Despite an online-driven retail market, Canadian shopping malls are faring well as they pump capital investments into their brick-and-mortar spaces.

Avison Young’s new retail landscape study reveals that the country’s leading shopping centres had sales of $994 per square foot in 2015.

“Rounding that lowest figure upward, these centres form an exclusive ‘$1,000-per-square-foot club,’ largely backed by the country’s biggest institutional owners,” noted Bill Argeropoulos, principal and practice research leader (Canada) for Avison Young. “The leaders in this club can hold their own among the top-performing malls in North America.”

The study tallied the ten best performers in 2015, which account for 10 per cent of the total retail mall rentable area and 12 per cent of the total number of stores in 2015. Their year-over-year retail sales growth ranged between three per cent and 20 per cent. A number of factors pushing retail performance include more domestic shoppers as consumers refuse to cross the U.S. boarder to shop on Canada’s weak dollar, low vacancy and new supply and population growth in urban regions.

Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre topped the list with sales of $1,610 per square foot, followed by Vancouver’s Pacific Centre in second spot.

3. Oakridge Centre, Vancouver, B.C.
4. CF Toronto Eaton Centre, Toronto, Ont.
5. Southgate Centre, Edmonton, Alb.
6. CF Chinook Centre, Calgary, Alb.
7. Royal Bank Plaza, Toronto, Ont.
8. CF Rideau Centre, Ottawa, Ont.
9. Metropolis at Metrotown, Burnaby, B.C.
10. Square One, Mississauga, Ont.