Nearly two years after losing one of its biggest tenants, Polo Park Shopping Centre is full up.
The biggest mall in Winnipeg recently signed a lease agreement with Urban Planet, a clothing retailer geared toward young people, to move into the 22,000-square-foot space vacated by McNally Robinson Booksellers after it filed for bankruptcy protection early in 2010.
Deborah Green, general manager of Polo Park, said it was difficult to find a retailer who was willing to move into the non-mall space in the basement. It was worth it, though, as now the mall has virtually 100 per cent occupancy.
Urban Planet plans to make the Polo Park store its flagship location, where it will offer "up-to-the-minute" fashion.
Green was able to put the welcome mat out for another high-profile tenant, too. Coach, a U.S.-based retailer of ritzy handbags, wallets and shoes, christened its first Winnipeg location this month.
Targeting women in the 30-to-50-year-old age group, Coach promotes itself as an "affordable luxury brand."
"We can get men out of trouble," joked Rebecca Marsh, district manager for its central Canada operations. "A happy wife means a happy life."
Marsh said Coach chose Polo Park for its store because the mall has many other high-end retailers, such as Sephora and Apple.
from Western Investor October 2011
