Hudson’s Bay files for creditor protection
The Hudson’s Bay company, the oldest retailer in Canada, has filed for creditor protection.
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Robert H 12:11 on 2025-03-08 Permalink
So many people have seen this coming for such a long time, this news is anticlimactic. Hudson’s Bay had already been treating its stores as an afterthought, reinforcing the widespread belief that it has become a real estate investment company with an ancillary retail venture. Remember the big redevelopment plans for the Montreal and Toronto flagships a few years ago? That’s all over now. What will happen to all that square footage across the country, especially the historic downtown locations in Montreal, Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver?
The company is supposed to use this bankruptcy filing as an opportunity to restructure and get the business back on track, but it’s hard to see a path forward. Perhaps it should adopt the Holt Renfrew or Macy’s strategy: close a lot of locations (it can’t even maintain all the doors it has now), concentrate on its most profitable or flagship locations, and make its investments accordingly while strengthening its on-line and distribution infrastructure.
Whatever happens to the retailer, I hope the beautiful Sainte-Catherine street structure gets the revitalization it sorely needs and, should the store fail, a new purpose.
Kate 12:32 on 2025-03-08 Permalink
Yes. I agree.
I never had much use for the Bay, except for one thing. They had perfume counters on the ground floor and every now and then I’d go in and try something classic, a Guerlain maybe, and enjoy looking at all the high‑class packaging. Is there nothing else like this here?
Joey 13:48 on 2025-03-08 Permalink
It feels like there are really only three viable models for a department store:
1. Hosting high-end brands (ideally with some degree of exclusivity). I gather this is how your Holt’s/Ogilvy’s works these days – and is sort of a concentrated version of the classic department store. You would think of the Bay as a destination for high-cost labels, only. Hard to imagine the Bay evolving its brand into this model, tbh.
2. Sell mostly house labels at competitive prices – think of Simons, Uniqlo or H&M, for example. Again, hard to see the Bay getting past its accumulated heft to become known for affordable, good quality clothes you can’t get anywhere else.
3. Ditch brick and mortar and become an online-only retailer, but the Bay is at a disadvantage because it has a reputation for a really shitty e-commerce experience and it probably couldn’t sell enough volume to drive concessions from manufacturers. In other words, who needs an online-first Bay when we already have Amazon.
Not sure how this ends (Robert H makes the astute point that management has focused on real estate for a long time – every time I walk into the Bay there’s an additional floor that’s been closed off). The days of heading to a big downtown flagship store to browse sort of generically appealing goods are really over. It’s a shame, the Bay used to have *everything* and was a real shopping/browsing experience for a long time.
Tim S. 14:11 on 2025-03-08 Permalink
Agree with Joey, especially point #2. It’s only been recently that I’ve trained myself out of the habit of going to the Bay whenever I wanted to have a look at a household item in person. And I picked up some decent clothes at a fair price there just a few months ago.
Kevin 14:34 on 2025-03-08 Permalink
I have some great shirts from The Bay, and it has been a good place for other items–they have a rent-a-dress boutique that is good for people going to weddings and the like.
For perfume, there is a replica of what Kate’s looking for at Royalmount. It’s called Rennai.
Kate 14:55 on 2025-03-08 Permalink
I was afraid the answer might be Royalmount. Thanks, Kevin.
Uatu 18:57 on 2025-03-08 Permalink
The last time I was at The Bay I bought perfume for a Christmas gift. Later found out I could buy it at the cosmetic section of pharmaprix and online at Jean Coutu. Bought it online at JC and picked it up at the local pharmacy. Ez peasy
Kate 19:21 on 2025-03-08 Permalink
Pharmaprix and Jean Coutu don’t have Guerlain, more’s the pity.
Nicole 23:05 on 2025-03-08 Permalink
Pharmaprix does carry Guerlain, but their stock is very spotty. I saw some recently at the store on St. Cat near Stanley, although I don’t remember if there were testers. You can also order it online and pick up in store (although you’d need to already know what you wanted)
MarcG 07:56 on 2025-03-09 Permalink
Ogilvy has (maybe had?) a fancy perfume section.
Kate 09:57 on 2025-03-10 Permalink
The thing about the Bay is that it’s always been more egalitarian. I was thrown out of Holt’s the one time I went in to look around, but people didn’t throw you out of the Bay. So I’m still hesitant to enter Ogilvy’s now that it’s spliced with Holt Renfrew.