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CBRE Brings L.L.Bean to Toronto’s Manulife Centre

May 21, 2025 4 Minute Read

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Alex Edmison in front of LL Bean

L.L.Bean is coming to Toronto’s Manulife Centre, with a 9,500 sq. ft. store, the company’s 16th in Canada, opening this fall on the concourse level of the venerable shopping complex at Bay and Bloor streets.

The outdoor apparel retailer will be taking the space previously occupied by LCBO, which recently relocated to a street-facing location at the corner of Bloor and Balmuto streets. CBRE’s Alex Edmison brokered the deal, representing Manulife.

CBRE’s Urban Retail Team has been working with Manulife since 2019 to re-merchandise its flagship retail asset and has helped secure notable new tenants at Manulife Centre such as Earls Kitchen + Bar, Swarovski and now L.L.Bean.

“We’re thrilled to welcome L.L. Bean to Manulife Centre,” says Pedro Cruells with Manulife Investment Management. “Their addition strengthens our tenant mix and complements the dynamic, destination retail experience we’ve built in the heart of Toronto.”

The redevelopment of Manulife Centre transformed its podium with a glass enclosure that houses the first Canadian location of Eataly, another CBRE-brokered deal.

L.L.Bean stores in Canada are independently operated by Jaytex Group, a Canadian company launched in 1978. Jaytex holds the brand’s Canadian wholesale and retail license and is managing its rollout nationwide.

L.L.Bean first entered the Canadian market in 2018 via e-commerce and in 2019 opened its first brick-and-mortar location in Canada, in Oakville, ON. The retailer currently operates 15 stores across Canada and further growth is expected.



The redevelopment of Manulife Centre transformed its podium with a glass enclosure that houses the first Canadian location of Eataly, another CBRE-brokered deal.
The redevelopment of Manulife Centre transformed its podium with a glass enclosure that houses the first Canadian location of Eataly, another CBRE-brokered deal.

Downtown Destination

The deal at Manulife Centre originated during a casual chat when Edmison asked the Jaytex team if they would consider a downtown Toronto location for L.L. Bean.

“They are a destination retailer,” Edmison says. “The brand is so strong that they really just have to put a dot on the map and people will come to them.”

L.L.Bean is continuing to grow its brand awareness and presence across Canada and the Jaytex team felt that based on findings from their e-commerce shopping heat map, a downtown Toronto location would be the perfect addition to their growing Canadian portfolio and align well with customer demand.

“At Manulife Centre they’ll be at the junction of two subway lines,” says Edmison, noting that this will be L.L.Bean’s first directly subway accessible location in Canada.

“They’ve got co-tenancy with Eataly, two grocery stores, along with seamless retail parking. Plus they’ve got a captive audience of people living in the neighbourhood and more draw than in any other area of Toronto.”

Quick Work

Edmison says the Jaytex team immediately grasped the vision he had for L.L.Bean at Manulife Centre and were “fantastic” to work with. “We were able to do the deal in relatively short order.”

“Manulife was also fantastic. They’re getting a national tenant, a name brand that’s highly complementary to the tenant mix and will create synergies with Over the Rainbow Jeans, another neighbourhood destination and an absolute Yorkville institution.”

“Everyone saw how L.L.Bean could work well for Manulife Centre,” Edmison adds. “They will bring in traffic that otherwise wouldn’t have been in this neighbourhood, which is good for Manulife Centre, and it will contribute quite a lot to the broader Bloor-Yorkville community.”

No need to dress this deal up. “It was a good idea that made sense for both parties,” says Edmison.

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