What Québec Wants™

Angel appearance in Laval today

Victoria’s Secret is opening its first Québec store in Laval.

This article in the Montreal Gazette - which reads like paid advertising with catchy lines like “it will be an uplifting day” - details what shoppers can expect with this grand opening. The highlight: Victoria Secret’s model/angel Erin Heatherton will be there to sign autographs.

Victoria's Secret is one of several US retailers expanding into Québec this year. Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Michael Kors, Aeropostale have all announced plans to open their first store in Québec this year.

Aéropostale lands in Québec

Aéropostale, Inc., a mall-based specialty retailer of casual apparel for young women and men, announced its plans to roll-out stores throughout Québec. The expansion will launch with the first store opening on June 15th at Place du Royaume in Ville de Saguenay in the Chicoutimi borough, and will continue with six more through 2012. Additional locations include, Place Laurier in Québec City, Fairview Pointe Claire in Point-Claire, Promenades St. Bruno in St. Bruno De Montarville, Galleria D'Anjou in Anjou, Mail Champlain in Brossard and Les Galeries de la Capitale in Québec City.

"We are excited to continue our expansion within Canada," said Thomas P. Johnson, Chief Executive Officer of Aéropostale, Inc. in a company press release. Mr. Johnson continued, "Teens throughout the Canadian provinces have adopted Aéropostale as one of their favorite brands. We now look forward to introducing the Aéropostale brand to teens within the Québec market."

A US retailer’s name with an accent

The Aéropostale name is French for "air mail" and originated from the 1920s French/Latin-American airmail firm Compagnie Générale Aéropostale.

At a time when Québec’s language watchdog is ringing the alarm about the Anglicization of Montréal and some retailers’ continued use of unilingual signage, this US-based retailer’s French name should be welcome by Quebeckers.

Adapting to Québec’s difference

In a February 2012 article in Les Affaires, the company's VP of Operations, Julie Sedlock, said Aéropostale waited to really understand Québec before entering the market. It is committed to ensuring proper French internal and external communications. Promotional events with names like Flower Power and a line called Varsity Sweats will require adaptation. On that point, it’s surprising to note that there doesn’t seem to be a French version of the retailer’s website despite the first store in Chicoutimi being already open.

Establishing a beachhead into Québec via the remote Saguenay region

I thought it was puzzling to see this major retailer enter Québec by first opening a store in Chicoutimi. Aérospatiale’s Julie Sedlock, in that same Les Affaires article, said she did not know why the first store would be located in Chicoutimi and added she was surprised. I’m sure there’s a simple explanation. Other locations in the greater Montreal area will open in July. Let’s hope the French website is live by then.

Target targets Toronto

Designer Jason Wu popped up in Toronto last week to give future Target shoppers a taste of the retailer's latest designer apparel line.

The one-day (and first-ever) pop-up store in Canada located on King Street saw another first for the market: a charitable donation to the United Way that matched 100% of sales that day.

Target also made sure that Bullseye, the retailer’s mascot, made it to Toronto for the occasion.

 

To our knowledge, no such event took place in Montreal. As Target brings its offer to Canada, and along with it its brand icons, we will be looking at how it adapts it all for the Québec market.

Québec’s cheap chic and saintly chicken are coming to Toronto.

The Globe's ROB reports that La Maison Simons department stores will open a store in the West Edmonton Mall in 2012, the first of about a dozen planned for the rest of Canada, including Toronto. The Québec City-based retailer is betting that its mix of cheap-chic styles and pricey designer lines will resonate outside Québec. Simons is an institution in Québec City and it has obviously done very well in Montréal if it's expanding in the RoC.

If it succeeds, it won't be the first apparel retailer to go west from Québec City. Holt Renfrew did the same many years ago. Simons was founded in 1840 and Holts was founded in 1837. Holts’ first store was on rue Buade and Simons’ was, and still is, on côte de la Fabrique.

According to the same article in the Globe, Mr. Simons and his team have done their research and will adjust their assortment for Edmontonians' taste, and their waist size - people in that city are on average two sizes bigger than Quebeckers. See this previous post about Quebeckers BMI (Body Mass Index).

Talking about waist size, St-Hubert BBQ, with its rotisserie chicken and decadent desserts, is also heading west. Actually, it is returning to Toronto since it appears it has nowhere else to go in Québec. St-Hubert had a few restaurants in Toronto, one on The Queensway and one on Avenue Road at Lawrence. If you have grown up with St-Hubert in Québec, let's just say it's hard to crave Swiss Chalet's chicken. Both locations were shut down although the Queensway location still looks like a St-Hubert from a distance.

According to various articles in La Presse and Le Journal de Montréal, St-Hubert plans to open three “Express” locations in Toronto’s suburbs in 2012.

The battle against Swiss Chalet will be a tough one but Ontarians might just find St-Hubert’s chicken irresistible judging by the reviews on Chowdown.

Here’s what one fan wrote

I'm sorry but I am one of those non-Quebecois that love the occasional pilgrimmage to the chicken church, fault me for that if you must, but there you have it.I will admit that the Avenue Rd. location was a bit depressing looking, but the Queenway saint has kept up with the corporate image and is (imo) more inviting and warm than Swiss Chalet. I also prefer St.Hubert's chicken, as the chalet chicken always tends to be a tad too pink for comfort. And DAMMIT!! you get all you can eat coleslaw, and it's good! They also have pudding chomeur, which I admit I have had better elsewhere, but it will do in a pinch. I just hope that the Queensway location doesn't close.

 

Sign language

Le Journal de Montréal published this item yesterday about American apparel retailer FOREVER 21. It refers to what is says are a dozen temporary English-only posters on the construction site of its future store on Sainte-Catherine and de la Montagne.

The piece goes on to provide French translation of “Coming soon” and “For employment opportunities, send your resume”. FOREVER 21 doesn’t appear to be ignoring French in its other communications. The retailer’s website has a French version.

So this must be an oversight.

In any event, in Québec it’s enough to get media attention. And, in this case, get the media to translate the ad and publish it for free in a major newspaper. Perhaps it wasn’t an oversight...

Go Canada*

* Quebeckers are cheering but appear less likely to wear those red mitts.

The Historica-Domninion Institute just released a poll conducted by Ipsos-Reid claiming that the Vancouver Olympics are shaping up to be a ‘defining moment in Canada’s national history’.

The press release declares that ‘when it comes to Canada’s sporting and cultural history, there are a few events in time that can be truly called a defining national moment.’  

It’s true. But, as expected, it’s somewhat less true in Quebec. This is not a political blog so I won’t engage in the reasons why. It is a marketing blog however. And there are indications in this survey that sales of Olympic merchandise in Quebec won’t be as hot as they seem to be in the rest of Canada.

Two in three Canadians (66%) agree that the opening ceremonies reflected Canada as they knew it. However, there are significant regional variations:

Atlantic Canadians (77%) are most likely to agree, followed by residents of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (72%), British Columbia (69%), Ontario (68%), and Alberta (67%), while Quebeckers (57%) are least likely to agree. For a view on how the Opening Ceremonies played in Quebec, read Fagstein’s post.

Quebeckers are less likely than the average Canadian to show their pride and to believe that too much pride is on display:

One quarter (26%) of Quebeckers say they’ll display or fly the Canadian flag during the games compared to 40% of Canadians overall.

Two in ten (19%) agree they’ll wear Canada or Olympic clothing during the games, compared to 34% of Canadians overall.

Four in ten (42%) Quebecers agree that there is too much Canadian nationalism on display during the Olympics, while only three in ten (29%) Canadians overall believe the same.

Home décor and cashmere scarves

Last week, home renovation retailer RONA launched a new banner in Québec called STUDIO by RONA.

It is described as a new type of store with an offer based on colours and combinations. The stores will offer paint products and accessories as part of what Rona describes as a “fully rounded architectural paint solution”. The offer also includes wallpaper, floor coverings, mouldings, window treatments and a whole line of services that reflect the needs and tastes of our customers.

Rona’s press release refers to recent findings from market research firm CROP: According to CROP, the home is becoming a focal point of self-expression and entertainment, a social gathering place where people want to express their creativity. In terms of deco-renovation, consumers are looking for a more complete and varied offer, where they can find unique or custom-made products to add an original touch to their homes.

On a related note, and perhaps further evidence that the lines are blurring in the home renovation and personal fashion space, the Restoration Hardware store close to our offices on Yonge Street looks like an apparel retailer this holiday season. The lead item seems to be Cashmere scarves judging by the window display. For more on this, read this piece in Brandchannel; From Screws To Scarves: Restoration Hardware's Holiday Surprise.

 

Intimate apparel

The $2-billion-plus Canadian underwear and nightwear market grew by 29 per cent over the past five years and is projected to gain another 39.3 per cent by 2013, according to market researcher Euromonitor.

The news that intimate apparel retailer Victoria’s Secret is finally opening stores in Canada prompted us to look for data on Canadian women’s tastes in underwear.

Given some of the regional differences we’ve seen in Canadian women’s fashion orientation and their apparel purchases, we expected that not all would be equally fond of thongs. That is apparently not the case. A recent survey conducted by Ipsos Reid on behalf of Always asked 1273 women aged 15 to 50 what panty style they wear most often. 34% said ‘brief’, 27% ‘bikini’, 23% thong, 10% boy shorts. And there were no significant regional differences other than a lower incidence of wearing 'briefs' among women in B.C. There must be a reason.

The explosive origins of the bikini.

While the weather in Québec these days might not be conducive to bikini wearing, I thought I’d post something about the bikini.

I came across this 'History of the Bikini' in the latest issue of Time Magazine where I learned an interesting bit of trivia that will add to your pool party conversations.

In 1946, French engineer and fashion designer, Louis Réard officially invents the 'bikini.' He names his creation after Bikini Atoll, the site of nuclear weapon tests in the Marshall Islands, predicting that his suit will cause explosive excitement.

Quebeckers and bikinis

In 1973, twenty-five years after Louis Réard’s creation caused a sensation and just when the Brazilian thong became popular, Air Canada and its agency BCP ran a campaign that has become a classic of Québec advertising.  It featured a bikini clad Dominique Michel on the beaches of the Caribbean dancing with the locals.

The song’s lyrics have become part of the Québec French lexicon. The expression ‘mon bikini ma brosse à dent’ (my bikini and my toothbrush) is well known in the province. There’s even a swimwear retailer in Ste-Hyacinthe called Mon Bikini Ma Brosse A Dent Inc.

According to PMB 2008 data, Quebeckers purchase more women’s swimwear than Canadians in the ROC (15% of Quebeckers bought one or two items in the past year compared to 12% or an index of 121 compared to 95). It’s hard to know if they’re bikinis but the omnipresence of Bikini Village retail stores across the province and the merchandise mix suggest most aren’t one-piece bathing suits…

If you think this is a rather frivolous post for a marketing blog, read on. It gets a bit more serious.

Bikinis were the subject of a very serious study recently published in the Journal of Consumer Research (June 2008). Titled ‘Bikinis Instigate Generalized Impatience in Interporal Choice’, the study ‘demonstrates that bikinis cause a shift in time preference: Men live in the here and now when they glance at pictures featuring women in lingerie. That is, men will choose the immediately available rewards and seek immediate gratification after sex cue exposure’. You can read more about this fascinating topic on ScienceDaily.com.