Sparse crowds a feature at Montreal's new high-end Royalmount mall

The holiday shopping season is in full swing, but at the recently opened Royalmount shopping mall in Montreal, the hallways feel empty.

CEO and owner Andrew Lufty says, however, that it’s all part of the growing pains. He said that though the crowds may not be huge, those that are shopping tend to spend more.

“Of course we focus on numbers of customers and traffic, but conversion is actually probably more important than numbers of customers because in the end it's about translating to sales,” he said.

Marketing expert Vivek Astvansh said that empty halls aren’t as bad they might seem on social media.

“Luxury means exclusivity,” he said. “You want fewer people. You want only the people who are interested in buying expensive items.”

While 80 per cent of the stores at the mall have opened, others are still not ready and will miss out on the holiday season.

“When we first opened, we opened with maybe 37 per cent, so I would say less than desirable, but it is what it is when you're dealing with these big corporations from around the world,” said Lufty.

Those numbers have Astvansh concerned for the new year.

“If this is not converting now, the future looks a little bleak to me,” he said.

Meanwhile, other malls like Fairview are packed with shoppers, but Lufty pointed out that Montrealers are still discovering what Royalmount has to offer, including its soon to open skating rink.

“Overnight success is 10 years,” he said. “There's no such thing as overnight success.”