Holt Renfrew

Holt Renfrew, the luxury retail department store, unveiled ON 3, a newly renovated shopping floor in its flagship Downtown Toronto location.

GAV MGMT selected 1 SOUND’s Cannon C5 loudspeakers for the distributed audio system, admiring their compact size and being familiar with their high-fidelity performance. GAV MGMT felt confident in the Cannon C5 because of its sonic quality and SPL capability as a small loudspeaker making it the ideal fit to achieve the experience Holt Renfrew wanted to create. The extended low bandwidth of the C5 is significant, where there may be a corner of the floor where the subwoofer is distant the effect would not be lost as the C5 still produces the full bandwidth of the music and voice resulting in music remaining intelligible and the feeling of the music remaining consistent throughout the space.

“The Cannons in the space are outstanding. They have a certain texture to their sound that is nice to listen to and hear. We can walk and talk throughout the space without feeling like we are talking over the music, yet the music remains present and intimate in the space,” explained Jonathon Duquette, Technical Director, GAV MGT

Wanting to create a bit of audio impact in the space, GAV MGMT implemented 1 SOUND’s WSUB45 subwoofers. These were hidden in the ceiling and mounted using the WSUB45 C-Clamp accessory. The audio was powered by Powersoft’s highly efficient T304 and T604 amplifiers.

1 SOUND supported GAV MGMT in the final system optimization for this venue. This audio design created consistent sound distribution throughout the entire floor leaving no shopping rack out of the elevated experience. Holt Renfrew wanted to set a tone for customers walking in this luxury space, the evenly distributed audio proved to be a significant detail in creating this atmosphere.

Holt Renfrew wanted ON 3 to deliver a curated “vibe” for their shoppers so they could feel immersed in this luxury shopping experience. As a beautifully designed retail store, they wanted visually minimal seeming audio. To create an immersive shopping experience, Holt Renfrew asked GAV MGMT to design the audio-visual elements needed to support store events, activations, and conferences with special guests. The goal was to have an integrated audio system that not only enhanced the luxury atmosphere where displays of brands are ever-evolving but also accommodated their diverse event needs.

GAV MGMT chose 1 SOUND’s Cannon C5s for this distributed audio system, knowing the high fidelity quality of these compact speakers resulting in shoppers being able to talk and understand the music simultaneously. Knowing the expectation Holt Renfrew has on the aesthetics of the audio installation GAV MGMT knew the loudspeaker needed to blend in as much as possible. GAV MGMT accomplished a successful aesthetic design by utilizing 1 SOUND’s Custom Shop and color-matching the loudspeakers to the wall. In addition, they asked 1 SOUND for a discreet mounting solution for the Cannon loudspeakers, in response 1 SOUND created their new Swivel Mount, an invisible wall mounting solution for the Cannon Series that allows for horizontal and vertical aiming time for this installation.

Holt Renfrew was pleased that GAV provided a fully integrated discreet system with high fidelity that blends into the retail space also helping to eliminate a need for outside rentals.

ON 3 showcases men’s and women’s fashion while offering exhibitions, pop-ups, panels, and entertainment. In an online statement, Holt Renfrew President and CEO Sebastian Picardo described ON 3 as “a place where style, culture, and community intersect into an exciting new space for our customers.”

Holt Renfrew was pleased that GAV MGMT successfully provided a fully integrated discreet system with high sonic intelligibility and even coverage throughout the entire space.

Store management expressed excitement about the new audio system, noting its sleek design and exceptional sound quality, saying “This system sounds great!”. They appreciated how GAV MGMT went above and beyond in getting 1 SOUND to create an invisible mount for them so the loudspeakers blended into the retail store. Holt Renfrew is proud to have a discreet yet powerful system that can eliminate the need for some outside rentals when they have events.
“We are confident that our customers are going to fall in love with the new experience we have cultivated,” said Ralph Roach, DVP and General Manager of Holt Renfrew Bloor Street, in an online statement.

The Holt Renfrew ON 3 audio design and installation proved so successful that Holt Renfrew felt it was necessary to give this same investment in the other retail floors of the store. They will be upgrading the audio system in other locations with 1 SOUND loudspeakers as they feel the audio has a direct correlation to shoppers’ experience in-store.