In the last few years, Holt Renfrew has gradually expanded its offer to bring products that have different price points, but still remain exceptional in the sense that they’re very special products. Among the recent key changes:
- Expanding the range of product offerings and prices focusing on contemporary and ‘accessible’ brands.
- Introducing a marketplace format.
- A redesigned website.
- Investments in sales associates’ selling tools.
- Shuttering the freestanding men’s store in Toronto and relocating men’s to flagship.
Holt has also been bolstering its personal service and focusing more on waste reduction, energy efficiency and promoting sustainable brands. Over the last two years, the company has increased its % of sustainable product from 1% to 12%.
Since 2013, the H Project program has been offering products with minimal impact on the environment and that support local communities or have a charitable component. With the closing of the men’s store in Toronto last December, menswear relocated to the newly renovated/reimagined 23,000sq ft (2.100m2) third level at Holt at 50 Bloor Street, called ‘On 3.’ The men’s floor is heavily merchandised with contemporary brands including Vince, Theory, Rag & Bone, Frame, Alexander Wang and Ganni. It also features a central ‘Denim Lab,’ a men’s studio for made-to-measure looks, a tailored footwear area next to a casual footwear section, and a sneaker area curated with a range from designer labels such as Prada and Loewe to more affordable labels such as Adidas and Veja. And there’s a version of the Toronto-based Better Gift Shop selling inexpensive items not ordinarily found at Holt like logo T-shirts, collegiate sweatshirts, caps, keychains, incense, as well as some higher-end products.
Shifts in the buying approach have recently brought in brands such as Skims, Mejuri, the Canadian fine jewelry label, as well as Carhartt, Adidas, and Commes des Garçons Play, that are among the ‘accessible’ labels that are relatively new to the assortment, as well as Fear of God, a brand that blends luxury and streetwear. CEO Sebastian Picardo said ‘We still have a luxury positioning, but we know our customers come here because they want to have a multibrand experience. They also like high and low prices, as long as it’s a special product, a special brand.’ Currently, approximately 30% of what Holt buys and sells is in the more accessible price range.
The clienteling tools provide associates with richer client and product information, and make it more ‘seamless’ for customers to set up appointments with personal sellers and stylists. Holt employs about 1,000 sales associates. The selling floors remain heavily populated by luxury concession shops including Prada, Brunello Cucinelli, Louis Vuitton, Loewe, Dior, Chanel, Hermès, Gucci, Loro Piana, Bulgari and Celine. And at the two-level, 130,000sq ft (11.000m2) Yorkdale store — among Holt’s top two biggest-volume stores along with the Vancouver location — there’s been an influx of luxury concession shops since 2018 to the extent that 75% of the selling space is occupied by the format. Approximately 7 to 8% of Holt’s total business is generated by holtrenfrew.com. Currently, online orders are only shipped from stores.