- ... the layout is slightly larger with a dedicated side room for suiting and Collection type pieces (Lots of Jules paisley dresses, ...)
- The fitting area for women is also better designed with proper doors versus the Yorkdale curtains, but the lighting is still dark and slightly greenish.
- Less of a security guard presence at front door than when Yorkdale opened.
- I actually liked the organization and styling in our first men's store, which is right next door but has to be entered separately, slightly more than the women's.
- My big annoyance was the continual small disparities between the regular online Canadian pricing and the in-store merchandise - always greater. For example, the navy field jacket, which I did purchase, is $172 online but $178 in-store
- All of the past roll-out regular merchandise which is already discounted in US stores and online is still full price, which I guess is understandable for a new opening.
- The if "while supplies last" if you spend $300 gift with purchase ...is apparently a "ladies" Timex watch
- My reco to other JC fans would be to do your online shopping before you go to make sure you are getting good value.
- And JC is also heavily promoting the opening of a third Toronto store at Fairview Mall in the North York area of the city end of this month.
Have you checked out the new J.Crew store at Toronto Eaton Centre? If so, please let us know what you thought of it! :)
The store is bigger than I thought it would be and I think the exterior facade looks very chic. I forgot to check out the fitting rooms but if there are doors, I will be happy. As expected, it was very busy on opening day but I found the front of the store a bit cramped. I'm so happy to finally have a JC store closer to me but I inevitably only go to the BM to try on items and purchase them at a better price online or during sales and promos.
ReplyDeleteI went yesterday in the early afternoon. I also had the chance to meet up with a fellow JCA, dagmara!
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts on the store... better layout than the Yorkdale store and it feels a little less crammed. There's a better flow to the space, with the dressy/trendy items up at the front, then moving through cashmeres and casual tees, and the suiting items in a separate area towards the back. The staff were, for the most part, very green and untested - I wanted to exchange a pair of shoes, and I was stuck waiting for 10 minutes while the SA was trying to figure out the difference between an exchange and a return. The store was fairly busy with people checking out the wares but I didn't see anyone buying anything - I was there for quite a while and didn't see a single person lined up at the cash registers. I think there are a lot of Torontonians who are still not very familiar with J. Crew and they are a little wary because the price points are noticeably higher than Banana Republic (which is just on the other side).
The men's store was extremely nice, perhaps even nicer than the women's side. It felt very calm and relaxed in there, while the women's side had a much more hectic feeling. I guess the idea is to soothe men into handing over their credit cards ;-)
Louise ITA on the SAs, friendly but very untrained. I had three of them clustered around a tablet looking for the price of a untagged store-only locket on their own company website. Then there was a long call to Yorkdale. Also personally preferred the men's store, in some part becuase the styling looked more "autumn" I think - less bright pink.
DeleteI don't think this is the first store in Canada with menswear. I'm pretty sure the Vancouver store carries guys' clothing already.
ReplyDeleteYes, the upstairs in the Vancouver store is shoes/bags and men's wear.
DeleteHi Cynthia, I think I read that this is the first "Men's Shop" in Canada (as oppose to store that carries Men's clothes). Please correct me if I got this wrong. :)
DeleteI guess because it is adjacent to the women's store but completely separate they are promoting it as their first menswear store. Thanks for the clarification Cynthia and post Alexis!
DeleteI went yesterday after work and had a somewhat funny interaction. I was wearing the optic dot shift dress, which was also on the mannequin. One person was checking out the dress in the store and noticed me in it. She mentioned she loved it and was thinking of buying it herself. Wanting to share the JCA joy I told her not to buy it there b/c it's $100 cheaper online right now. She looked at me in total confusion and said, "But why would they do that?"
ReplyDeleteHaha GOOD QUESTION!
A larger store? I'm jealous.
DeleteHa Teeny84, and I was laughing because an SA asked me if my cashmere cardigan was JC (not). Same as my note re. store vs. site full price variances, JC's costing-customer strategy is one-of-a-kind math.
DeleteOh I can't wait for a visit to TO!
DeleteSomeone mentioned a third store opening in Toronto soon and still no J.Crew in Calgary. They are missing out here. I know retail rents are astronomical but retailers are doing very well - I know this from my own line of work that looks at such figures. The economy is booming here and people are spending. We have the province with the youngest demographic and also the highest level of education per capita. Very white collar with lots of young professionals and families that are spending. Not to mention all the tourists with the Rocky Mountains nearby, even the airport is expanding in a huge way. I just don't get it. 1.1 million people in a booming economy is not enough to support a single J.Crew B&M? Crazy.
ReplyDeleteOK, rant over. I'll do my B&M shopping at Brooks Brothers, Anthro, Nordstrom, Holts, etc. instead.
They are truly missing out....I wonder how the Edmonton store is doing? No one ever seems to mention it on this web site.
DeleteIt's a space issue from what I heard. Same reason why stores aren't opening on Bloor Street in Toronto and opting for malls like Yorkdale, Sherway and the Eaton Centre.
Deletexoxo, I can't understand either. I lived in Edmonton for 14 months, and I've been to the West Ed Mall numerous times. I think I'm safe in saying that there are not enough professional types who want to wander through that behemoth of a mall to find the JC store. They would have done much better had they opened up downtown or just north of, in the Kingsway Mall.
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Deleteyes, there will be another one open at the Fairview Mall in North York Oct 30. Amazing that the Eaton Centre one and that one open so closely apart.
DeleteFWIW (and maybe this is old news!), they opened Canada's first Crewlet at Vaughan Mills mall on October 10th (located about an hour north-west of downtown Toronto).
ReplyDeleteThank you for telling me about it. For many days I have been trying to find good doors and you have helped me a lot with this!
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