Hudson’s Bay plans ‘immediate’ liquidation of entire business

[Vinson]

Sad the company was in business since the 1600's. Also 10k laid off.


Analysts say the planned liquidation of Hudson’s Bay will leave a hole in the country’s retail landscape, as Canada’s oldest company prepares to wind down in the coming months unless it can find a last-minute solution.

Retail experts attribute a combination of missteps that led to Friday night’s announcement from Hudson’s Bay, which said it would begin liquidating its entire business as soon as next week, pending court approval.

The department store chain that dates back to 1670 and now spans 80 stores said it has been forced toward a full liquidation because “exhaustive” efforts haven’t turned up the financing it needs to keep at least some of its empire alive.

A closure of the entire business, which is planned pending a court appearance set for Monday, would mean job losses for 9,364 employees the company has in Canada across its Hudson’s Bay stores, as well as three Saks Fifth Avenue stores and 13 Saks Off 5th locations it owns through a licensing agreement.

The liquidation process would wrap up in June.

“It’s really, really sad, because of how many people are going to be impacted because of this,” said Liza Amlani, co-founder of the Retail Strategy Group.

“It is an iconic brand. It’s important to Canadians, and there will be a gap in the market if The Bay completely disappears.”

Hudson’s Bay plans ‘immediate’ liquidation of entire business - National | Globalnews.ca

In a late Friday announcement, Canada's oldest company said it couldn't secure the necessary financing to keep at least some of its empire alive.

globalnews.ca

 

[xmontrealer]

In the 1990's I invested in a mutual fund with a great track record. The minimum investment to get into the fund was 100K.

A few months later I went to the fund's annual meeting for investors.

At the meeting the fund manager was touting Hudson's Bay as having great potential, as it was just about the only major department store chain left in Canada.

I took my money out of the fund the next day...

 

[wiskey bravo]

It's too bad. I will miss this store.

I remember saying to myself last year walking through Canadian Tire how is this store surviving. I bet at some point they are next to fold.

 

[Vinson]

In the 1990's I invested in a mutual fund with a great track record. The minimum investment to get into the fund was 100K.

A few months later I went to the fund's annual meeting for investors.

At the meeting the fund manager was touting Hudson's Bay as having great potential, as it was just about the only major department store chain left in Canada.

I took my money out of the fund the next day...

That's crazy, lucky you knew to take the money out.

 

[Ceiling Cat]

It's too bad. I will miss this store.

I remember saying to myself last year walking through Canadian Tire how is this store surviving. I bet at some point they are next to fold.

How is Canadian Tire, The Bay, Walmart and other retailers surviving? Retailers often function as showcases for manufacturers rather than outright owners of the products they sell. It is true that many retailers are selling less these days because there are less buyers. The Bay is suffering because they have associated themselves with mid and high level brands and are not known as a discounter. The stores that are doing better are Walmart and Dollarama because they cater to the budget conscious consumer. Canadian tire has a long way before they fold up. Canadian Tire is well-positioned to perform well even in a bad economy due to several reasons. They sell seasonal and essential items. In a bad economy there are more people doing they own repair on their car and home.

 

[wpgguy]

It's too bad. I will miss this store.

I remember saying to myself last year walking through Canadian Tire how is this store surviving. I bet at some point they are next to fold.

Really? Is it a downtown location?

The two suburban stores in Winnipeg I use are fairly busy, not Walmart busy but certainly 10x busier than the HBC store in my area.

CDN Tire did announce a small restructuring plan a few weeks where they where going to close or combine a fair number of thier other banners like Sport Chek, Atmosphere and a third I can’t remember the name of. There was no mention of CDN Tire or Marks if I remember correctly.

 

[xmontrealer]

That's crazy, lucky you knew to take the money out.

No luck involved. I worked in retail at a chain of junior department stores, and watched after Walmart came to Canada what it did to that business and others like it.

Earlier it was Simpsons and Eaton's, then later Sears. I could see the lack of inventory, housekeeping, and especially customer service at both Sears and The Bay.

I knew it was just a matter of time, and was actually surprised The Bay lasted as long as it did.

Of course Amazon and other on-line retailers were the coup de grace...

 

[shack]

Earlier it was Simpsons and Eaton's, then later Sears.

I had a job for 3 or 4 years as a "register reader" at Simpson's Yorkdale. It was perfect for a student.

 

[wpgguy]

actually surprised The Bay lasted as long as it did.

You and me both, the Bay should have folded 10 years ago.

 

[Ceiling Cat]

I can only suggest one possible way how a retailer like The Bay can adapt to remain competitive in today’s market. There are two key reasons for the decline in customers, limited inventory and a lack of options across different price points.
In the past, The Bay carried 40 to 50 styles of men's shoes, but now they only offer 10 to 15 styles, many of which may not be priced appropriately or suited to the target customer.
A potential solution is to maintain the same 10 to 15 styles in-store for immediate purchase while also featuring a display of 40 to 50 additional styles that customers can order for delivery either to the store or directly to their home. These additional styles would not need to be stocked at each location but could be shipped from a central warehouse, reducing inventory costs.
By adopting this hybrid retail and online model, The Bay can offer a wider selection without overstocking, improving customer choice and convenience while remaining efficient in today's retail landscape.

 

[Granite Top]

The last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup you could shop at Eatons for six more years.

 

[Insidious Von]

I made good coin from Northern Telecom, the management team were a bunch of assclowns long before they became Nortel. The same thing happened to Valdi which was sabotaged by management.

Eventually the Westons swallowed up Steinberg's.

 

[Radar1956]

The escalator in the Bay in St. Catharines has been broken for the last six months. I guess they had no money for repairs.

 

[ogibowt]

The escalator in the Bay in St. Catharines has been broken for the last six months. I guess they had no money for repairs.

same as sherway gardens mall...........and good luck with the sales and trying to find a cashier

 

[imaan2k]

same as sherway gardens mall...........and good luck with the sales and trying to find a cashier

And the Brampton location that escalator has been down for over a year.

 

[jeff2]

same as sherway gardens mall...........and good luck with the sales and trying to find a cashier

Just at the downtown Toronto location today and some of the escalators are not working.

 

[xmontrealer]

Same at Yorkdale. Had to use the elevator, only one of which was working...

 

[LTO_3]

The escalator in the Bay in St. Catharines has been broken for the last six months. I guess they had no money for repairs.

I'll confirm that since I was there for the first time in about 5 years. Place was relatively busy with many of the shelves already bare. Got a couple of deals with 40% and 50% of the 2 items I bought. As I briefly chatted with the lady at the counter who helped me find one of the products I couldn't locate I told her I was very sad about what was happening but mentioned that The Bay should have shifted its product line at least 15-20 years ago from higher priced brand names to more middle of the road priced products and clothing to maintain sales and people coming there to shop. She agreed with my statement.
And signs were also posted at the nonfunctioning escalator that all washrooms were not open.

So sad to see an iconic Canadian company put itself in such a poor situation because of poor management for so long.

LTO_3

 

[Robert Mugabe]

I remember when Eatons closed. Went there to pick up a bargain if I could find one although the store wasn't really my or anyone else's style anymore. Throw cushions. $300.00, marked down to $150. All kinds of other pretentious out of touch shit. I think their buyers were smoking crack. That's the problem.

 

[craig_hoxton]

The Menswear section at the Eaton Centre one was always a ghost town. Had to buy a tie recently - The Bay only had three ties in the entire section. Had to go to Moore's instead.