Japanese retailer Uniqlo has announced plans to open a new location at Winnipeg’s St. Vital Centre in August.

Uniqlo said it will open a 15,000-square-foot store on August 21. The company previously announced that it would open a new location at St. Vital Centre but did not specify the launch date. The opening will mark one of the first major tenant openings since Leyad acquired the shopping centre earlier this year.

The Montreal-based real estate company purchased the approximately one-million-square-foot mall from the Ontario Pension Board for $160.5 million in February. St. Vital Centre contains about 160 retailers and attracts approximately eight million visitors annually.

Leasing plans indicate the new Uniqlo space was created by amalgamating six smaller inline units near the mall’s centre court.

The store will be Uniqlo’s second Winnipeg location, following the May opening of its first Manitoba store at CF Polo Park.

The opening is also part of a broader Canadian expansion by Uniqlo. The retailer has announced additional stores at Quartier DIX30 in Brossard, Que.; Tsawwassen Mills in Delta, B.C.; Hillcrest Mall in Richmond Hill, Ont.; and Conestoga Mall in Waterloo, Ont.

The five openings will bring Uniqlo’s Canadian network to 42 stores. The company operates more than 2,500 locations worldwide.

Pictured: St. Vital Centre in Winnipeg

Photo: CNW Group/Leyad