Emma Finnie’s Post

💥 Connecting the Dots: Retail Decimation at Bloor & Yonge (Toronto) 🇨🇦 I haven't ventured downtown very often since the pandemic hit. Today, I had an appointment so I left extra early and headed off to a store at Cumberland Terrace that has always had in every colour of the rainbow. 🛍 👛 It was my first time going to Bloor and Yonge and Yorkville in almost 4 years. I discovered the store is permanently closed and so are almost all of the other luxury retail outlets at the once thriving Cumberland Terrace and the underground passages adjacent to Holt Renfrew. The Bay, one of Canada's oldest department stores, is gone. Apparently, the retail stores in the PATH Network have also been decimated. Like a tsunami, unforseen events can wipe out businesses and an entire area. That's why it's important to monitor trends and be proactive in our response. It was challenging for stores to be proactive due to unexpected Government imposed restrictions and lockdowns. Retailers that were able to quickly pivot to virtual or who were already established in the virtual space were able to survive. Retailers who relied on foot traffic suffered when people started working from their suburban homes instead of in Toronto's downtown office towers. This is probably not news to anybody but the amount of time it's taking fir landlords to find replacement retailers is longer than anticipated. One of the issues is that some of the landlords require 10-year leases. Definitely that business model needs to change as tenants are reluctant to take the risk of locking themselves in for so long. Hindsight is 20/20. 🛍 What strategies could have saved these businesses? 🏢 Have the retail outlets in your cities downtown core survived or have new ones sprung up to replace them good? #Toronto #retail #economy #retailers #teambuilding Here is an example of an approach to team building I've used some of my clients that can work for retailers. Please pop me a private message if you would like to know more. https://lnkd.in/eUYiCM9y

PIVOT PARKING ANNOUNCES PARTNERSHIP WITH THE PARKING WHISPERER FT. LAUDERDALE, FL [June 12, 2023] – John Oglesby, CEO of The Parking Whisperer is proud to announce its partnership with Pivot Parking, adding Founder & CEO John Oglesby to the team. The Parking Whisperer will provide operational consulting services to Pivot Parking, creating significant value with current and potential customers and potential mergers and acquisitions. Oglesby brings nearly 40 years of experience in the parking industry with extended engagements at Central Parking, Impark, and MobileNOW, as well as signature events, including the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, 200+ sport and entertainment venues, and paid parking installations and expansions with almost 50 municipalities. He has also worked extensively with municipalities, hospitals, hospitality, airports, and consulting firms, earning him a reputation for strong team building and high levels of satisfaction from his consulting clients. “It was clear to us that John Oglesby was the ideal partner for Pivot Parking due to his industry expertise, institutional knowledge, and operational excellence,” says Chief Executive Officer Scott Diggs “This partnership signals our focus on growth and excellence as consultants and trusted leaders in the parking industry. We’re thrilled to welcome John as a member of our team, and look forward to the many ways The Parking Whisperer will add immediate value to our consulting relationships and ever-growing customer channels.” The Parking Whisperer is a regular columnist in Parking Today Magazine, a member of the Parking Consultant’s Council, as well as having presented at each of the last four parking trade shows across North America while serving as a subject matter expert with startups and expanding technology firms serving the parking, transportation, and mobility industry. ABOUT PARKING WHISPERER The Parking Whisperer was founded in 1999 as RESULT$ Consulting, then reimagined and expanded to a full-service consulting firm in 2017. A Consulting Satisfaction Guaranteed and CEO direct involvement with each project has led to dramatic growth across one dozen parking verticals and technology development. ABOUT PIVOT PARKING Co-founded in 2020 by parking industry veteran Scott Diggs and serial entrepreneur Paul Adkison, Pivot Parking is one of the fastest-growing parking companies in the United States. Along with industry leaders Tina Reid and Brandon Lauterbach, the company has over 90 years of experience in the parking industry and boasts 100% customer retention, parking over 25,000 cars per day and handling over nine million transactions each year. Park Fast. Park Easy. Park Safe. Learn more at pivotparking.com.

The last 6 months has been a wild journey. I was lucky enough to get a chance to run a 6 month physical retail space in Covent Garden for NO ONE TRUE ANYTHING. I took that chance and grabbed it by the horns. There are 182.5 days in 6 months and I was in at the store 179.5 of days, consistently. 7 days a week I put my all into getting my business off the ground, proving that my concept will work and there is demand in the market. I took 4 trains per day to travel to and from Watford to Covent Garden, that’s 716 train journeys. Don’t get me started on the cost! I remember when I signed the lease, everyone said the same thing “how are you going to work every day for 6 months?” I love it when people question what I can do, it’s always been the case in my own personal story. Those comments gave me fire, I said to my self “I’ll show you what I can do”. Truth is, I didn’t know how I was going to do it, but I knew I had to. I went through mental and physical barriers that I never thought I could get through, but I went through every single one. Don’t get me wrong, it was hard, sometimes were amazing and some days were terrible. The way I look at this past 6 months, is that if I can put my mind and body through that experience and relentlessness, I can do anything. Now the main question… was it worth it? 100%, no doubt. I meet the most amazing people, I generated more sales then I could ever have imagined and I got to tell me story and share my brand with customers from over 20 countries. The experiment also allowed me to get to the next stage of my business, by securing investment, which is going to allow me to scale and grow. My feet are shot and my back is aching, but I don’t care, I completed my challenge.

At Kennedy Property, we believe in the power of teamwork. Our weekly team meetings are where ideas flourish, strategies align, and agents thrive. It's the heartbeat of our success, where knowledge is shared, and goals are achieved. #dubairealestate #kennedyproperty #kennedypropertygroup #dubaiproperty #realestate #dubailife #dubaiproperties⁠

Grosvenor Reveals 15 Years of Transformative Impact at Liverpool ONE - Liverpool ONE has generated £4.1bn in economic activity and played key role in a 24% growth in the value of LCR’s visitor economy.  - Through Grosvenor’s management, the retail and entertainment destination has supported thousands of jobs and contributed billions in local and national tax revenue since 2008.  - One of the most ambitious brownfield projects of the 21st century, it is emblematic of how regeneration can transform a city.  Grosvenor has today published a report setting out Liverpool ONE’s role in the physical, economic, and social renaissance of Liverpool. https://lnkd.in/eEFrUaJX