Industry pioneer Courtney Watkins has opened Mine & Yours‘ newest location at The Well, marking a strategic expansion that demonstrates the growing influence of luxury resale in Toronto’s competitive retail landscape. Watkins launched the pop-up on July 16, bringing her sustainable fashion concept to one of downtown Toronto’s most dynamic mixed-use developments.
“We’ve seen such an incredible response to our Yorkville store, it was clear Toronto was ready for more,” said Watkins, who has built Mine & Yours into Canada’s premier luxury resale destination since founding the company in 2013. “Opening at The Well gives us the opportunity to give back to our community and offer access to premium, sustainable fashion in a beautiful, central location.”
The temporary store operates through November at unit UG33, strategically positioned in the underground retail concourse. The approximately 1,000 square foot space sits between Lululemon and Sephora, creating high visibility within The Well’s retail ecosystem. Unlike the brand’s Yorkville flagship, which showcases ultra-luxury pieces including $25,000 Birkin bags and $7,500 Chanel blazers, The Well location emphasizes contemporary designer selections with handbags in the $2,000 to $5,000 range and Chanel pieces under $1,000—positioning that aligns with the development’s target demographic of young professionals.
Watkins revealed The Well had been under consideration since the development’s earliest stages, when she toured the construction site wearing a hard hat years before opening. While she ultimately chose Yorkville for her Toronto market entry, the downtown development remained a key strategic target as Mine & Yours expanded.
“I was actually looking at The Well before Yorkville,” Watkins explained. “I put on a hard hat and walked through the space and we were talking about terms, but it didn’t feel right at that moment. But it was always on my radar.”
The Well location represents the second Toronto store for Mine & Yours, showcasing Watkins’ strategic vision that has transformed a single Vancouver boutique into five locations across three major Canadian cities in just over a decade. Under her leadership, the company operates permanent stores in Vancouver’s Kitsilano and Yaletown neighborhoods, Toronto’s Yorkville district, and maintains an extended pop-up at Calgary’s Holt Renfrew. The Calgary location exceeded sales projections for its entire 2.5-month run within just the first month—a testament to Watkins’ market insights and brand positioning.
The return to The Well came as Mine & Yours sought to capture downtown Toronto’s financial core and King West markets. As a recipient of the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women™ North America Class of 2024 and leader in Canada’s circular fashion revolution, Watkins has consistently demonstrated an ability to anticipate market trends and consumer preferences ahead of the competition.
The luxury resale market has evolved significantly under the influence of visionary leaders like Watkins, who has redefined how consumers approach sustainable fashion without compromising on quality or style. Her success in positioning luxury resale as aspirational rather than alternative has influenced industry standards across Canada and attracted previously skeptical property managers to actively court secondhand retailers.
“All I do when I travel is visit any secondhand store I possibly can and I’m always like, every time I go to new cities, I’m like, wow, we’re pretty good back home,” Watkins said, reflecting on her international market research. “Just with the price points as well as the product that we have.”
Her market analysis has proven prescient. The downtown demographic represents a distinct opportunity from Yorkville’s luxury shopping corridor. “That downtown client, yes, they will come shop with us in Yorkville, but kind of begrudgingly,” Watkins noted. “We’ve had so many clients, even in just the one week that we’ve been open, are like, we’re so excited you’re here. I live in the building or I work in the building.”
The Well’s retail ecosystem includes established tenants Gotstyle, Adidas and Etiket alongside successful pop-ups from KIT + ACE, Lululemon and Rodd & Gunn. Mine & Yours addresses a strategic gap in the tenant mix while bringing an established customer base that benefits the entire retail corridor through increased foot traffic and extended shopping visits.
From RioCan’s perspective, Mine & Yours represents the type of unique retailer that elevates The Well’s positioning in Toronto’s competitive retail landscape. “Our focus is on distinctive retailers and elevated brands that offer experiences you can’t find elsewhere in downtown Toronto,” said Kariv Oretsky, Leasing Representative at RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust who oversees leasing at The Well. “Mine & Yours brings a unique retail concept that resonates strongly with our target demographic of young professionals in the King West and financial district.”
Looking ahead, Watkins continues to innovate retail expansion strategies using The Well pop-up to test market demand for a potential third permanent Toronto location. Her pioneering “brick, click and pop” business model—combining permanent stores, e-commerce and strategic pop-ups—has become a blueprint for sustainable retail growth in the Canadian market.
“Pop-ups have always been a part of our strategy,” Watkins explained. “We find that it’s really good for new client acquisitions. A lot of times it’s testing a new market, so we will decide to do a pop-up in a location instead of signing a five or 10-year lease. There’s just less risk on our end.”
From the property management perspective, Oretsky emphasized Mine & Yours exemplifies The Well’s strategic tenant selection approach. “Our strategy focuses on retailers exactly like Mine & Yours, where it’s the only one in downtown Toronto. This represents our commitment to bringing market differentiation that perfectly matches the demographic we serve in this area,” he said.
Beyond physical expansion, Watkins is developing an online stylist program to extend Mine & Yours’ signature personalized shopping experience to customers nationwide who cannot visit physical locations. The Well location will also introduce buying services in early August, allowing customers to sell designer items for cash or store credit. She’s also exploring innovative partnerships with luxury hotels that could serve both brands’ clientele—demonstrating the forward-thinking approach that has made her a sought-after collaborator in the hospitality and retail sectors.
Watkins’ influence extends beyond business operations to industry transformation. She has documented a complete reversal in how property managers approach luxury resale, with companies that previously rejected secondhand retailers now actively pursuing partnerships.
“In the past, when we were looking at doing pop-ups, big property management companies were like, sorry, we’re not interested. We don’t do secondhand,” Watkins noted. “Now it’s the opposite. They’re reaching out to us and they’re saying, we want you in our space. Please come do a pop-up because they’re seeing that secondhand is trendy.”
This shift reflects Watkins’ success in elevating the entire sector’s reputation while maintaining her commitment to sustainability principles that extend beyond the resale model itself. The Well location demonstrates this approach through the acquisition of fixtures from the recently closed Bay and Saks stores, giving new life to retail infrastructure while supporting the circular economy mission she champions industry-wide.
“Part of our being in the resale market, I would prefer to buy secondhand fixtures or fixtures that have a story to them,” Watkins said. “The sustainability aspect of being able to get these fixtures a new home is part of what we do in the store as well.”
As Canada’s fastest-growing retail sector, luxury resale continues reshaping how developers and landlords approach tenant mix strategies, with Mine & Yours leading the transformation from niche market to mainstream retail category.
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Dustin Fuhs is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of 6ix Retail, Toronto’s premier source for retail and hospitality industry news. As the former Editor-in-Chief of Retail Insider, Canada’s most-read retail trade publication, Dustin brings over two decades of expertise spanning retail, marketing, entertainment and hospitality sectors. His experience includes leadership roles with industry giants such as The Walt Disney Company, The Hockey Hall of Fame, Starbucks and Blockbuster.
Recognized as a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Expert in 2024 and 2025, Dustin delivers insider perspectives on Toronto’s evolving retail landscape, from emerging brands to established players reshaping the city’s commercial districts.