Hudson's Bay and Saks Fifth Avenue Unveil 2016 Holiday Windows

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TORONTO, Nov. 4, 2016 /CNW/ - Hudson's Bay and Saks Fifth Avenue officially unveiled their 2016 holiday windows in Toronto last night, in partnership with Mastercard.  The event, which took place in front of the shared entrance to Hudson's Bay and Saks Fifth Avenue at CF Toronto Eaton Centre, was a spectacular celebration for the city, complete with lights, fireworks and a very special musical performance by Mariah Carey.   

Hundreds gathered on Queen Street to ring in the holiday season and take in the magical window displays.  The occasion marked the first joint window unveiling between Hudson's Bay and Saks Fifth Avenue and also the first-ever Saks Fifth Avenue holiday windows in Canada. The Hudson's Bay windows along Queen Street are a tradition in the city of Toronto and this year, Saks joins in that tradition and offers a special fashion twist on the holidays.

Hudson's Bay's Enchanted Forest windows along Queen and Saks Fifth Avenue's Land of 1000 Delights window displays along Queen and Yonge Street, each capture the holiday spirit in a unique and different way and will be sure to delight and entertain both the people of Toronto and the many tourists who visit the city throughout the season.

Hudson's Bay's Enchanted Forest

This year, Hudson's Bay's iconic holiday windows invite customers into an Enchanted Forest with five distinct windows along Queen Street. Each of the five animated windows depicts scenes of a winter wonderland filled with 34 hand-sculpted spirited holiday animals. Over 350 square feet of LED walls enhance each vignette.  The flagship's façade will feature mixed garland, foliage, twinkling lights and cheerful holiday music, completing the magical display.

"The holidays are such a magical time in the city," said Liz Rodbell, President, Hudson's Bay.  "We know that visiting the windows along Queen Street has been a long-standing tradition for so many Torontonians.  We are thrilled to unveil our five Enchanted Forest windows, which are sure to delight young and old alike."

Set at various times throughout the day, each of the five windows showcase an imaginative fantasy of how friends and family in the forest spend the holidays.  Bunnies ice-skating on a pond; mice frolicking atop a bear covered in snow, and a mother owl protecting her newborn babies are some of the scenarios passersby will encounter.

Designing and building Hudson's Bay's holiday windows was a nine-month process that began in March 2016. A team of 73 people have spent more than 35,360 hours perfecting every detail.

Meticulous attention was paid to each element, with more than 8,150 square feet of brown Kraft paper and 27 gallons of glue used in the creation of the artificial trees alone.  The animals and snow mounds were created from more than 1,300 cubic square feet of foam.

Saks Fifth Avenue's Land of 1000 Delights

Saks Fifth Avenue's holiday windows transport viewers to a Land of 1000 Delights, an enchanting landscape of colorful candy and festive fashion. Jumbo swirl lollipops, whipped cotton candy and mounds of rock candy are just some of the delicious décor that will trickle into the store's windows and visual displays, creating an irresistible destination for fantastical gifts.

The nine vignettes set in fantasy music boxes, containing Grande Dames perched atop wind-up pedestals on their way to the Christmas Ball. Empress Gingerbread, Marchioness of Confections, Lady Lollipop, and Duchess de Chocolate are just a few of the hand-painted mannequins wearing one-of-a-kind couture costumes featuring confectionary hoop skirts made of giant candy, cakes, and cookies.

Whimsical hair, hats, and shoes complete each look. The music boxes are highlighted by panels of curved colored mirrors and hanging strands of fruit candy and cupcakes.

"We are proud to bring the iconic Saks Fifth Avenue holiday window displays to Canada for the very first time," said Marc Metrick, president, Saks Fifth Avenue. "The team behind them have created a colorful candy wonderland that we know will charm the city of Toronto this holiday season. We hope to establish as grand a tradition of retail theatre in Canada as we have in New York."

Hudson's Bay and Saks Fifth Avenue are sure to be a must-visit destination throughout the 2016 holiday season.  The windows will be open from November 3 through to January 3, 2017

ABOUT HUDSON'S BAY
Hudson's Bay Company, incorporated in 1670, is North America's oldest company. Hudson's Bay has grown to become Canada's most prominent department store, today operating 90 full-line locations and thebay.com. It has established a reputation for quality, service, and style by offering well-edited assortments of exclusive and popular fashion, beauty, home and accessory designers and brands. It is part of the Hudson's Bay Company brand portfolio.

ABOUT SAKS FIFTH AVENUE
Saks Fifth Avenue, one of the world's pre-eminent specialty retailers, is renowned for its superlative American and international designer collections, its expertly edited assortment of handbags, shoes, jewelry, cosmetics and gifts, and the first-rate fashion expertise and exemplary client service of its Associates. As part of the Hudson's Bay Company brand portfolio, Saks operates 41 full-line stores in 22 states and Canada, five international licensed stores and saks.com, the company's online store.

SOURCE Hudson's Bay

Video with caption: "VIDEO: The making of Hudson’s Bay holiday windows". Video available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/cgi-bin/playback.cgi?file=20161103_C3009_VIDEO_EN_811798.mp4&posterurl=http%3A%2F%2Fphotos.newswire.ca%2Fimages%2F20161103_C3009_PHOTO_EN_811798.jpg&order=1&jdd=20161104&cnum=C3009

Image with caption: "Mariah Carey at the Hudson’s Bay and Saks Fifth Avenue Holiday Window Unveiling Presented by Mastercard (CNW Group/Hudson's Bay)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20161103_C3009_PHOTO_EN_811800.jpg

Katie Mills, PR Specialist, Hudson's Bay, 416-256-5114, [email protected]