Bogner Expands Canadian Business With Toronto Pop-up
Bogner, the German athletic luxury sports brand, will open its first winter pop-up shop in Toronto on Sunday.
The 3,300-square-foot store is at 131 Bloor Street.
To expand the Canadian business, Bogner teamed with next-gen retail experts FlagshipRTL.
The shop is designed with modular fixtures, clean lines and dark metals, with an emphasis on product. It will be filled with winter staples, from outerwear and ready-to-wear separates to its Bogner Sport and Fire & Ice collections. The merchandise is priced in the premium luxury category with ski jackets, for example, retailing from $700 to $2,200, or $920 CAD to $2,900 CAD.
“We’re very excited to extend our business in North America, especially during these exceptional times. With FlagshipRTL as our partner, Bogner has been able to test new markets and strategies seamlessly, and without the traditional long-term financial commitments associated with opening stores. Canada has been an opportunity for Bogner for years. We want to connect with our longtime Canada fans in a way that is real, and a stand-alone pop-up store at the iconic Colonnade in the heart of Toronto’s luxury district is the most impactful way to do that,” said Heinz Hackl, co-chief executive officer of Bogner.
Justin Abrams, ceo and founder of FlagshipRTL, praised Bogner’s “unique heritage in ath-luxury sports fashion” and said, “It has been a privilege to support Bogner in scaling their North American presence.”
The boutique, which carries women’s, men’s and kids’ clothing, will be open from the holiday season until March 2021.
At present, Bogner has one store in SoHo in New York and a licensee partner store in Whistler, Canada. The Toronto winter boutique will be the brand’s first directly owned store in Canada. The company has more than 100 wholesale partners in North America.
Hackl said the Canadian market has performed well for Bogner via e-commerce, its licensee partner and wholesale partners, so it was important for the brand to take an omnichannel approach to offer consumers an in-person experience where they can touch and feel the quality of the collection.
“Our partnership with FlagshipRTL allows us a new way to test new markets without cumbersome long-term leases, and perfect our strategy,” he said. He added that 2020 has seen a lot of challenges and there’s “a good bit of digital fatigue, and a renewed appreciation for (safe) interpersonal connections via shopping.”
Bogner anticipates another two to three stores to be rolled out within the North American market by the end of 2020.
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