La Canadienne opened the doors to a new store in Vancouver, Canada on Friday as it continued its steady post-pandemic evolution and growth.
According to the 35-year-old Montreal-based footwear and outerwear brand, this new store is the fourth brick-and-mortar location and first west coast shop for the company, which also operates two stores in its French-Canadian hometown and one in Toronto.
Located at 779 Burrard Street, the new 2,200-square-foot store features the full offering of La Canadienne’s men’s and women’s spring/summer 2023 collection with a focus on the brand’s City Dry footwear range – the perfect place to highlight the waterproof capsule, according to La Canadienne president Nicholas Niro.
Watch on FN
“Vancouver is often called ‘Rain-Couver’ and reminds me of the London of Canada,” Niro said in an interview with FN. “It’s always wet. That’s why we built a full demonstration area in this location where we can show the customers how water repels off our leathers and suedes.”
Niro said that the Vancouver store features the brand’s latest store concept, with the demonstration area serving as the focal point. Other design highlights include luxury Italian furniture and a Tom Dixon designed chandelier. “We saw already from the opening on Friday that customers are just really impressed by the environment,” Niro said. “It obviously elevates the experience in store.”
As for how this new store opening plays into the footwear label’s overall retail strategy, Niro said that they are “strategically” looking at other locations that would “enhance” the brand’s image. “By no means are we looking to expand into a retail chain,” Niro added. “We have a really strong network of wholesale partners, and we will continue to focus on them. But I do see us reinforcing the brand’s presence in Toronto and Vancouver with other locations, and eventually a store in New York in the mid to long term.”
This opening comes months after La Canadienne officially expanded into men’s footwear in October for the fall/winter 2022 season. “The company started in 1987 and focused on women’s shoes for most of that time,” Niro said. “But about two years ago we did start to reposition the brand to feature styles made for life in the city. And through that evolution, we’ve always had demand for men’s footwear. And we felt that it was the right time to launch the category.”
Niro said that the men’s collection has been well received, with the majority of the men’s customer base being its existing women’s customer who is purchasing for their significant other or family member.
Overall, though, Niro made it clear that La Canadienne is not just a winter boot brand. “We’ve really successfully transitioned to an all-season, four-season brand,” said Niro. “So, our spring/summer collection, which launched in February, is already resonating very well with our customers. And we’re seeing that in our sales performance as well.”
