Jean Machine aims to lure legging-lovers back to denim with a makeover

Retailer’s owner wants to ‘clean up’ locations, let product ‘do the talking’

Four months after acquiring Jean Machine, the new owner of the denim retailer says it plans on “cleaning up” the look of its stores as part of an effort to woo back customers.

Gerry Bachynski, president and CEO of Comark Services Inc., says renovations will begin this fall at some locations that will include new light fixtures and repainting, all in the hopes of reinvigorating a company that has been around for 41 years — a lifetime in Canadian retail.

“My personal affinity is let the merchandise do the talking,” he said.

Bachynski says over the past few years, customers have cast aside jeans in favour of more comfortable leggings and yoga pants.

But he thinks denim is poised for a comeback.

“In the last year, year and a half, we’ve seen a resurgence in denim sales,” Bachynski said, declining to provide specific sales figures for Jean Machine.

Founded in 1976, Jean Machine has 30 stores in Ontario. Comark’s parent company, Vancouver-based Stern Partners Inc., acquired Jean Machine in March for an undisclosed amount after it ended up in bankruptcy protection following years of dwindling sales.

Bachynski says shoppers gave up on jeans for casual athletic options popularized by brands like Lululemon and the Gap.

In response, jeans manufacturers have started producing more relaxed, comfortable, stretch-fit denim, he said. It may be working.

According to market research firm Euromonitor, Canadian shoppers returned to denim in 2016, as the trend toward yoga pants, leggings and track suits began to show signs of decline.

Retail expert Farla Efros says the main reason for the discrepancies in consumer appetite for denim between Canada and the U.S. is that the latter’s market is oversaturated.

In the case of True Religion, which filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this month, the brand is not only sold in department stores like they are in Canada, but also in standalone locations under their own banner.

“They were cannibalizing their stores,” Efros said, “and we just don’t have that here in Canada.”