NB "Big Mall" Status

[jonny golden]

Toronto based Primaris REIT acquired the Halifax Shopping Center in November for $370 million.

Then in December they upsized their unsecured revolving credit facility to: "ensure excellent liquidity and financial capacity for opportunities we see in the market."

I'm wondering if CF Champlain Place could be on their radar? It's interesting to note that the Simons department store will be opening in the Halifax Shopping Center this week. It's the only location in the Atlantic provinces. Logistically, having a 2nd location in the east would make a lot of sense.

I wonder what the odds would be of Primaris acquiring CF Champlain, and Simons replacing Sobeys with a renovated and rejuvenated west end of the mall? It's probably all just a coincidence though. But I'd love to see it.

[Taeolas]

Primaris also owns Freddy and SJ's big malls already, so if they want the NB Hattrick, Champlain would certainly be on their radar. Could be some big shakeups coming in the months to come.

[DyAm00394]

CRU Productivity/sales per square foot numbers updated for February 2024.

- CF Champlain: $792

- Regent Mall: $705

- McAllister Place: $518

[Taeolas]

That's impressive numbers for Regent, rivalling Champlain Place.

I wonder if Primearis is toying with ideas to expand the mall somehow to get more in?

I think the only real growth option the mall has at the moment would be to "encourage" Cineplex to decamp to a new building (long overdue), so that space can be flipped over to retail. A strong retailer in that space could probably bump Regent's value up to 720-ish easily.

[KnoxfordGuy]

Cineplex in Fredericton is going through a massive refurbishment right now. Doubt they will move soon. I love the lazy boy style seats they have now!

[Taeolas]

The Cineplex "refurbishment" is lipstick on a pig. It's decades overdue, and really isn't that big of an overhaul (compared to even what theaters in Moncton are like, let alone places that have an actual investment in the theatres).

So while the renovations are a bit of a sunk cost, if Primaris were encouraging Cineplex to move elsewhere, it isn't that huge of a loss. Especially for the timelines it would take to get a new location and build new; we're talking 5-10 years down the road before a standalone theatre would be built, not to mention a similar timeframe to gut the existing theatre space and get a retail tenant in. (And no I'm not proposing Imax in Freddy, but a proper modern Theatre is long over due)

[new kid in town]

Originally Posted by DyAm00394

CRU Productivity/sales per square foot numbers updated for February 2024.

- CF Champlain: $792

- Regent Mall: $705

- McAllister Place: $518

I wonder how many malls are in between CF Champlain and the top 25



Source: https://retail-insider.com/retail-in...foot-analysis/

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by new kid in town

I wonder how many malls are in between CF Champlain and the top 25

Given the apparent rate of extinguishment, I would wager 10-12.

It should be noted that those sales per square foot measures depend largely on the number and type of high end retailers in each mall. In particular, Apple stores can have a huge bearing on the apparent success of a mall. The Apple store at HSC is probably the principle reason why their sales per square foot are over $200 higher than CF Champlain.

I wonder what sort of impact the Tesla store will have on CF Champlain. How do they count the sales volume from this store?

The majority of the top 25 malls (13/25) are CF properties

It's interesting to see that West Edmonton Mall is not on this list.

[Pugsley]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

It's interesting to see that West Edmonton Mall is not on this list.

Likely due to its sheer size. They probably count the entire square footage, which a large portion of WEM is dedicated to attractions vs. retail. So probably skews it lower.

[new kid in town]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Given the apparent rate of extinguishment, I would wager 10-12.

It should be noted that those sales per square foot measures depend largely on the number and type of high end retailers in each mall. In particular, Apple stores can have a huge bearing on the apparent success of a mall. The Apple store at HSC is probably the principle reason why their sales per square foot are over $200 higher than CF Champlain.

I wonder what sort of impact the Tesla store will have on CF Champlain. How do they count the sales volume from this store?

Apple stores are a good draw, but I think they also really just have a nice selection of stores. Nespresso just recently opened there and it was busy as hell last week (and the shouldn't even be part of this report yet since they just opened this year, I think). Probably we lose out since we have a lot of big box stores that are in other plazas?

I am definitely curious as well how the Tesla store will affect CF Champlain. I hope it's a good draw and they stay as a tenant for good.

Originally Posted by Pugsley

Likely due to its sheer size. They probably count the entire square footage, which a large portion of WEM is dedicated to attractions vs. retail. So probably skews it lower.

I agree this might be the case. Scarborough Town Centre has more shops than Fairview Mall but the former is much larger. In the end Fairview Mall won perhaps with density.

[Pugsley]

Here is the answer from the broader article...

The full 2023 ICSC study ranks 117 shopping centres in Canada by sales per square foot. For the purpose of this article, Retail Insider will primarily discuss the top 25 shopping centres ranked in the study. It should also be noted that not all landlords in Canada participated in the study — that includes Triple Five, which owns West Edmonton Mall. In years past, sales along the centre run in West Edmonton Mall have exceeded $1,200 a square foot, according to the landlord.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by new kid in town

I am definitely curious as well how the Tesla store will affect CF Champlain. I hope it's a good draw and they stay as a tenant for good.

Any time I walk by the store, there are people inside having a look at the models on display, and talking up the sales people. I imagine a lot of this is idle curiosity, but, there are certainly more Teslas on the road in Moncton now than a couple of years ago.

[DyAm00394]

Originally Posted by DyAm00394

CRU Productivity/sales per square foot numbers updated for February 2024.

- CF Champlain: $792

- Regent Mall: $705

- McAllister Place: $518

CF Champlain was just updated for March 2024. Went down to $784 (-$8).

https://assets.cadillacfairview.com/...lain_Mar24.pdf