Galeries d'Anjou (formerly "CF Galeries d'Anjou") is a shopping mall located in the borough of Anjou in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Major tenants include Hudson's Bay, Simons, The Brick, Winners, Sports Experts/Atmosphere and Aubainerie. In addition to the main indoor shopping centre, Galeries d'Anjou has several stores around its parking lot including Best Buy and Rona l'Entrepôt.

Galeries d'Anjou
Map
LocationMontreal, Quebec
Address7999 Galeries d'Anjou Blvd, Anjou, Quebec, Canada
Opening dateAugust 8, 1968
DeveloperFairview Corporation
ManagementJLL
OwnerIvanhoé Cambridge
No. of stores and services160
No. of anchor tenants6
Total retail floor area1,114,000 sq ft (103,500 m2).
No. of floors1
Parking6000
Public transit access STM Bus 44, 95, 141 and 460
Websitegaleriesdanjou.com

Formerly owned by Cadillac Fairview, the mall had long been associated with the company's other shopping centres in the area Fairview Pointe-Claire, Carrefour Laval and Promenades Saint-Bruno.[1][2] It is now wholly-owned by Ivanhoé Cambridge and operated by JLL. It is one of two super-regional malls in eastern Montreal, along with Place Versailles. Galeries d'Anjou is over 1,100,000 square feet (100,000 m2) and was by far the largest shopping mall on the Island of Montreal throughout the 1970s and much of the 1980s.

History edit

 
The Bay prior to being renamed Hudson's Bay
 
Former Zellers store which had kept Eaton's facade.

In 1967, the part of Radisson Street in Anjou was renamed Galeries d'Anjou Boulevard in honor of the upcoming shopping mall. Construction of the shopping mall began in the spring of 1967 and it was overall completed in May 1968 as planned.[3] However, further work needed to be done indoor before the mall could actually be opened.[3]

Galeries d'Anjou inaugurated on August 8, 1968 with 85 stores.[4] Its original anchors were the department stores Simpsons and Eaton's, and the supermarkets Steinberg's and Dominion.[5] As with Fairview Pointe-Claire, Simpsons and Eaton's were located at the extremities of the mall.[4] Simpsons always had three levels, making it the largest store of Galeries d'Anjou, but only its first and second floors were used to sell merchandise (its basement was at the time reserved for store services and an employees' cafeteria).[6][7] Eaton's had two floors only and, unlike its other Montreal stores at the time, used the French name Eaton (without the "'s") for its location at Galeries d'Anjou.[7][8] Both Simpson's and Eaton's had a restaurant inside their store.[9] Steinberg's and Dominion faced each another in the north side of the mall and were separated from one another by a corridor.[5] Upon its opening, Galeries d'Anjou was the second largest shopping mall in Canada after Yorkdale in Toronto.[10] The mall was the joint property of Simpsons Limited and Cemp Investments.[11] It is the second shopping centre in the Montreal area developed and owned by the duo of Simpsons and Cemp Investments.[12]

In 1975, then manager and co-owner Cadillac Fairview announced the expansion of Galeries d'Anjou to bring the total size of the shopping centre from 700,000 to 920,000 square feet.[13] As a result, 65 new stores opened on March 25, 1976, in a new mall wing.[14][13] This new section was anchored a few months later by Sears which inaugurated on August 18, 1976.[15][14]

In 1979, Hudson's Bay Company acquired the Simpsons chain which it kept as a subsidiary.[16] In 1984, Hudson's Bay Company transferred to its real-estate unit Markborough Properties the shopping malls that were owned by Simpsons.[17] Galeries d'Anjou was therefore the joint property of Cadillac Fairview and Markborough.[18] Simpsons continued operating its store in the mall until it converted to The Bay in March 1989.[19] The store's basement once served in the early 1990s as a warehouse for The Bay's bargains in Montreal, specifically on household products such as large appliances and home furnishings.[20]

Dominion rebranded as Provigo on June 29, 1981.[21] Based on past telephone directories, the Provigo at Galeries d'Anjou lasted until 1989-1990.[22] Ironically, the Steinberg's store in the mall was later rebranded as a Provigo for a brief time in 1992 before being converted into a Maxi supermarket that same year.[23][24]

Galeries d'Anjou underwent through a $18-million renovation in 1993.[18] The shopping centre did not increase size this time, but it added 30 new retail stores, a new food court in addition to making a series of interior upgrades to rejuvenate the 25-year-old mall that had become outdated and was losing young customers to rival Place Versailles.[18]

In 1997, Cambridge Shopping Centres absorbed Markborough along with its ownership in shopping malls like Galeries d'Anjou.[25] Cambridge later merged with Ivanhoe Corporation in 2001 to form Ivanhoé Cambridge.[26]

Eaton's went out of business in 1999.[27] Hudson's Bay Company acquired its first floor for a new Zellers store that opened in Spring 2000.[28][29] The second floor was taken over by The Brick four years later on April 14, 2004.[30][29]

In August 2013, Galeries d'Anjou introduced a new section of 150,000 square feet featuring Simons and some 15 other retailers.[31][32] Simons itself was built on the mall's parking lot, while the small tenants took the site of the former food court that was razed to accommodate the expansion.[33][34] The food court was relocated on the other side of the shopping centre near Zellers (later Target).[35]

Target acquired the lease of Zellers at Galeries d'Anjou, allowing it to open its own store on October 18, 2013.[36] After Target closed all its stores in Canada in April 2015, its space at Galeries d'Anjou was left vacant for two years. Winners, Saks Off 5th and Old Navy opened in 2017 in the former Target location.[37] Saks and Winners both opened on August 3, 2017, whereas Old Navy arrived two months later in October.[38][37] In spite of these major arrivals, a small space of the former Target store was still unoccupied.[37] It has since been filled by a Cacao 70 chocolatier shop and a Copper Branch restaurant, both of which are accessible only from outside.[39] Moreover, a Dollarama opened up on the second floor and appears to have taken the space of a downsizing The Brick.[40][33]

The Sears at Galeries d'Anjou was among the stores that closed during the chain's final day in Canada on January 14, 2018.[41] The Aubainerie [fr] store opened at the former Sears on November 2, 2022.[42][43]

On May 19, 2021, Ivanhoé Cambridge became the sole owner of the mall by acquiring Cadillac Fairview's share of Galeries d'Anjou in exchange for Ivanhoé Cambridge's share of Fairview Pointe-Claire.[44] Prior to this, the two shopping centres were co-owned by Ivanhoé Cambridge and Cadillac Fairview, with the latter serving as manager of both malls.[45][46]

Public transit access edit

Most buses that stop at Galeries D’Anjou go to Radisson metro station. All buses stop on both sides of Galeries D’Anjou boulevard.

Société de transport de Montréal
Route
  44 Armand Bombardier
  95 Bélanger
  141 Jean Talon Est
  372 Jean Talon
  460 Metropolitaine
Société de transport de Laval
Route
925 Saint-Francois - Metro Radisson

It is expected that with the Blue line extension into Anjou the future metro station will connect underground to the mall through a pedestrian tunnel.[47] On February 16, 2023, it was announced that Ivanhoé Cambridge and the STM, owners of the Montreal metro, have agreed to the construction of the brand new Anjou terminus station of the Blue Line to take place right near the mall. Expropriation of the affected mall space by the STM is expected to occur in March 2024, which would give time to the affected businesses to relocate elsewhere while the new station is being constructed. The station is projected to open in 2029.[48]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Fairview shopping centre undergoing major renovation". montrealgazette.
  2. ^ "Fashon centres advertisement". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. July 2, 1986. p. D2.
  3. ^ a b "Concept of Les Galeries d'Anjou 'exclusive'". Montreal Star. Montreal. August 7, 1968. pp. 23A.
  4. ^ a b "Les Galeries d'Anjou above all a place for people". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. 8 August 1968. p. 18.
  5. ^ a b "Original stores map". Montreal Star. Montreal. August 7, 1968. pp. 16A.
  6. ^ "Simpsons boasts expanded service, innovations". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. 8 August 1968. p. 23.
  7. ^ a b "Eaton's and Simpson's Galeries d'Anjou page (Montreal Star 1968)". Montreal Star. Montreal. August 7, 1968. pp. 34A.
  8. ^ "Eaton's Anjou grand opening advertisement page". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. 8 August 1968. p. 19.
  9. ^ "Diners choice: Formal, snack". Montreal Star. Montreal. August 7, 1968. p. 25A.
  10. ^ "Put on central roads". Montreal Star. Montreal. August 7, 1968. pp. 10A.
  11. ^ "Quebec's largest shop complex opens". Montreal Star. Montreal. August 7, 1968. p. 4A.
  12. ^ "Second joint venture of two just another one in series". Montreal Star. Montreal. August 7, 1968. p. 18A.
  13. ^ a b "Major expansion planned for Galeries d'Anjou". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. March 26, 1975. p. 21.
  14. ^ a b "St.Bruno centre start set for spring". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. February 3, 1976. p. 31.
  15. ^ "Sears". Montreal Star. Montreal. August 18, 1976. pp. C24.
  16. ^ "McGill Digital Archive :: Canadian Corporate Reports :: Company Detail".
  17. ^ "Properties shuffled to Bay subsidiary". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. 1 March 1984. p. 29.
  18. ^ a b c "Cadillac Fairview finds comfort in the ruins; Crowd-drawing tenants take space left by former Steinberg and Pascal stores". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. 7 October 1993. p. C1.
  19. ^ "The Bay advertisement page". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. 11 March 1989. p. B8.
  20. ^ "Stores are fighting to attract customers; Shoppers can benefit from bargain outlets all over the city: [FINAL Edition]". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. November 14, 1993. p. C3.
  21. ^ "Dominion notice". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. June 27, 1981. p. 8.
  22. ^ "Galeries d'Anjou stores list". 1989-1990 Montreal phone book. Bell Canada. p. 854.
  23. ^ "Galeries d'Anjou stores list". 1992-1993 Montreal phone book. Bell Canada. p. 810.
  24. ^ "Maxi's advertisement page". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. October 7, 1992. p. 8 (A8).
  25. ^ "Cambridge bites off property rival Markborough: $375-million takeover is friendly". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. 29 April 1997. p. C2.
  26. ^ "Our history". CDPQ | Long-term institutional investor | Asset manager. February 6, 2017.
  27. ^ "CBC Archives".
  28. ^ "Hudson's Bay Company announces acquisition of former Eaton's stores". Canada NewsWire. Ottawa. 29 November 1999.
  29. ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). www.galeriesdanjou.ca. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 March 2005. Retrieved 15 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  30. ^ "Media Alert - Brick is opening today six stores in Quebec". Canada NewsWire. Ottawa. 14 April 2004.
  31. ^ "Galeries d'Anjou celebrates makeover milestone Phases I and II of $86-million transformation now complete Phase III underway". Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec | CDPQ | Long-term institutional investor | Asset manager. March 27, 2017.
  32. ^ "January 2015 Map" (PDF). January 16, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 16, 2015.
  33. ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). www.lesgaleriesdanjou.ca. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 February 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  34. ^ "October 2008 Map" (PDF). October 8, 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 8, 2008.
  35. ^ "Galeries d'Anjou gets makeover; Expansion pegged at $86 million; Facelift will feature two-level Simons, redone Bay, Target instead of Zellers". Montreal Gazette. Montreal. 19 July 2011. p. B1.
  36. ^ "Target to Open First Stores in Quebec and Nova Scotia". Target Corporate.
  37. ^ a b c "CF Galeries d'Anjou Announces Target Space Replacement". June 7, 2017.
  38. ^ "First Saks Off 5th store in Montreal region opens at Galeries d'Anjou". montrealgazette.
  39. ^ "7999 Bd des Galeries d'Anjou · 7999 Bd des Galeries d'Anjou, Anjou, QC H1M 1W9, Canada". Google Timeline.
  40. ^ "Shopping Mall Map | Galeries d'Anjou". galeriesdanjou.com.
  41. ^ Wright, Lisa (12 January 2018). "Final Sears stores close Sunday, marking the end of an era | The Star". The Toronto Star.
  42. ^ Hautala, Shelby (November 8, 2022). "Aubainerie Opens 50,000 sq. ft. MEGA POP Concept Store in Montreal [Photos/Interview]".
  43. ^ "7451 Bd des Galeries d'Anjou". Google Timeline.
  44. ^ "Montreal's Top-10 CRE transactions of 2021". January 31, 2022.
  45. ^ "IvanhoeCambridge - Canadian Properties". October 19, 2006. Archived from the original on 19 October 2006.
  46. ^ "IvanhoeCambridge - Canadian Properties". October 19, 2006. Archived from the original on 19 October 2006.
  47. ^ "Montreal's metro network to get five new stations along Blue Line in east end". Montreal. 2022-03-18. Retrieved 2022-08-04.
  48. ^ "STM and developer reach agreement for new Metro station at Galleries D'Anjou". CBC. Montreal. 18 February 2023. Retrieved 27 March 2023.

External links edit

45°36′02″N 73°33′52″W / 45.60056°N 73.56444°W / 45.60056; -73.56444