German sportswear giant Adidas AG (ETR:ADS) is doing tenant improvements at its 35,000-square-foot future store on the northeast corner of Robson and Burrard streets and has put up some signage.
"Store is targeted to open by early December and will be a sport performance destination with some unique experiences available for all consumers," Adidas' vice-president of retail for Canada, Lesley Hawkins, told BIV yesterday afternoon. "We have started the recruitment process."
Hawkins did not say how many staff are likely to be hired but said interested prospective workers could check out the careers section of Adidas' website.
While BIV in January reported that Adidas would lease the space, and replace what had been a Victoria’s Secret location, it was unclear when its new store would open.
Speculation also swirled about what kind of store Adidas would open, given the site’s large size.
Marcus & Millichap senior vice-president Martin Moriarty told BIV that he believes the site is set to be the largest footprint in Metro Vancouver for a single sportswear brand.
Sport Chek leases a 53,000-square-foot location at 788 Robson Street, on the corner with Howe Street, but that store carries a range of sportswear brands.
“I think the Decathlon store at Metropolis at Metrotown is around 25,000 square feet,” Moriarty said, referring to the France-based sport and outdoor retailer that opened its Burnaby location a couple months ago.
“For Nike stores, I think the one in Metropolis at Metrotown is probably 10,000 square feet, which probably is the largest. The one in CF Richmond Centre, I think, is around 6,000 square feet.”
Image: Branding has gone up outside the future Adidas store at the corner of Robson and Burrard streets | Rob Kruyt
It remains to be seen how Adidas kits out its downtown Vancouver store, and what exactly the "unique experiences" are that Hawkins said will be in the store.
Outdoor signage now makes it clear that the store is not slated to operate under Adidas’ Terrex brand.
Adidas opened a Terrex-branded store at 2235 West 4th Avenue on Christmas Eve, 2022, and it considered that store a concept store. The outlet was the company's second permanent Terrex store, after one in Germany.
That 2022 move followed competitor Arc'Teryx opening a 4,504-square-foot store six doors east of what would become the Terrex store, at 2201 West 4th Avenue – a store that includes a large service centre where customers can bring Arc'Teryx products to be repaired. Arc'Teryx then closed a smaller location at 2033 West 4th Avenue.
BIV in January 2023 asked Hawkins whether the company feared a lawsuit from Arc'Teryx because the two brands' names sound so similar.
She said she did not fear any court action.
"The Terrex brand has been around since the '80s," Hawkins said at the time. "I understand that there is some similarity in the names, but Terrex has existed for a long time."
Arc'Teryx's parent company, Amer Sports, one month later, sued Adidas Canada Ltd. for trademark infringement related to its Terrex-branded retail stores
A BC Supreme Court judge in January issued a temporary injunction forbidding Adidas Canada from using the name Terrex at its Kitsilano store, until a trademark infringement case goes to trial.
While that court order only applies to the company's Kitsilano store, it would have been a daring move for Adidas to plan to open a large Terrex branded store at the corner of Burrard and Robson streets given that a 3,200-square-foot Arc'Teryx store has been at 813 Burrard Street, nearly kitty corner to the proposed new Adidas store, since 2017.
