Twitter InstagramListen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcherGoogle PlayShare your thoughts!Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!
After closing in 2001, BiWay is set to make a comeback this summer, with a huge new location near Yorkdale Shopping Centre. Many Toronto residents are complaining about the quality and consistency of the city's snow removal process. Plus, Chaihana in North York is a bit of a hidden gem with a versatile menu featuring dishes from Central Asia as well as countries in the Caucasus region.
The boys are warriors, battling through the plague as they join forces with, friend of the pod, Jeremy Taggart. The gang discusses the evolution of hacking darts, how all the rappers are at Yorkdale now and Jeremy drops some major T&T news. Arkells' drummer Tim Oxford calls in to help pay tribute to the memory of Neil Peart.
This week Craig & Lee talk about Bentley Leathers' exiting court protection with plans to close 90 stores, Swiss chocolate brand Läderach's entry into Canada, Ted Baker's unique new Yorkdale flagship, Hublot's 1st Canadian corporate store, and Dutch suit maker Suitsupply's cross-Canada expansion that will include a Vancouver flagship as well as Nordstrom-based concessions.Retail Insider Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.Sponsored by JLL Canada: What's your ambition? Visit JLL.ca to see how JLL Canada is here to create rewarding opportunities and amazing spaces around the globe where people can achieve their ambitions.Discussed this episode:Bentley Leathers Exits Court Protection After Successful Restructuring Proceedings (Dec 2019)Canadian Retailer ‘Bentley Leathers' Launches New Store Concept (Oct 2019)Bentley Leathers Announces Restructuring and Store Closures (Nov 2019)BRIEF: Swiss Chocolate Retailer Opens 1st Store in Canada, Ted Baker Opens Flagship, including Läderach, Ted Baker and HublotSuitsupply to Significantly Expand Canadian Presence with Multiple Store Openings Subscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig:LinkedIn Instagram TwitterFollow Retail Insider:LinkedIn Facebook Twitter InstagramListen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcherGoogle PlayShare your thoughts!Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!
Welcome to The Voice of Retail, I'm your host Michael LeBlanc, and this podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada.First up recorded live in the Environics Analytics podcasting studio at RCC's Retail Cannabis forum in Toronto I meet Lisa Bigioni, an Ontario retail cannabis lottery winner and co-owner of Choom Cannabis in Niagara. We talk about the experience around winning the lottery, the process of picking a partner and opening up a cannabis retail store under incredibly tight deadlines.Next recorded live at the Retail Council of Canada Bricks & Mortar Forum live in Toronto we check in with Claire Santamaria, Vice President of Yorkdale Shopping Centre. One of the premier shopping centres in North America, Claire talks about the fashion heritage of the mall and the hard work that goes into finding the right retail partners and people that all comes together to make Canada's most productive shopping environmentLastly part two of my interview with Angela Kapp, retail & brand maven and now Co-CEO of GG Growth, an modern enterprise based in Arizona that includes the top YouTube series CannaCribs, and the recently launched TruPotency, a CBD retail and resource….and that's where we pick up our conversation.Lastly I'll hit the highlights from Retail This Week for the week of December 9, but first, let's jump into my interview with Lisa from Choom******Thanks to Lisa, Claire and Angela for being my guests on this episode, now let's hit the highlights from Retail This Week.That's a wrap on this edition of The Voice of RetailIf you liked this podcast you can subscribe on Apple iTunes or your favourite podcast platform, please rate and review, and be sure and recommend to a friend or colleague in the retail industry.I'm Michael LeBlanc, Founder and President of M.E. LeBlanc and Company Inc. and you can learn more about me on www.meleblanc.co or of course on LinkedInUntil next time, have a great week!
This week Craig & Lee talk about Bentley Leathers’ exiting court protection with plans to close 90 stores, Swiss chocolate brand Läderach’s entry into Canada, Ted Baker’s unique new Yorkdale flagship, Hublot’s 1st Canadian corporate store, and Dutch suit maker Suitsupply’s cross-Canada expansion that will include a Vancouver flagship as well as Nordstrom-based concessions.Retail Insider Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.Sponsored by JLL Canada: What’s your ambition? Visit JLL.ca to see how JLL Canada is here to create rewarding opportunities and amazing spaces around the globe where people can achieve their ambitions.Discussed this episode:Bentley Leathers Exits Court Protection After Successful Restructuring Proceedings (Dec 2019)Canadian Retailer ‘Bentley Leathers’ Launches New Store Concept (Oct 2019)Bentley Leathers Announces Restructuring and Store Closures (Nov 2019)BRIEF: Swiss Chocolate Retailer Opens 1st Store in Canada, Ted Baker Opens Flagship, including Läderach, Ted Baker and HublotSuitsupply to Significantly Expand Canadian Presence with Multiple Store Openings Subscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig:LinkedIn Instagram TwitterFollow Retail Insider:LinkedIn Facebook Twitter InstagramListen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcherGoogle PlayShare your thoughts!Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!
This week Craig and Lee talk about Costco, Eataly and Furla.Retail Insider Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Play, or through our dedicated RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.Sponsored by Oberfeld Snowcap: Founded 40 years ago, Oberfeld Snowcap is a full-service real estate and retail advisory firm that focuses on retail tenant representation, strategic planning, property and project leasing, as well as real estate investment sales.Discussed this episode:Costco Continues Phenomenal Growth as it Becomes Canada’s 2nd Largest RetailerEataly Announces Toronto Opening Date as it Kicks Off Canadian Retail ExpansionFrom 2014: Eataly Partners With Canadian-Owned RetailerLuxury Italian Brand ‘Furla’ Enters Canadian Market with Multi-Store Expansion [Photos]Subscribe, Rate, and Review our Retail Insider Podcast!Follow Craig:LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/CraigPattersonTorontoInstagram: @craig_patterson_torontoTwitter: @RI_EICFollow Retail Insider:LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/Retail-InsiderFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/RetailInsider/Twitter: @RetailInsider_Instagram: @Retail_Insider_CanadaListen & Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotifyOvercastStitcherGoogle PlayShare your thoughts!Drop us a line at Craig@Retail-Insider.com. You can also rate us in Apple Podcasts or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show!
Craig Patterson, Editor-in-Chief at Retail Insider, watches retail more closely than just about anyone in Canada. He talks about the country's top malls, including Yorkdale in Toronto and Park Royal in West Vancouver; new foreign concepts; entertainment centers West Edmonton Mall and American Dream; and the relationship between high streets and luxury malls. Jean Lambert, Vice President of Research at ICSC talks about a recent consumer survey showing that most people would be willing to live in a mixed-use development attached to a shopping center. James Cook is the director of retail research in the Americas for JLL. Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android Listen: WhereWeBuy.show Alexa: Say "Enable the Where We Buy skill" Tweet: @JamesDCook Email: jamesd.cook@am.jll.com Instagram: @jamcoo Leave a message on the Where We Buy hotline. We may use it on an upcoming show. Call (602) 633-4061 Read more retail research here: http://www.us.jll.com/retail Theme music is Run in the Night by The Good Lawdz, under Creative Commons license.
Preface:The thought leaders, gamechangers, and innovators that we look up to are often impacted by the same thing: they’ve been exposed to people, environments, and interactions that have helped shape and define who they are today. It takes a C-Tribe Village Podcast aims to identify, dissect, and celebrate the unsung heroes, things, and experiences that have impacted the greatest minds of our generation and how these individuals are paying it forward for those to come. Guest: Isaac Olowolafe, Founder at Dream Maker Inc. Interviewer: Sahr Saffa, Founder at C-Tribe Society and VP of Canadian Operations at AutonomIQ Show Notes "It's a trickle down effect: if there's one member of the family that has changed their mindset for the better, then during family gatherings and holidays — when family is together and conversations are happening — the conversation is now changing because of the type of mindset those individuals have. Now you're making an impact within other families. We've seen that happen in so many different instances where one person has a connection to me [Isaac Olowolafe] or Dream Maker, and that person has, let's say, three siblings and some extended family, that one person now can impact close to 60 people... as you can see there's definitely a lot of change that we're doing." Bio: Isaac Olowolafe Jr. (@DreamMakerTO) is an award-winning real estate entrepreneur, angel investor and philanthropist. Isaac’s corporation, Dream Maker Inc., successfully operates multiple divisions including a brokerage, real estate development, wealth management, property management, education, private equity and insurance. The Development division celebrated the completion of the first major mixed-use development (condos, townhomes, retail) called Dream Residences at Yorkdale, located directly across from Yorkdale Mall, and has more developments underway across the GTA. Through his love of sports, Dream Maker Developments became the jersey sponsor of the Men and Women National Basketball Team and will be participating in the 2019 World Cup in China. Isaac received a Bachelor in Economics from the University of Toronto. He has received numerous awards and recognition, including a Harry Jerome Business Award, an Enterprise Business Award by Planet Africa, an Arbor Award from the University of Toronto, a Business Leadership Award by Leadership and Governance Canada Inc. and a Public Service Award from the Transformation Institute for Leadership & Innovation and Toronto Board of Trade Award. In addition to his membership in the Ryerson Innovation Circle, Isaac made a generous donation which named the Isaac Olowolafe Jr. Digital Media Experience Lab in Ryerson’s iconic Student Learning Centre. Recently Isaac Olowolafe Jr. Funded the launch of the 1st Black Tech Incubator out of Ryerson DMZ, The Black Innovation Fellowship, along side with the launch of Dream Maker Ventures Fund.
The one where Ben shares his thoughts about the Yorktown Mall in Canada and M gives the low down on the newest retail conference NRF NXT 2019
Kelly gets the skinny from a city planner.
In this week's pre-holiday episode, Tobi and Tara delve into all the panic this week. They wonder what's got people upset about the all-gender washrooms coming to Yorkdale. Plus, they hash out Kanye's Twitter beef and what it means for mental health awareness and with #TakeOffsetBack and all this Cardi and Ariana backlash, they remind you that women are not here to be your free therapists. To send you off for the holidays, Tobi has a positive Out of Pocket--for once. Follow us at twitter.com/clapbackpod for updates.
October 20th, 2018Happy (early) Halloween! Today we decided to kick Michael off the podcast and bring in our long time friend and fellow photographer Elijah! We talk about childhood memories, Yorkdale of course, an interesting "Spooky" housing dilemma and the recent McGregor vs. Khabib fight!(We're kidding Michael's long neck self is still kickin', he was just busy being tall elsewhere)►Been Loaftin' | Instagram: @beenloaftin►Michael Cedilla | Instagram: @m.dilla__►Jesse Mens | Instagram: @jessemens►Cristopher Guerzon | Instagram: @crisguerzon►YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrnL4Uhr1bsAUC8khLfs5cQOur Guest:►Elijah Ortega | Instagram: @ElijortegaThis podcast is powered by Pinecast.
On a political witch hunt case that could prove very embarrassing for the government. HUGE legal case starts today. Vice Admiral Mark Norman in court Tuesday as legal battle continues Also: Toronto lawyer convicted in husband's 2011 murder granted bail pending appeal Toronto police charge man, 20, after shots fired inside Yorkdale mall
Tony Bernardo, head of the Canadian Shooting Sports Association talks about Trudeau asking Blair to study full ban on handguns and automatic weapons, and the recent shooting at Yorkdale Mall.
Moments after the sound of gunshots rang out inside Yorkdale Mall, shoppers called Kelly Cutrara to describe the scene.
Welcome to Yorkdale. Its not the same area you remember from years ago. Things are changing. Having just sold a stunning condo here recently and many others over the years, I can see the way its changing here. Anytime there is a major anchor store in an area investing millions into its area, there is opportunity on all levels. Be sure you talk to me before buying or selling here. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/TorontoRealEstate/message
This week we discuss Fashion Santa at Yorkdale mall, why you should watch Creed and really people, stop walking so damn slow on the sidewalk!
© 2020-2025 Ivy Podcast Discovery LLC
