The Olympic Superstore for Vancouver 2010 will take over most of the ground floor of the Hudson’s Bay in downtown Vancouver. (ATR)The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Superstore will be on the main floor of the Hudson's Bay Company department store in downtown Vancouver.
Opening is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 1 when the Canadian Olympic team uniforms will be revealed. The store already contains a Vancouver 2010 department in one corner of the ground floor, but the space will expand to cover two-thirds of the floor.
As is typical of Olympic Superstores, Visa and cash will be the only payments accepted.
Speaking at the opening of the three-day Vancouver Gift Show at B.C. Place Stadium on Sunday, VANOC Director of Licensing and Merchandising Dennis Kim says he believes licensed products for the 2010 Games will be attractive for consumers.
"We are the one brand that stands out of the entire show,” Kim said. “We wanted to do that to create an atmosphere that is similar to the Games experience. You want to be able to demonstrate this is an exciting brand."
VANOC and 19 licensees occupied a pavilion on the floor of the BC Place Stadium, also the site of opening and closing ceremonies.
Vancouver 2010 licensed product sales are reported to have increased 49 percent during the November to January quarter. VANOC says there are about 1,700 retail sales points for 2010 products, mostly in British Columbia.
VANOC has increased its revenue target for licensed product royalties from $36 million to $42.5 million.
Sledge Hockey Test
The host nation swept sledge hockey and wheelchair curling test events that ended March 1.
Canada upended the U.S. 2-1 in a shootout to win gold in the Feb. 24-March 1 Hockey Canada Cup four-nation sledge hockey tournament. Canada won gold at the sledge hockey test event this weekend in Vancouver. (Getty Images)Germany and Japan also entered the tournament at the 5,000-seat Thunderbird Arena. The March 1 gold medal match at the secondary hockey venue drew 1,800 fans.
Canada cruised to a 9-2 win over Sweden to win the world wheelchair curling championship on Feb. 28. The weeklong meet inaugurated the Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic Centre. Ten nations were represented. Wheelchair curling makes its debut in Vancouver.
Next up is the International Paralympic Committee cross-country skiing and biathlon world cup in the Callaghan Valley March 4-7.
Canadian Committee Bows Out of Hospitality Venue
The Canadian Olympic Committee is dropping plans to use a prominent restored building as the site for Canada House next February.
CEO Chris Rudge said the decision to abandon plans for the Roundhouse Community Centre “came down to financial considerations.”
The Roundhouse was restored for Expo 86 and is the site of historic Engine 374, which pulled the first transcontinental train to Canada’s west coast in 1887.
The Roundhouse is one of a list of Vancouver sites for rent to during the Games, a list that includes Stanley The Canadian Olympic Committee has decided not to use the Roundhouse Community Centre for Canada House. (Centre of Expertise on Culture and Communities)Park, Vanier Park, Queen Elizabeth Park and the VanDusen Botanical Garden. The city of Vancouver will only confirm Coca-Cola as a tenant of the David Lam Park live site.
Olympic operations director Dave Rudberg said sponsor rental revenue will probably fall short of the $3.5 million target at the $18.2 million live sites.
Briefs...
...The Games Preparation Centre in suburban Surrey remains unfinished, despite pledges from the Surrey mayor that that it would be open on Feb. 1. Surrey’s contract with VANOC was since amended twice and the city has offered to find alternate space. A city official now says VANOC should have occupancy later this month. The center will be used for workforce training and performer rehearsal venue in an area of Surrey notorious for prostitution and drug dealing.
...There will be no criminal court trials during the 2010 Winter Olympics because police witnesses and court sheriffs will be part of the security detail. Civil trials will carry on, but court officials have warned participants that “parking will be at a minimum and traffic at a maximum” in downtown Vancouver where the major courthouses are located.
With reporting from Bob Mackin in Vancouver.
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