Canada’s Retail Exodus

Here’s who’s closed stores in Canada

Source-The Canadian Press | 2015

Target Canada isn’t the only retailer closing its doors in Canada. On Thursday, Sony announced it was shuttering stores in the country. They add their names to a growing list of retailers who have recently closed some stores or are closing altogether in Canada.

Here is a list of recent notable closures:

Target Canada
— Target Corp. announced its decision to close all its stores on January 15.
– Shuttering 133 stores, affecting 17,600 employees
– “We were losing money every day,” chief executive Brian Cornell said in a corporate blog post. The company had racked up over US$2-billion in losses in its less than two years in Canada

Sony
— Sony Corp. announced January 15 it’s closing all 14 of its stores in Canada over the next six to eight weeks
— Closures will result in 90 layoffs
— Currently has stores in Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Vancouver, Toronto and Alberta
— Company facing US$1.9 billion loss when its fiscal year ends in March

Mexx Canada

– Mexx is liquidating 95 stores in Canada.
– Dutch-based retailer declared bankruptcy in December 2014
– Liquidating 95 stores in Canada by the end of February
– Mexx has 315 stores around the world

Smart Set
– Parent company Reitmans announced in November 2014 that it would close 107 Smart Set stores
– Will convert 76 locations into other banners, including Reitmans, Penningtons, Addition Elle, RW&Co. and Thyme Maternity
– Smart Set banner was created in 1945, with the first location opening in Ontario in 1970
– First Reitmans store opened in Montreal in 1926

Jacob

– Womens’ retailer was founded in 1977 in Montreal
– Announced in October 2014 it would abandon restructuring efforts and close 92 stores across the country
– Company under creditor protection since November 2010

Holt Renfrew
– Luxury retailer closing stores in Ottawa and Quebec City at the end of January 2015
– Will undertake a $300 million expansion in key markets such as Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, and Montreal

Sears Canada

– In October 2014, parent company Sears Holding Corp. announced it would sell most of its stake in the struggling Canadian unit to raise as much as US$380 million
– In January 2014, Sears Canada announced it was cutting 2,200 employees from its payroll. It had already laid off thousands of employees in 2013
– Sears Canada has sold leases to some of its most prominent locations, including its flagship location at the Toronto Eaton Centre

Zellers
– In 2011, parent company Hudson’s Bay Co. sold its leasing rights for its nearly 200 Zellers locations to U.S. retailer Target for $1.83 billion