Quebec-based retailer Simons expands to Ottawa

Simons is a fifth-generation clothing retailer based in Quebec.

A Quebec-based clothing chain is expanding into other Canadian cities with the hopes of succeeding where other multi-national retailers have failed.

Simons, a fifth-generation family-run clothing and homewares store, is opening its doors in Ottawa, Gatineau and beyond.

An 80,000 square-foot store is set to open in mid-August. Another is slated for Ottawa’s Rideau Centre next year.

It’s a bold move for a retailer that is well-known to shoppers in Quebec, but largely unknown in other parts of Canada.

With other stores planned for Vancouver, Calgary and Mississauga, Ont., Simons is thriving, which is no small feat in a sector where large retail chains are shuttering stores in the face of dwindling sales.

One-time retail darling The Gap just announced it is closing 175 stores across North America. Clothing retailers Mexx and Jacob have also closed stores across Canada.

Simons CEO Peter Simons said expanding the business was a “logical extension” after seeing customers coming from the Ottawa-Gatineau region. There is one location also in Alberta's West Edmonton Mall.

“We have a really unique assortment of merchandise that I think relates to how people shop today,” Simons said. “It goes really from exclusivities in the middle range up to high-end, world class designers.”

So what is it about Simons that allows them to succeed and prosper where others have failed?

Industry analyst Barry Nabatian told CTV Ottawa that Simons is an “above-average” department store, and stands out because of its focus on mid- to high-end merchandise.

He said there are still wealthy shoppers, but a shrinking middle-class means it’s the mid-range stores that are suffering.

“And the middle is what has lost its cache, its attractiveness,” Nabatian said. “And unless they re-invent themselves, it’s going to be more bad news for them.”

That’s Simons other strength, according to Nabatian. Outside of Quebec, it is still relatively new. The retailer is also considered progressive with how it designs and presents its stores, an important aspect of the fashion industry.

Another big pressure facing retail stores is online shopping; Amazon’s Canadian website recently launched a clothing and footwear section.

However, Nabatian says for now, online shopping only accounts for approximately five per cent of overall sales.

With a report by CTV Ottawa’s Eric Longley