Location, location: Why Edmonton is preferred by U.S. chains making their Canadian debut

Alberta’s capital metropolis is thought for a lot of issues — an enormous mall, a stunning river valley and a fairly profitable NHL franchise.

You possibly can add to that listing Edmonton’s enchantment as a testing floor for U.S. chain shops and eating places trying to broaden into the Canadian market.

Dickey’s Barbecue Pit, a well-liked Texas-based chain restaurant that opened its first Canadian location in Edmonton on Thursday, is considered one of a few main American chains which have eyed the Alberta metropolis for growth.

In December, American comfort retailer chain 7-Eleven opened a licenced location in north Edmonton that features a eating space for liquor consumption on the premises.

California Pizza Kitchen, in the meantime, has stated it should open its first Canadian location in south Edmonton someday this yr.

Trade consultants say town’s inhabitants demographics, consuming habits, affordability and even the presence of an enormous mall are components in attracting companies eager to check the style buds of Canadians. 

“Edmonton is an excellent place to start out since you restrict your threat and also you get a great market take a look at,” Ziad Kaddoura, a franchise advisor primarily based in Edmonton, advised CBC’s Edmonton AM.

He stated town is a good place to determine whether or not corporations are as much as the problem of introducing a franchise in Canada with the least quantity of injury in case their enterprise fails.

“And it isn’t as saturated as different markets,” he stated. “So I feel it ticks all the fitting bins.”

Dickey’s determined to come back to Edmonton due to the similarities between Alberta and Texas, particularly on the subject of oil and beef.

“These two issues are precisely how this model began 81 years in the past in my nation,” stated Jim Perkins, the corporate’s vice-president of worldwide gross sales and assist.

Market analysis confirmed folks in Edmonton pattern towards the next consumption of white protein, hen and turkey. “And that is actually tremendous with us,” he stated.

Smaller, reasonably priced market with a mall

Kaddoura stated the province has the closest cultural inhabitants make-up to the U.S. Quebec, for instance, would reply to one thing with a extra French aptitude, he added. 

Toronto and Vancouver aren’t appropriate take a look at markets in that they are too large for corporations to determine what works and what does not. 

In comparison with the opposite cities, Edmonton has an reasonably priced actual property market, Kaddoura stated. 

He stated a 3,500-square-foot house in a neighbourhood like Windermere might value $12,000 a month in charges, leases and hire; a equally sized house in a suburb of Toronto would value between $20,000 to $25,000. 

He stated Edmontonians are additionally meals savvy.

“They’re open to making an attempt various things,” he stated . A few a long time in the past, that introduced restaurant chains like Pink Robin and Outback Steakhouse to town. 

West Edmonton Mall, which opened in 1981 and was as soon as North America’s largest mall, additionally performs a task in attracting companies to Edmonton, stated Craig Patterson, a retail analyst on the College of Alberta. 

“It is a very distinctive centre. You do not get some stuff in Calgary that you will get in Edmonton simply because Edmonton has West Edmonton Mall. So it is fairly fascinating how that works,” he stated. 

The mall is dwelling to Canada’s sole places of Sarah Jessica Parker’s SJP shoe retailer and the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. restaurant.

Inhabitants dimension an issue

Though a single restaurant might discover success in Edmonton, Kaddoura stated Edmonton’s small inhabitants could possibly be a deterrent for some manufacturers. 

Corporations with a enterprise mannequin reliant on a excessive quantity of product in a number of spots to serve a bigger inhabitants could not work right here. 

“There’s not sufficient to serve,” Kaddoura stated.

However he stated different manufacturers shall be watching the success of latest openings to resolve in the event that they wish to comply with go well with. “We’ll see what occurs sooner or later,” he stated.