Live From ICSC

We were on the scene at Whistler ICSC this week, and hope to see our name in Guinness, as there was record attendance—2,400. Western Canada’s premiere retail industry event didn't disappoint.

Tommy Guns booth offered up men's haircuts and straight razor shaves. (While we like old-fashioned swag, we admit beer koozies could never provide this close a shave.) Bisnow caught up with the planning committee co-chairs—Colliers VP James Smerdon and Omicron VP George Sawatzky—during the two-day event (now in its 25th year) at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler Resort. “Whistler ICSC is about face-to-face business,” James says, “negotiating deals over dinner and then sharing photos of your kids and dogs because nobody is rushing home after.”

A hot topic among the 86 exhibitors: the evolution of shopping centres, and the challenges of finding space in existing centres. Large tenants wait for other large tenants to depart, or get in line for the lengthy municipal development or redevelopment processes. “The words, ‘there are no easy deals any more’ should be printed on t-shirts and handed out at registration to save people from having to say it all the time,” James adds.

George was paying close attention to US retailers like Nordstrom, Crate & Barrel, and Marshalls expanding into Canada. E-commerce was also a hot topic. “Retailers are not only thinking about their online offering but also how they need to re-envision their customer experience in their bricks and mortar locations,” George says. Snapped is an ice sculpture at the welcome reception.