MBiz

November 2016

Manitoba Chamber of Commerce

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23 MBiz | november 2016 Brandon gets a multimillion-dollar dose of retail therapy By Lindsey Ward F rom groceries and shoe-shopping to boot camp and Thai takeout, Brandonites will soon be able to tackle their entire to-do list at Shoppers Mall. Thanks to a $30-million transformation led by its owner, Morguard Real Estate Investment Trust, the 45-year-old mall will soon be home to the city's first Sobeys Extra store and Manitoba's largest co-ed fitness club – among many other exciting new businesses. "It's going to be a big, one-stop shop," says Shoppers Mall's General Manager Kim James. "The whole development is all very exciting. It's going to be great for the community." James says locals are particularly excited about new anchoring store Sobeys, which is moving into the former Target location. The 62,500-square-foot marketplace will feature full-service departments, a community room for cooking classes, in-store chefs and wellbeing counsellors. "It will have all of the extras that we haven't seen in Brandon before," says James. Sobeys will take possession of the store at the end of November, and its doors will officially open in spring 2017. Around that same time, a first- class 24,670-square-foot co-ed GoodLife Fitness Centre will get up and running in the mall's former Safeway location. Part of Canada's largest health club company, GoodLife gyms are often open 24/7 to cater to everyone's fitness schedules, and James says this location will likely be no exception. "Maybe not at first, but it's looking that way." There will also be plenty of fuel on site, courtesy of an East Side Mario's – the popular restaurant chain's only Manitoba location – a Swiss Chalet/Harvey's combination, and a Fionn MacCool's Irish pub, all pending approvals from the City of Brandon to occupy new freestanding pads along 18th Street. In the meantime, Thai Express will join the mall food court's existing eateries, with plans to start serving up its authentic — and fast — cuisine by January. The mall's renovation — which includes a modern facelift of the main entrance, with plenty of windows allowing for natural light — will leave an extra 40,000 square feet next to Sobeys for new retailers. James says Morguard is currently negotiating with potential neighbours for existing stores like Coles, The Body Shop, Sport Chek and Aldo, and hopes to have the final phase of the mall completed in 2018. More businesses will be announced in the next few months. In the meantime, Shoppers Mall is open during renovations, "which are always fun," jokes James, who has certainly seen a lot of construction over the 31 years she's worked with the shopping centre. "I've seen (the anchor store) go from a Woolco to a Walmart to Zellers to Target and now a Sobeys," she says. "In that space alone I've seen a lot of changes." So far she's heard only good things about Shoppers Mall's latest tenants, which will not only serve the immediate area but also the rest of Brandon and its neighbouring towns. "It's going to be a really positive change." ■ The Great Mall BRANDON SHOPPERS MALL - a proud member of the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce Along with a new anchor store, Sobeys Extra, and a GoodLife Fitness Centre, the Brandon Shoppers Mall is beefing up its restaurant and retail offerings. Photos courtesy of Shoppers Mall

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