The Situation

Hello, welcome to the Fashion Centre! I'm your new assistant, Julie Virtue. This is my first full-time job and I look forward to meeting you. Everyone's been so nice to me since I got here three months ago.

Is there anything I can do for you before you arrive Monday?

You will find emails that came in since your appointment as well as messages sent to your predecessor, Ted Hubert, that were not handled and which I forwarded to you directly.

I invite you to consult our org chart so you can quickly become familiar with the names and positions of everyone. It’ll help you better respond to urgent requests.

Mr. Vail from Quebec called to say that he would meet you at the train station upon your arrival. He also asked if you could bring back some maple syrup for him.

Let me know if you need anything. Here is my cell phone in case you need it.

514-753-9521

See you on Monday!

Julie
Administrative assistant

Welcome aboard!

I just wanted to welcome you to the team. You’ll find that this place offers many challenges that give you the opportunity to go as far as you want.

I announced your appointment yesterday so you could get in touch with your new employees before formally meeting next Monday.

I am sorry you won’t have time to go into the Center and will only be able to communicate by email with people you have never met, but I really need you to come to Quebec to meet with me, as well as John and Paul, your new colleagues, to discuss the business, your new position, and its many challenges.

I look forward to working with you!

P.S. My wife and I would like to invite you to dinner Thursday night at 7:00. I also intend to invite John and Paul. Let me know if you can come before I talk to the others.

Arthur

Arthur Vail
President and GM
Lancelot Malls
514-456-7833 #315

Mr. Hubert,

Our board of directors has decided to hold a “Housing Week” once again in the coming year. This important event will take place the week of March 11 – 15.

The experience of the last two years shows that such an event constitutes on the one hand an additional attraction for the shopping mall, which is not to be disdained, and on the other hand, that our members benefit from a much higher level of traffic during this period.

Taking into account there are benefits for both parties, we suggest the following:

1. The mall provides free space for the exhibits.
2. The Q.A.B.C. and your company share the cost of publicity on the basis of a 66% - 33% split.
3. The Q.A.B.C. reserves the right to choose the location for each exhibitor.
4. Lancelot Malls reserves the right for the final approval regarding the physical layout of each of the stands.

These are the points that must be agreed upon immediately in order for us to proceed with the organization of the Week.

We trust our proposal will meet with your approval. Another shopping mall has approached us, but our members would prefer dealing with your mall. We would appreciate an answer before, if possible, October 15th.

Yours truly,

Peter Housings
General Manager – Q.A.B.C.
QUEBEC ASSOCIATION OF BUILDING CONTRACTORS
8, rue Laporte, Montréal (Québec)
514-456-7890

Mr. Hubert,

We acknowledge receipt of your lease proposal regarding the rent of 1,600 square feet at $28/foot or 10% of our gross revenue, whichever is the greater.

We find this proposal interesting and would appreciate our drawing up the lease agreement without delay so that we can sign it as soon as possible. We would like to begin operations by December 1st, at the latest.

Thank you and have a great day!

Peter

Peter Gomez
President
PEDRO INC.
MEN’S WEAR
GRANDE-ALLÉE SHOPPING CENTRE
QUÉBEC (QUÉBEC)
418-987-6541

Mr. Guay,

This letter is to advise you that, effective next January 1st, your rent will increase from $25 to $33 per square foot. All other conditions of the lease will remain unchanged.

We would appreciate it if you could indicate your acceptance by signing the attached lease and returning it no later than September 30th. If we have not heard from you by that date, we will put this commercial space on the market again.

Regards,

Ted Hubert
General Manager
Fashion Centre

Mr. Hubert,

I wish to inform you that there was a flood in my store on the weekend, and that part of my inventory has suffered water damage.

I wish to point out to you that section 10.1 of my lease stipulates that “Should the rented space be damaged by fire or by any other cause without fault or negligence on the part of the tenant, the lessor will restore the leased premises at his own expense and the rent will be reduced by an amount proportional to the period of interruption and to the portion of the damaged area”.

Furthermore, a great part of my inventory is a total loss, thus, I hold you responsible for these damages as well. A preliminary estimate sets the damage at $165,000.

I look forward to receiving your reply within a week, otherwise legal procedures will be undertaken.

Hopefully we can settle matters out of court!

Pia Naud
Director
The Source – Fashion Centre

Hello, me again!

I know you're just starting, but I would like to have your comments on some improvements that we, at Lancelot Malls, would like to make in order to increase traffic in the Fashion Centre. At first sight, these suggestions are not bad and I would appreciate your opinion. Feel free to give me your likes, your dislikes as well as any ideas you may have on this subject.

① Entertainment

• Taping of a live program (2 to 3 times a week).
• Changing the musical programming.
• When there are no special events on the weekends, hire hosts, DJs, etc.

② Circulation and parking

• Introducing a valet service for parking at one of the Centre’s three main entrances.
• Introducing a central “car order” delivery service (at least over the holiday season).
• Seeing to it that the city changes certain of its bus routes in order to improve access to the mall.
• Putting pressure on the city to get traffic lights installed at the West exit of the parking lot. (Do you know any city councilors?)

③ Physical improvements

• Cutting down and replacing unhealthy trees.
• Installing two new skylights in the mall.
• Installing more benches.
• Finally, we must try to do something about the young people who “hang out” in the mall. They are not the kind of customers our merchants are looking for; on the contrary, they give our mall a bad reputation and drive desirable customers away. It is not an easy matter to settle and I do need your suggestions on this.

We can discuss this when we meet today. We need to get things moving if we want to reach our goals for the beginning of the new year. Thanks!

Arthur
President - General Manager
Lancelot Malls

Hello Ted,

Following our meeting of last August 30th, we have considered the possibility of opening a restaurant in the Fashion Centre, and find your proposal interesting.

Space number 9, which will become available next January 1st, seems to be suitable. This space meets our requirements and its location near an entrance is certainly an advantage.

Regarding the rental charges that you have assessed between $28 and $30 per square foot for a five-year lease, would you be ready to close the deal at $27?

Please let me hear from you promptly. We are keen to get this matter wrapped up as soon as possible.

Yours truly,

Paolo

Paolo Tortelini
President
The Spaghetti Unlimited Group Ltd.
514-357-78951

Ted,

I would like to express my concern about the financial condition of the store “Fashion for All”. Their payments to us are currently six months late.

Discussions with other suppliers indicate that they are having the same problems collecting from this business.

I wish therefore to make you aware of the possibility that this tenant may declare bankruptcy. For our part, we are taking immediate action and putting this problem in the hands of our legal advisers.

I thought I would give you the heads-up!

Take care,

Amber

Amber Johnson, G.M.
Fashion Wear Ltd.

Ted,

One of my suppliers has informed me that you are on the point of renting the space next to “Sports Experts” to a men’s wear shop.

As you know, we already have three businesses of this type in the fashion Centre. You are also aware that we have an agreement among ourselves that each of the three shops has the exclusive rights to carry two lines of clothing.

I am aware that your prospective tenant, Pedro Inc. (who already has a shop in the Grande-Allee Shopping Centre) carries the same exclusive lines as I do.

I would therefore ask that you either reconsider renting to this tenant or that you include a clause in the lease stipulating that the tenant may not carry the “Levis” and “Valentino” lines, to avoid damage to my business.

I thank you in advance for your cooperation in this matter.

Dan
Dan Brown
President
Tip Top Inc. – Men’s Wear

Hi Ted, I hope you are well.

We would like to submit to you our latest proposals for the shopping center’s Christmas ad campaign.

After lengthy discussions, we have come up with two concepts, which might anchor the campaign, i.e.:

1. to publicize the mall as delightful, relaxing spot where Christmas shopping is a pleasure;
2. to publicize the mall as a place where one can find everything one wants at the best prices in town.

Now obviously, these two ideas are very different. The first one puts emphasis on the atmosphere. We therefore have to think about background music, entertainment for children and adults, decorations, etc. The second idea focuses on the type of boutiques and shops as well as on the competitive prices they offer.

If you have a preference for one or other of these concepts, please let us know as soon as possible so that we can get the publicity campaign underway by October 7th.

Cheers!

M
Mark Keating
Principal Associate
Communication Mark Keating
514-987-4563

Mr. Hubert,

This letter is to inform you that we are on the point of finalizing the construction schedule for the multistory parking lot.

We foresee work starting up on March 3rd, next year. Thus, from then until May 19th, all the parking spots at the north end of the mall will be out of use.

We prefer to inform you now so that we can obtain your agreement as to the suggested dates, and so we can start looking for solutions to the parking problem that will surely arise.

Yours faithfully,

Abraham Schnotzer
Architect
Shiller & Schnotzer, Architects
1280 Tower Ave., suite 1400
Montreal, (QC)
514-222-3333

Hello Ted,

I have attached our invoice covering the costs for the design and manufacturing of the decorations for Santa’s throne for the holiday period.

As you requested, we asked three contractors to quote on the installation. The best price we were offered was $2,900 all-inclusive. It came from the same contractor who did a satisfactory job last year.

We also contacted the Quebec Association of Santas and obtained their hourly rates for the current year.

You will therefore find attached our invoice as well as a quote from P.N. Construction Inc. and the price list from the Quebec Association of Santas.

Please advise us of your decision with regard to the last two items so that we can finalize agreements with all parties concerned before October 7th.

Have a great day!

John
John Pinewood
Artistic Decor Inc.
22 Pine Rd. Montreal, QC

Hi boss,

Carol Duval of the Canadian Shopping Centre Association just called. She would like to meet with you tonight in Quebec City to discuss your possible attendance at the next conference in November in Montreal. Would you like me to confirm an appointment?

Julie
Administrative Assistant

Please take care of this. This is not the time to lose him.

Arthur

Dear Mr. Hubert:

We wish to inform you that we refuse to pay the rent increase, which you mentioned in your email of September 3rd.

We see this as a tactic intended to get us out of the shopping center. Rest assured that we will contest this increase and defend our rights in court if necessary.

Yours truly,

Jean-Paul Guay
Studio Jean-Paul (Fashion Centre)
Montreal, QC

Hi Ted, how are you?

The repairs on the front elevation of the mall are proceeding satisfactorily and I don’t foresee any problem with meeting the December 1st deadline.

I would, however, like to point out that the modifications will affect the drainage of water from the roof. Indeed, I have noticed after each rainfall that there is a substantial runoff towards the southwest corner, and since this area is poorly drained, I fear there may be some seepage into the walls.

I await your instructions before proceeding to correct this situation. However, if you prefer to study the problem in more detail, I would advise you to bring it to the attention of Shiller & Schnotzer, the architects who designed the building.

Let me know if you need anything else!

Pete
Peter Tremper
G.T.P. Construction Inc.
514-456-7833

Hello Mr. Hubert,

We wish to inform you that at its last meeting, the Fashion Centre Merchants’ Association adopted a resolution requesting you to address the problem of the lack of food facilities in the Centre as soon as possible.

We consider that having only one establishment of this kind is not sufficient. We would like to have at least one other restaurant, which would preferably be situated in the northeast part of the shopping center.

We ask you to take action on this matter immediately so that we can reap the benefits of better restaurant services by the new year.

Regards,

Greg Lebargane
President
Fashion Centre Merchants’ Association
514-456-7890

Mr. Guay:

I would like to draw your attention to the following incident. During my last visit to the Studio, one of your masseurs offered to sell me steroids so that I could increase my muscle mass.

You are no doubt aware that selling these drugs without a prescription is illegal. Being a shop-manager in the same mall, I would hate to see the mall become known as a place for an illegal drug business.

I would therefore ask you to take the necessary steps to rid us of these undesirable elements, failing which I will report the individual in question to the authorities myself.

Peter Hammer
Sports Experts inc.
514-888-7946

Mr. Hubert,

We would like to bring to your attention a problem, which was raised by three merchants of the shopping center.

Since July, all three of the businesses have been robbed. Upon examination, these burglaries proved to have three things in common:

1. All three occurred between closing time on Saturday and opening time on Monday.
2. The alarm systems appear to have been bypassed.
3. There was no sign of a break-in.

Carrying out our investigation a little further, we noticed that each of these businesses had had a service call from your maintenance service during the week before it was burglarized. Finally, private investigators hired by our merchants found proof pointing to Mr. Andrew Worst of your maintenance staff.

We are facing a dilemma. On the one hand, we are not eager to have this information broadcasted (bad publicity for the center), but on the other hand, it is unacceptable that this individual continues to work here. We would therefore ask you to dismiss Mr. Worst before October 5th, otherwise we will hand our information over to the police.

I expect a response at your earliest convenience.

Greg Lebargane
President
Fashion Centre Merchants’ Association
514-456-7890