Introducing The Webster, our newest luxury retail tenant at 121 Scollard Street in Yorkville. It is one of the world’s most prestigious retail concepts that curates emerging and established luxury fashion brands together. The Webster is completely different from other conventional mono and multi-brand retailers and department stores. Their personalized approach to the entire shopping experience really sets them apart – from their first-class private appointments, to stylists pre-ordering runway and couture pieces for special clients. Burberry, Chanel, Givenchy, Gucci, Valentino, Versace, and Saint Laurent, are among some of the luxury brands displayed side-by-side as a collection. First Capital recognized The Webster’s unique retail concept would enhance the overall experience for Yorkville shoppers and the neighbourhood in general.

Laure Hériard Dubreuil, The Webster’s Founder and Creative Director, opened her first location in Miami, Florida in June 2009 as a recent immigrant from Paris, France. Taking her extensive background and expertise in luxury fashion with her, she had a vision that would offer shoppers warmth, comfort, personality, and the best of international fashion. Since then, the brand has grown extensively into a world-renowned luxury fashion retailer with a concept like no other.

Spanning seven locations across the U.S., their newest location at 121 Scollard is their first-ever debut on the international stage. Fitting in perfectly with the prestigious neighbourhood that is Yorkville. The Webster is located just off the main street, creating a destination spot all on its own. This unique heritage building features an eye-catching pink exterior and a gold expansion on the back, all designed in collaboration with the famous French interior designer Stéphane Parmentier.

From meeting The Webster’s team over two years ago, to celebrating its recent opening on October 30th – this was truly an outstanding accomplishment to celebrate.

Keep reading to see how this unique project came together.

Back in 2019, First Capital met with The Webster’s team, touring their existing locations to develop a real understanding of their brand and concept. By doing so, we were able to curate an opportunity within our portfolio that fit perfectly based on what we had learned about the brand. Revered for its mix of high-end retail, award-winning restaurants, luxury residential, and home to Toronto’s most affluent shoppers, we knew the Yorkville neighbourhood was the perfect spot.

By the fall of 2019, our Construction team kicked off this special project. Upon touring 121 Scollard, The Webster team loved this unique heritage building and were easily able to roll out their concept to fit the mould of this unique property. We then began the design process in early 2020 and by mid-year, we had engaged Structure Corp as our construction partner – one of the leading construction management companies for luxury retail in Canada. For the remainder of the project, we were forced to pause construction on several occasions due to the restrictions imposed by the pandemic.

First Capital was responsible for all aspects of the building, from the base building components, to bringing it up to code, interior design and fit, structural reinforcement, exterior brick restoration, roof replacement and updates, accessibility enhancements, to even the finest of interior details – including a substantial millwork package, back expansion, and exclusive circular shaped room. This essentially allows for the tenant to open for business as soon as they take possession.

From there, our construction team began diving into the more detailed design discussions with our architect of record (Cumulus Architects Inc.), as well as interior designer Stéphane Parmentier and his team (Agence Stéphane Parmentier), as requested by The Webster. Though difficult to coordinate given the pandemic, as well as time and geographical differences, both teams had one goal in mind. Differing from most tenants and retailers, The Webster doesn’t have a specific design prototype or preferred layout, which means every single one of their now eight stores are uniquely designed. With this in mind, the design team was free to be as creative as could be.

Stéphane wanted visitors to not only experience the store visually, but also to feel it’s vibrations – engaging the senses. His initial inspiration came from photos of palm trees, daisies, goldleaf, flamingos, and extravagant mansions, which all shaped the design of the space.

His ultimate goal was to bring an entirely new vibe to what you might not expect from a typical retail space; a travel into space and time with this new kind of luxury. As The Webster brand is exactly that, he got right down to the DNA of the brand – new, different, twisted, elegant, funky, contemporary, but also homey and inviting. He wanted to generate excitement among shoppers to buy new things as the brand itself and their clothes are different.

When you enter the store, there are surprises all around, including a life-sized pink feathered bear made by Italian artist Paola Pivi. Second, the large preserved palm trees imported straight from France. Third, there is a mirrored-ceiling portal that leads to the back expansion titled “The Whisper Room”. Circular in shape, this exclusive space embodies the rounded edges of a daisy. Stéphane was inspired by the recent birth of The Webster’s founder, Laure Hériard Dubreuil’s baby girl whose middle name is Whisper. This personal touch provides a link to The Webster’s design principle of love being at the centre of everything.

One of the last major hurdles in completing this project was getting the respective approvals to paint the exterior brick pink – The Webster’s signature colour. As the building falls within a Heritage Conservation District (HCD), this provided its challenges and our Construction team had to receive approval for every exterior design element from the City of Toronto’s Heritage Preservation Services. The city was not initially fond of the pink, but were always happy to collaborate, especially with the help of our heritage consultants ERA. They helped draft important proposals comparing the neighbouring buildings and their existing colours, which ultimately secured the approval from the city – a momentous achievement!

After two years of collaboration between our Leasing and Construction teams, as well as the entire project design team and the brand itself, The Webster finally opened its doors at 121 Scollard on October 30^th, 2021. It is always rewarding to see such a detailed and unique project come together. Not only is The Webster transformational for the Yorkville neighbourhood, but also Toronto’s fashion experience and offerings overall. It is expected to be a destination for international travelers and local visitors for many years to come. In this prime location, The Webster’s world-class experience is setting a new bar for luxury in the country as this concept is something that Canada hasn’t seen before.

First Capital is proud to welcome The Webster to Toronto and look forward to seeing their success in Yorkville and beyond. Head to their newest location at 121 Scollard to check out the Pink Experience and see their one-of-a-kind fashions. To learn more about The Webster head to the following links:

Instagram: @thewebster
Website: The Webster

We’d like to thank the following consultants on their outstanding time and effort on this amazing project:

Over 25 years ago, Craig Buckley, the CEO and founder of Kettlemans bagel, had a dream of having his favourite childhood food be enjoyed by more than just Montrealers. Bringing that dream to life, he’s grown his business from a humble bagel shop in the heart of Ottawa, to a Canadian sandwich institution. In our newest tenant spotlight, we explore how Kettlemans Bagel has popularized the Montreal bagel, while keeping to tradition and maintaining authenticity.

Soon, Kettlemans will be celebrating the opening of their fifth location at our Eagleson Place property in Kanata, ON – one of Ottawa’s fastest-growing areas. Not only will it serve the surrounding neighbourhood and increase accessibility for patrons in the city’s west end, but it will serve as the company’s new office and headquarters.

Born and raised in Montreal, Craig Buckley grew up with the city’s most beloved traditional baked good: Montreal bagels. Moving to Ottawa for work as an adult, he often made the lengthy Montreal trip only to enjoy them whenever possible; though, he wasn’t the only Montreal native doing so. With their wild popularity in one city, he realized the potential they could have in other cities.

He quickly fell in love with the idea that no matter where you are in the world, Montreal bagels are something that make people happy. He envisioned them being enjoyed in as many homes as possible, as he and his family did growing up. Fulfilling this dream, he left his corporate commercial bakery role behind, and Kettlemans Bagel was officially born.

In August 1993, Craig opened his first location in The Glebe, one of Ottawa’s oldest and most vibrant urban neighbourhoods. In order to make the best bagels around, he began by sourcing the most impeccable ingredients, while sticking to the traditional 400-year-old recipe. In this pursuit, he felt being 100% transparent with customers was essential, from which the open concept kitchen design was created – a feature that is still around in all their locations today. Essentially, Craig wanted Kettlemans to be more than just a bagel shop, but an entire experience where customers can come in and watch the baking process before their very eyes.

Differing from standard bakery bagels, Kettlemans Montreal bagels are hand rolled and pressed to release the trapped air. They’re then placed in a kettle of boiling honey water to provide a pop of sweetness and seal in the freshness; the name Kettlemans pays homage to this very process. The bagels are then baked in a wood-fired oven, giving them a slightly smoky flavour profile with a crispy exterior and soft interior. On top of their outstanding texture and flavour, what especially sets them apart is the profound love and attention that goes into every single one.

Over the years, Kettlemans has become famous for their outstanding bagel sandwiches, using fresh proteins that are cured and prepared in-house. Keeping to the classic bagel-cream cheese pairing, they also offer fourteen different cream cheeses and fourteen bagel flavours – the combinations are endless!

As the older Glebe neighbourhood rarely saw new comers, Kettlemans immediately sparked a major buzz that quickly echoed throughout other Ottawa neighbourhoods. From the great success of his first location, not long after did he open his second in our College Square property serving the Nepean neighbourhood. It was here they started snowballing, as Craig had once dreamed, the success of his two locations allowed him to expand even more. In fact they’ve now opened a new location in the GTA, and soon to open in downtown Toronto, and Eagleson Place in Kanata, ON – Ottawa’s fastest-growing neighbourhood, to add to their three Ottawa locations.

Choosing Eagleson Place was easy not only because of its growth, but it serves the western most part of the city that their other locations do not – they wanted to make it their crown jewel in order to pay homage to their Ottawa roots. Overall, it will act as the company’s office headquarters and feature an innovative pick up window which will leverage pre-order technology via their mobile app.

Today, their bakery operations span over a 24-hour, 7 day a week period, in which customers can enjoy their bagels any time they please. This non-stop baking process allows them to wholesale their products to local grocers such as Farm Boy and Costco. They also offer catering services, a subscription model, a rewards program, and a state-of-the-art app to support these initiatives. However, their growth doesn’t stop there… In fact, expansion plans exceed this as they’ll be growing even further in Toronto in 2022 and potentially international in the future.

Did you know they’re now one of Canada’s most famous bakeries?

In the midst of all their growth, they pride themselves on maintaining the authenticity and tradition that Craig built the company upon. By sticking to the best quality ingredients, same classic recipe, perfect taste and texture, and attention to detail, they’ve established a loyal customer base.

Mixing tradition with progression, their main focus is to expand their flavour profile on a seasonal basis – a popular practice within the Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) industry. For example, they recently came out with a pumpkin spice bagel for fall and are experimenting with a peppermint bagel for the upcoming Christmas season. In fact, for June pride month 2021, they welcomed the “LGBT” bagel containing lettuce, guacamole, bacon, and tomato, as the acronym suggests – a portion of the sales were donated to a local 2SLGBTQIA+ charity. Overwhelmed by its success, they decided to add it as a regular menu item, while continuing the ongoing donation.

Not only are they participating in socially responsible initiatives, but they’re focused on being environmentally friendly as well. In fact, Kettlemans has switched from using plastic to compostable bags and introduced eco-friendly packaging to reduce their overall carbon footprint.
By implementing initiatives such as this, they like to “lead by example” as not many other QSRs in the Canadian market are doing so. By being socially and environmentally responsible, while bettering customer experience and maintaining the best bagels around, they’re confident in their ability to inflict change and be pioneers in the QSR industry.

First Capital would like to congratulate Kettlemans Bagels on the opening of their newest location at Eagleson Place. For many years, they’ve been valued tenants of ours at College Square, and we can’t wait to see where their success will take them next. For more information on this Canadian bagel institution, check out their website or Instagram!