Jeweller leaving Polo Park, moving back downtown

December 20, 2007
Winnipeg Free Press
Written by: Murray McNeill

BIRKS is leaving the city's biggest shopping mall and returning to its downtown roots after signing a long-term lease to open an upscale jewelry store near Portage and Main.

The Montreal-based Birks & Mayors Inc. retail chain announced Wednesday it's relocating its store in the Polo Park Shopping Centre to the main floor of the 94-year-old Union Trust Tower (sometimes referred to as the National Bank Building) on the northeast corner of Main Street and Lombard Avenue.

The Feb. 8 store opening will be a back-to-the-future move for the venerable retailer, which opened its first Winnipeg store on Main in 1903 and was a downtown fixture for nine decades until it closed its Portage Place Shopping Centre outlet in 1993. That included a 78-year stay in the historic building that still bears its name at Portage Avenue and Smith Street.

"In a nutshell, we wanted to return to our roots," company spokesperson Donna Battista said in an interview. "We understand there is also a bit of a revitalization happening in your downtown and we wanted to be a part of that."

"It's also in the Exchange District and there are so many unique retailers down there," said Caroline Ksiazek, director of the Polo Park store, who will hold the same title with the downtown outlet. "You've also got the symphony, the ballet, the Manitoba Theatre Centre, and some great restaurants, so it seems like the perfect fit."

Battista said while the company enjoyed its 38 years in Polo Park, "we really wanted Birks to be a retail destination" rather than just another store in a large shopping mall. This new storefront location near Portage and Main -- where there aren't a lot of other storefront retailers -- should enable it to do that.

Because it's located in the heart of the city's business and financial district, the new store will target downtown executives and office workers with its "luxury" products, including jewelry, giftware and accessories such as handbags, wallets, key chains and pens.

At its height, the company had five stores in the city, but that was reduced to just one in 1993.

At just under 3,200 square feet, the store will rival Birks' flagship downtown stores in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, Battista said. The seven Polo Park employees will all be moving to the new location.

Completing the Birks deal marked the end of a two-year odyssey for Jack Hurtig, director of leasing for A.S.H. Management Group Inc., the Winnipeg firm which manages the Union Trust Tower.

Hurtig said while there was interest in opening a restaurant or nightclub in the space, A.S.H. officials were looking for a tenant that could appreciate the unique space.

With its 5.2-metre-high ceilings, abundance of carved marble and brass, and two antique safes, "it's not typical office space and it's not typical retail space," Hurtig said.

He said with Hy's Steakhouse & Cocktail Bar across the street on the main floor of the Richardson Building, "I think this could very well turn into a luxury-brand corner, if you will."

Hurtig said the fact a national retailer like Birks was prepared to leave a premier shopping centre and sign a long-term lease for space in the Exchange District is a vote of confidence for the downtown.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca

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