Saks Fifth Avenue Announces Details of its Grand Entrance Into Canada

Ribbon-cutting ceremonies and elegant receptions celebrate Saks Fifth Avenue's new frontier

NEW YORK and TORONTO, Feb. 17, 2016 /CNW/ -- Saks Fifth Avenue has announced additional details regarding the upcoming grand openings of its first stores in Canada. CF Toronto Eaton Centre is scheduled to open on February 18, followed by CF Sherway Gardens on February 25.

"It is a thrilling moment opening our Canadian flagship store. We are so excited to bring the best of Saks to Toronto," commented Marc Metrick, President of Saks Fifth Avenue. "After more than two years of planning, our entry into Canada is truly a milestone for our company. We cannot wait to bring the Saks experience of an elegant edit of the best designer names, coupled with distinctive, personalized service to Toronto."

Both Saks Fifth Avenue stores will offer extraordinary top-tier brands, including: women's advanced and emerging designer ready-to-wear, men's sportswear, tailored clothing and contemporary sportswear, along with designer handbag shops, a 10022-SHOE salon and extensive jewellery and beauty selections. Select brand offerings include: Dior, Valentino, Louis Vuitton, Saint Laurent, Chloé, Céline, Prada, Alexander McQueen, Stella McCartney, Givenchy and Alaïa.

Saks Fifth Avenue is launching a major service initiative, debuting in Canada. This will include Saks at Your Service, a shopping service that brings the best of Saks directly to a client's home, office, or hotel, anytime and anywhere. Saks Fifth Avenue will also introduce Toronto to The Fifth Avenue Club, a private shopping destination for men and women featuring trained consultants for personalized styling. Additionally, customers can enjoy a makeover with a Saks expert - every cosmetics station will be staffed with artists to help prepare for a night out or give a makeup master class. Customers can also get on-the-go facials, fragrance personalization, red carpet treatments and more at every beauty counter. Both stores will have a robust calendar of special events, such as fashion shows, personal appearances by designers and trunk shows.

Saks Fifth Avenue CF Toronto Eaton Centre and CF Sherway Gardens will both introduce the first-of-its-kind Saks Food Hall by Pusateri's. The 25,000 square foot and 18,500 square foot locations, respectively, will offer a mélange of premium food experiences poised to excite the palates of local residents and tourists alike. Consisting of inspiring culinary stations, exclusive products, fine foods, services and a deluxe grocery assortment, the Saks Food Hall by Pusateri's will engage patrons in sights, flavors, and aromas from around the globe. Adding to the complete guest experience, Saks Fifth Avenue will introduce two new restaurant concepts by Oliver & Bonacini. At CF Sherway Gardens, Beaumont Kitchen, spearheaded by Chef Michael Hay, will be a stylish all-day dining lounge, serving eclectic West Coast cuisine. At CF Toronto Eaton Centre, Leña, a restaurant and bar by Chef Anthony Walsh, will showcase the vibrant essence of South American cooking and dining with unique Spanish influences. The culinary experiences will open at CF Sherway Gardens on February 25 and at CF Toronto Eaton Centre in May.

To celebrate its grand entrance into Canada, Saks Fifth Avenue is hosting a series of events at each store throughout their opening weeks. Last evening, CF Toronto Eaton Centre was the site of an elegant cocktail reception to benefit the National Ballet. Patrons and members of the organization previewed the store while enjoying cocktails and canapés in a lively atmosphere, including dancers and musicians of the National Ballet.  Canada's first Saks Fifth Avenue store will officially open to the public on February 18 following a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 9:30 am on Level Three, between the Saks Fifth Avenue and Hudson's Bay Bridge. Following the ribbon-cutting, fashion designer Phillip Lim will join the celebration and meet with guests during a special personal appearance. As a thank you for shopping, a generous donation will be made to Phillip Lim's selected charity Evergreen, a Canadian nonprofit that helps create greener, more sustainable cities.

The Saks Fifth Avenue store in CF Sherway Gardens, opening one week later, will host two in-store cocktail events. The first, in partnership with American Express, will take place on February 23, and the second, in partnership with Trillium Health Partners-comprising The Credit Valley Hospital, Mississauga Hospital and Queensway Health Centre-will be held on February 24. Members and supporters of the organizations will enjoy a unique preview of the new store, featuring shopping and entertainment especially tailored to enhance the overall experience. On February 25, Canada's second Saks Fifth Avenue store will open with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 9:30 am. The event will take place at the Saks Fifth Avenue entrance, inside CF Sherway Gardens.

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, jewellery, 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 38 full-line stores in 22 states, five international licensed stores and saks.com, the company's online store.

ABOUT HUDSON'S BAY COMPANY
Hudson's Bay Company is one of the fastest-growing department store retailers in the world, based on its successful formula of driving the performance of high quality stores and their all-channel offerings, unlocking the value of real estate holdings and growing through acquisitions. Founded in 1670, HBC is the oldest company in North America. HBC's portfolio today includes ten banners, in formats ranging from luxury to better department stores to off price fashion shopping destinations, with more than 460 stores and 66,000 employees around the world.

In North America, HBC's leading banners include Hudson's Bay, Lord & Taylor, Saks Fifth Avenue, Gilt, and Saks OFF 5TH, along with Find @ Lord & Taylor and Home Outfitters. In Europe, its banners include GALERIA Kaufhof, the largest department store group in Germany, Belgium's only department store group Galeria INNO, as well as Sportarena.

HBC has significant investments in real estate joint ventures.  It has partnered with Simon Property Group Inc. in the HBS Global Properties Joint Venture, which owns properties in the United States and Germany.  In Canada, it has partnered with RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust in the RioCan-HBC Joint Venture.

CONTACT:    
Gretchen Walker Manolakis
Saks Fifth Avenue
[email protected]

Shayne Stephens
Saks Fifth Avenue
[email protected]

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SOURCE Saks Fifth Avenue