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Businesses need to adapt to change to grow

admin — Thu, 10 Jul 2025 18:21:07 +0000

For Quebec, small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are an engine of economic growth. Many SMEs have grown into prosperous companies, writes Bensadoun School in Retail Management student William Bernasconi in an article for the Conseil québecois du commerce de detail. But it’s important to consider failures as well as successes. And local businesses have often struggled to grow because of operational constraints, shifting consumer behaviour, and intense competition.

Inflation and tariffs a double whammy for retailers

admin — Thu, 25 Sep 2025 15:47:15 +0000

Montreal-based clothing retailer SSENSE has filed for creditor protection. As recently as 2021, the company was valued at US$4 billion. “For retailers, it’s been a double whammy,” the Bensadoun School of Retail Management’s Executive Director Charles de Brabant told the BBC. “Inflation squeezed consumers, and U.S. trade policy changes have made it for a difficult landscape for retailers.”

SSENSE bankruptcy could be harbinger of trouble for Canadian retailers

admin — Wed, 10 Sep 2025 17:04:06 +0000

On August 29, the United States ended the de miminis exemption, a rule that had allowed small value shipments to cross the border without duties for decades. It’s already affecting some retailers in Canada. The Montreal-based luxury fashion retailer SSENSE filed for bankruptcy the same day the de minimis rule was changed, and cited the change as a reason that it did. As recently as 2021, the company was valued at $4 billion by Sequoia Capital, a U.S. venture capital firm.

Mid-market brands to benefit from consumers’ renewed focus on the basics

admin — Wed, 21 May 2025 19:39:28 +0000

2024 was a rough year for retail in Canada, and 2025 doesn’t look much better, writes Charles de Brabant in Retail Insider. The Executive Director of the Bensadoun School of Retail Management noted that the combination of high interest rates and high inflation has taken a toll on consumer pocketbooks, and they are expected to focus on the basics this year. That plays well for mid-market brands.

One year in, Montreal’s luxury-focused Royalmount mall is still seeking its sweet spot

admin — Wed, 10 Sep 2025 17:05:48 +0000

It has been one year since the Royalmount Mall opened its doors, with a goal of transforming luxury retail in Montreal. The gleaming concourses of the upscale shopping centre are often largely empty, but that isn’t necessarily a sign that Royalmount won’t do well in the long run, according to Charles de Brabant, the Executive Director of the Bensadoun School of Retail Management.

Cree Nation Trust Fund part of bid to turn Bay Building into cultural centre

admin — Thu, 02 Oct 2025 16:05:48 +0000

The Bay Building on Saint Catherine Street is one of Montreal’s most iconic retail locations. But after the Hudson’s Bay Company dissolved in 2025, is future is unclear. One of the bidders for it is the Cree Nation Trust Fund. Called James Bay Eeyou Corporation, they’re partnering with JHD Real Estate on a $400 million bid that would transform the 134-year-old building into a mixed use development that includes commercial space, housing, a hotel development, and a heritage hub with an Indigenous cultural centre and a museum.

Management Science Research Centre (MSRC) Seminar: Yifan Feng

admin — Fri, 24 Oct 2025 13:02:29 +0000

Yifan Feng NUS Business School, Singapore

A Mallows-type Model for Preference Learning from Ranked Choices

Ottawa threatens to sue auto maker Stellantis for violating funding agreements

admin — Thu, 23 Oct 2025 18:11:19 +0000

When the auto maker Stellantis announced its plan to shift production of the Jeep Compass SUV from Brampton, Ontario to Belvidere, Illinois, the Government of Canada didn’t take the news sitting down. It threatened to sue the multinational company, saying that the shift violated previous agreements between the multinational automotive company and the government, which stipulated the automaker had to maintain its Canadian footprint. “There is a huge amount of taxpayer money that has gone in to this company,” Prof.

Starbucks’ choice to shut pick-up only locations could hurt bottom line

admin — Thu, 23 Oct 2025 17:48:13 +0000

Beginning in 2026, Starbucks will be phasing out its mobile order pick-up only locations, abandoning an approach built for speed and efficiency. In an earnings call, Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol said the pick-up only locations had a transactional feel that lacks warmth and human connection. The move favours ‘stay and savour’ customers over ‘grab-and-go ones’, writes Vivek Astvansh in The Conversation. The move could come at a cost, argues the Associate Professor of Quantitative Marketing and Analytics at �� Desautels.

European Union is in the early stages of regulating AI’s use of sensitive data

admin — Thu, 23 Oct 2025 17:50:51 +0000

Artificial intelligence is still an emerging technology, and we are only in the early stages of its regulation. The European Union is at the forefront of the technology’s regulation, says Simon Blanchette, Lecturer at �� Desautels. The EU already has an artificial intelligence act, which centers on the level of privacy risk associated with individual use cases. “For example, when AI is used to evaluate loan or job applications, lots of sensitive, private information will be gathered,” Blanchette told CTV News.

Cohort-based hiring can improve Gen Z employee retention

admin — Fri, 02 May 2025 16:30:51 +0000

Starting a new job can be nerve-wracking, but having someone to lean on can help make it a little easier. Nearly two-thirds of Gen Z employees leave their job within the first year, but a recent US study found that when new hires join an organization as a group, employee retention is better. While Gen Z is unlikely to stay in their jobs as long as previous generations, this could be a strategy to hang around longer than they currently do. “It's a good way for them to bond with each other, and with the organizations,” says Prof.

Desautels’ valedictorian Grace Singer hopes for carbon-free future

admin — Thu, 05 Jun 2025 16:53:16 +0000

This year, ten valedictorians from across the university shared their reflections and insights with ��’s Class of 2025--with an eye cast toward the future. Desautels Grace Singer will be among them. The graduating Bachelor of Commerce student hopes to make a difference by advocating for decarbonization from within the business world. “In the long-term I hope to work directly with the adoption and acceleration of sustainable solutions, such as what I did within the cleantech company I interned at during my degree,” Singer says.

Tariff loophole fuelling Canadian warehouse sector

admin — Thu, 26 Jun 2025 18:38:07 +0000

Tariffs drive up prices for businesses, but some companies are finding a creative loophole to avoid some US tariffs. When a company imports a tariffed good, it pays a tariff. But it doesn’t pay a tariff if the goods are only passing through on the way to a final destination. This creates an incentive for US companies to store inventory in Canada. They can park products here until they sell them, and only pay tariffs on goods that are actually bound for the US market.

Donald Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ does away with de minimis exemption for impots from all countries

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 17:10:02 +0000

The de minimis exemption has played a major role in the rise of Chinese fast fashion brands like Shein and Temu. The exemption works like this: if an imported good has a value of less than $800, it is exempt from tariffs. The loophole has been around since the 1930s, but in recent years, it has given e-commerce brands that ship many smaller orders an advantage. “A retailer like Wal-Mart buys in bulk, and imports are much more than $800, so they pay tariffs,” Prof.

Experts: Economic impact of Quebec housing crisis

admin — Mon, 22 Sep 2025 16:25:04 +0000

According to a report by Quebec researchers studying social inequalities, Quebec’s economy lost $4.2 billion in 2021 due to the ongoing housing crisis — a figure the authors say is likely even higher in 2025.

Manque de logements adéquats : quels coûts sur la prospérité économique? is the first publication in a larger research project conducted by the Observatoire des inégalités du Québec with several partners.