Bensadoun School of Retail Management - BSRM News

ÿ��̽�� DataSphere Lab proving to be good for business

ÿ��̽�� — Fri, 10 Oct 2025 14:32:12 +0000

At ÿ��̽��’s Desautels Faculty of Management, the DataSphere Lab is transforming how companies use data and how students learn.

Launched in 2023, the lab connects organizations eager to make smarter, data-driven decisions with ÿ��̽�� students who apply advanced analytics, machine learning, and AI to real-world challenges.

When AI is used to set wages, it sets them higher than humans would

ÿ��̽�� — Thu, 09 Oct 2025 19:35:20 +0000

When AI sets wages, it pushes them higher, according to recent research by Maxime Cohen, a Professor of Retail and Operations Management at the Bensadoun School of Retail Management. Cohen conducted a study that asked AI to recommend wages for 60,000 freelance profiles in a variety of industries. He found that AI sets wages higher than humans do.

How AI and big data are reshaping the future of retail

ÿ��̽�� — Thu, 09 Oct 2025 19:34:00 +0000

The emergence of e-commerce has made for a revolution in retail. Whenever you make a purchase online, you generate data, and that data allows for a higher degree of personalization.

Insights from the Reshaping the Future of Retail Conference

ÿ��̽�� — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 19:48:45 +0000

Meghan Markowski (MMR'25) captures key takeaways from this year's Reshaping the Future of Retail Conference, which brought together over 250 retail leaders, academics, and students at Montreal’s Sofitel Golden Mile on September 26.

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

ÿ��̽�� — 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.

Inflation and tariffs a double whammy for retailers

ÿ��̽�� — 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.”

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

ÿ��̽�� — 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.

SSENSE bankruptcy could be harbinger of trouble for Canadian retailers

ÿ��̽�� — 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.

Businesses need to adapt to change to grow

ÿ��̽�� — 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.

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

ÿ��̽�� — 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.

Meet the winning teams of our Retail Gen AI Hackathon

ÿ��̽�� — Thu, 10 Oct 2024 14:45:28 +0000

Congratulations to our winning teams of the Bensadoun School’s 2^nd annual Retail Gen AI Hackathon.

We had 38 student teams register representing diverse faculties across ÿ��̽��. Over two days, 10 finalist teams hacked creative Gen AI solutions for our title sponsor ALDO Group.

Each team had an AWS mentor and access to support from IVADO Labs and DataSphere Lab team members.

Participate in the Fall 2023 edition of the Retail Gen AI Hackathon

ÿ��̽�� — Fri, 11 Aug 2023 16:22:07 +0000

October 5-13, 2023

Want to work collaboratively in a fun yet competitive environment to develop innovative generative AI solutions for the ALDO Group’s Data & Analytics Corporate Team?

This first edition of the Retail Gen AI Hackathon, powered by ALDO Group, is a unique opportunity to work on a real-life problem, develop a solution in a fast-paced environment, and learn how AI and data analytics can help retailers make better data-driven decisions within their operations.

Bensadoun School receives $5M in provincial funding for retail innovation

ÿ��̽�� — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 15:24:02 +0000

The Quebec Ministry of Economy and Innovation has awarded the Bensadoun School of Retail Management with $5 million in funding over the next four years. According to Minister Pierre Fitzgibbon, a significant portion of the funds will support the Bensadoun School’s retail innovation lab. Unveiled earlier this year, the live laboratory store is designed to provide insights that will help accelerate Quebec retailers along the path of digital transformation.

ÿ��̽�� and Alimentation Couche-Tard launch unique laboratory store to propel retail industry and customers into the future

ÿ��̽�� — Thu, 14 Jan 2021 20:41:49 +0000

Partnering with Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., the new retail innovation lab at ÿ��̽��’s Bensadoun School of Retail Management will enable ground-breaking research and test innovations, including frictionless technologies