Canada’s Restaurant/Retail Market Heats Up

A trio of companies have unveiled aggressive expansion plans for Canada:

* Shake Shack Inc. (New York) will enter the county in 2024, with a flagship in Toronto and big growth plans after that. “We have been eyeing this incredible opportunity in Canada for quite some time and are elated to have found exceptional partners to serve Shack classics and bespoke Canada-exclusive items to our sophisticated neighbors to the north,” says Michael Kark, Chief Global Licensing Officer of Shake Shack. “Together with Osmington Inc. and Harlo Entertainment, we plan to open 35 Shacks in Canada by 2035, starting with the flagship location in Toronto in 2024.”

* Paris Baguette (Moonachie, N.J.) has opened its first bakery café in Canada, in Toronto’s Yonge Sheppard Centre. The new store marks the expansion of the brand’s North American footprint, with at least six more slated to open across Canada, and an additional 60-plus in the United States in 2023 through a mix of corporate-owned and franchise locations. The 2300-square-foot Toronto flagship features seating for 20 and large, self-serve displays

* Homegrown apparel retailer DUER (Vancouver, British Columbia) plans to double its store count to 10 this year, with a concentration on the Toronto area. The first of several storefronts in that city will open in Mississauga’s Square One Shopping Centre and downtown Toronto this spring. Eventually, the retailer – pronounced “do-er” and focusing on comfort-driven denim and pants – also plans to expand into the U.S. and Europe.