Toronto Premium Outlets: The Lowdown

7:55 a.m on opening day of the Toronto Premium Outlets. #keener

Here's something to ponder as you head into your Long Weekend: Canada's 1st ever Premium Outlets is now officially open at Halton Hills. I went early yesterday before the doors opened, before the ribbon had been cut, before all of the parking spots were taken. I checked out the outlet mall and as promised, it was really lovely and felt just like its American counterparts. As a member of the media (ooh la la), I got to check out a few stores before they opened to the public, from Tom's Place Outlet (first ever) to the chic new Danier outlet to Icebreaker from New Zealand (love!). Line-ups formed early at Restoration Hardware, Michael Kors, Coach and Nike, but nothing I couldn't handle. After the offical opening ceremony, I made a beeline for Hudson's Bay Outlet and much to my delight, I saw designer merch from The Room at 40% off regular price, plus an additional 25% off for Grand Opening Weekend. Deals are sweet if you have the money to spend. Over the next hour, the ambient buzz started to grow. And grow. And by 10 am when I had to leave to reunite with my kidlets back in the city, it was total mayhem. The in-store lineups were crazy, overflow parking lots were already practically full, and at 2:30 when I left the city, the 401 was moving at a crawl. To give you an idea, it took me 4 HOURS to get home from Toronto to London. Yup.

The upshot? If you have the time, the courage and the inclination to score super deals, a trek to Premium Outlets will totally pay off this weekend. (Visit torontopremiumoutlets.ca for the weekend's event schedule and a list of Grand Opening sales.) If you're claustrophic and/or hate long line-ups, I highly suggest waiting a few weeks for the frenzy to subside. I considered this my reconnaissance mission. Next time, I'm taking a day off for Kate Spade, Ted Baker, J.Crew, Restoration Hardware, Brooks Brothers, Banana Republic and another shot at Hudson's Bay. Oh Erdem, you will be mine...

Happy Long Weekend! Hope you enjoy every minute of it

My outlet outfit. No practical shopping footwear for this girl - an occasion like this calls for heels!

My license to shop. 

If you really love Coach, this weekend is the time to buy (if you don't mind long line-ups, that is)

Mugging for the camera with the legendary Tom of Tom's Place.

Oooh. LOVE this origami skirt from the Danier Outlet.

YESSS! Designer beauties from The Room at outlet prices? SO exciting!

J.Brand, Andrew Gn, Juicy, Erdem, Alice + Olivia, Armani Collezioni, Comme des Garçons...

Every shopper needs to recharge. Thank you Hudson's Bay Outlet for the sweet cupcakes.

Hello, Burberry. 'Til we meet again this Fall... 

Toronto Premium Outlets: The Grand Opening Weekend Lowdown

It felt like it would never happen, right? But with only two weeks to go until Toronto Premium Outlets™ opens its doors for the very first time (eek!), construction crews are now putting the finishing touches on the mega outlet mall and opening weekend planning is well underway. 

For the August 1-4 Grand Opening, it's gonna be a serious shopping party y'all:  expect live entertainment, including a 'classic rock band' (please let it be the Paul McCartney)  in-store promos and the chance to enter to win more than 125 prizes worth over $25,000. Prizes announced so far include an Ultimate Getaway Weekend at Trump Hotel and Tower Toronto, a Spa Getaway from Rosewater Spa of Oakville or Burlington and a Toronto Blue Jays autographed baseball (aka. a consolation prize for any benchwarming husbands who've been coerced into a 'quick' trip to just 'check out' the mall).

Individual outlet stores are also getting in on the action to celebrate the opening. Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store will give away a $1,500 shopping spree, Mountain Warehouse will offer free gifts to the first 200 customers and best of all (IMO) Hudson’s Bay Outlet will offer 25% off your entire purchase. Expect loads more opening weekend deals with many stores offering deep discounts beyond the regular savings of 25%-65%.

As I reported earlier, Toronto Premium Outlets™ will feature 85 outlet stores including many top Canadian, American and British brands, many of which have never offered outlet shopping in Canada before. The store list will be a who’s who of top designer labels and leading brands including: Hudson’s Bay Outlet, Banana Republic, Bench, Bose, Brooks Brothers, Burberry (opening Fall 2013), Coach, ColeHaan, Columbia Sportswear, DKNY, Dynamite, Eddie Bauer, Gap Outlet, Garage, Guess, Icebreaker, J.Crew, Kate Spade New York, Lucky Brand Jeans, Michael Kors, Polo Ralph Lauren, Restoration Hardware, Ted Baker London, True Religion and Zumiez. 

Just FYI, Toronto Premium Outlets™ is located at Hwy 401 at the Trafalgar Road interchange in Halton Hills. Oh, and be sure to sign up for the VIP Club and get the whole grand-opening low-down at www.torontopremiumoutlets.ca.  See you there August 1st! xx

A First Look at Toronto Premium Outlets

Want to start your workweek off on the right foot? Here's a first look at the new Toronto Premium Outlets in Halton Hills, just off the 401 at Trafalgar Rd. As previously reported on this blog, the outlets are set to open on August 1st, 2013 and as you can see, construction is well underway. If you missed it, click here to find out the current list of stores.

I had the opportunity to interview a few key people from Toronto Premium Outlets last week and here's what I found out.  The job fair was a massive success and according to General Manager Megan Johnson, thousands of people turned up to score jobs, with associate to management positions given out on the spot. When asked if we can expect the steep discounts we see in the States, Johnson said that this outlet is unlike those kinda-sorta-outlets (my words, not hers) we have seen in Canada in the past, with 25 - 65% off every day. Discounts will be very similar to the Premium Outlets in the U.S, only with Canadian currency factored in. Best of all, the construction on the outlets is on schedule so it look as though we can actually expect an August 1st grand opening. #yay. 

Next, I interviewed Liz Bauman, Divisional Vice-President of HBC Outlets, hoping to score some valuable info on what we can expect. Here's what I found out: 

• As the anchor of the mall, the HBC Outlet will be one of the largest, if not the largest, store at Toronto Premium Outlets.
• The store will carry lots of designer and name brands.
• HBC Outlets will carry merchandise at 20 - 70% off the regular price.
• Toronto Premium Outlets was a terrific opportunity for Hudson's Bay to open an outlet 

For the rest of the interview, Bauman remained tight-lipped:

Me: "Even though Canada has had outlet centres for awhile, this is the first-ever outlet for HBC. Why now? Does it have anything to do with the pressure of Nordstrom coming to Canada?

Bauman: "No comment."

Me: "Any word on which brands we can expect to find at the HBC Outlet?"

Bauman: "I'm not going to comment on that."

Me: "Okay, how about overstock from The Room, the White Space or Lord & Taylor? What are the odds of me scoring Proenza Schouler at 20 - 70% off?"

Bauman: "I can't comment on that right now."

Sad face. I will persist, Liz Bauman. And I promise you, fellow outlet anticipators, I will let you know as soon as she decides to spill.  Luckily, we don't have long to wait. In the meantime, click here to join the VIP Shopper Club for exclusive online coupons, a voucher for a free VIP coupon book and email updates sent to your inbox. Am I excited about Toronto Premium Outlets? No comment, but I'm pretty sure you can read between the lines. x

Toronto Premium Outlets to Open August 1st

A sketch of the Toronto Premium Outlets, set to open August 1st, 2013. 

Fellow savvy shoppers, rejoice! Toronto Premium Outlets™, (yes THOSE Premium Outlets) Canada's first ever upscale outlet center, officially opens its doors on August 1st! The new outlet centre will be like the ones we so love to visit in the States, with the top brands and irresistibly sweet deals that make for a super shopping experience. The center will be anchored by Hudson’s Bay Outlet (fun!) and will include the following stores, many of which are opening their first ever outlet locations in Canada: 

Banana Republic, Bench, Bose, Brooks Brothers, Coach, Cole Haan, Columbia Sportswear, DKNY, Dynamite, Eddie Bauer, Gap Outlet, Garage, Guess, Icebreaker, J. Crew, Kate Spade New York, Lucky Brand Jeans, Michael Kors, Polo Ralph Lauren, Restoration Hardware, Ted Baker London, True Religion and Zumiez. Additional brands will be announced in the coming weeks. UPDATE: Burberry opening Dec 2013. #eeek

General Manager Megan Johnson says Toronto Premium Outlets™ will dramatically change the shopping landscape in Ontario. “It’s exciting because for the first time in Canada, shoppers will have an impressive collection of outlet stores close to home,” she said.

Toronto Premium Outlets™ will make a major impact on Toronto’s business and economic landscape as well, providing more than 800 full and part time jobs. To fill these positions, a Job Fair co-sponsored by Halton Employment, The Region of Peel and The Town of Halton Hills will be held on Thursday, June 6, 2013 between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. at the Milton Sports Centre located at 605 Santa Maria Blvd., Milton, Ontario. For complete details on the Job Fair and to stay in the loop for the Grand Opening Celebration and more, visit: www.premiumoutlets.com/toronto, or keep checking back on RLR. Will keep you posted the minute I hear more.

Yay. Yay. Yay. That's all I have to say. x