Kristina Partsinevelos

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It may only be 100,000 square feet of cranes, construction hats and racks of bagged clothes, but that’s all part of the process for La Maison Simons as it prepares to takes the wraps off its first store in Ontario. The Quebec-based retailer will open its newest location at Square One Mall in Mississauga on March 17 at a perilous time for Canadian retail: Smart Set has closed its Canadian outlets, Jacob shuttered all but five of its stores, Mexx filed for bankruptcy, and Danier Leather recently started the insolvency process.

“If you don’t commit yourself to suffering in the short term to build something meaningful, you’re going to fall behind,” explained the fifth-generation CEO, Peter Simons, when asked about the demise of middle-class Canadian retailers. Simons has 11 other outlets, with only two outside Quebec.

“Our stores are still expensive, but we made a decision to build stores where each one is unique,” Simons told BNN. The Mississauga store has a 30-foot illuminated wall, while the retailer’s West Vancouver store features local artist Douglas Coupland’s multicoloured “Bow Tie” sculpture. Simons’ next big project is building a net-zero energy store in Quebec, a costly endeavor according to the CEO.

“As a private company we can make these unique choices that I hope customers appreciate. If they don’t, I’m wrong and there will be no Canadian retailers left,” Simons said.

“Everyone comes to Canada, they want to do business here they think it’s going to be a walk in the park. It’s not as easy as it seems,” he added. Indeed, it was a tough lesson learned by Target after it closed all 133 of its Canadian stores. Even low-cost retailer Nordstrom Rack is delaying its Canadian expansion until 2017 because it didn’t anticipate the complexity of its Canadian distribution systems.

Simons carries a mix of high-end designer lines like Vivienne Westwood and more affordable private labels like Twik. The various price points means Simons not only faces competition from the ubiquitous fast-fashion outlets like Zara and H&M, but also the invasion of luxury retailers including Nordstrom and Saks. Simons told BNN that he is “going to kick some butt” regardless of how many new retailers enter the Canadian market.

“Every time you step in the ring every morning, yeah you’re worried you’ll get your head knocked off -- but you’ll probably protect yourself,” he said. ”A little bit of humility is a pretty good thing to have these days.”

The tough conditions in Canadian retail are constantly top of mind for Simons as he prepares for his company’s Ontario debut. “I think if you’re not worried every day, you’re just a fool.”