Miniso opens its first overseas SUPER MINISO, choosing Canada to test a bigger format
Miniso opened its first overseas SUPER MINISO store at Square One in Mississauga on 10 October 2026, part of four Canadian openings between October and November that include a MINISO LAND in Toronto.
What opened
According to a company release distributed on 12 October 2026, Miniso opened its first overseas SUPER MINISO store on 10 October 2026 at Square One in Mississauga, Ontario.
The release describes four Canadian locations opening between October and November: three SUPER MINISO stores in Mississauga, Winnipeg and Montreal, plus one MINISO LAND in Toronto. It cites the West Edmonton Mall store, opened in November 2025, at over 1,000 square metres with more than 5,000 intellectual-property based items. More than 100 Hello Kitty and Friends products are planned.
SUPER MINISO is described as a lifestyle concept mixing collectibles with fashion, travel, beauty and everyday products, using themed displays and extended experience areas. MINISO LAND is described as more immersive and more centred on licensed characters. The release does not give global or regional store counts, and does not mention a franchise or licensing model.
Why a format launch is a franchise story
Asian retail brands have spent a decade exporting a single store format. What is happening now is the export of a format ladder: a standard store, a larger experience store, and a flagship built around licensed characters.
A ladder changes the partner conversation in three ways:
- Capital per unit stops being one number. A partner can enter at the standard format and graduate, instead of committing to a flagship on day one.
- Site selection becomes tiered. The large formats need mall anchor positions, which are scarce and expensive, while the standard format can take secondary space.
- Licensed content becomes the real asset. If the draw is characters under licence, the brand owner controls the renewal of those licences, and the partner inherits that risk.
The question for regional partners
An operator in Southeast Asia being offered the larger formats should ask which intellectual-property licences are committed for how long in their territory, and what happens to a 1,000 square metre store if a licence is not renewed. Rent on an anchor unit does not shrink when the characters change.
This article summarises a company release and is not investment advice. The figures cited come from the company, not from independent verification.
Compiled from public sources for information only, not investment advice.