Hudson’s Bay officially closes after 355 years in business

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    After 355 years, the Hudson's Bay Company has officially closed its doors.

    By News Staff and The Canadian Press

    Canada’s oldest department store officially shut its doors Sunday.

    Hudson’s Bay has been liquidating its assets since filing for creditor protection in March, and shoppers spent the last couple of months looking for discounts.

    Canadian Tire is looking to acquire The Bay’s intellectual property, including the iconic stripes and logo. If the $30 million deal the retailers brokered gets court approval, Canadian Tire will get the rights to 350 pages of trademarks and domain names belonging to Hudson’s Bay.

    Included in the trademarks are rights to several variations of the multicoloured stripe motif, the Hudson’s Bay name, its coat of arms, its Distinctly Home brand, its luxury fashion business The Room and its Hudson North apparel line.

    There are also tag lines like the Zellers “Lowest price is the law” slogan, as well as “Shopping is good,” “More than you came for,” “Everything under the sun” and “Bring it home.”

    A “store closed” sign outside the Hudson’s Bay in downtown Montreal, June 2, 2025. (Jonathan Nudell, CityNews)

    Meanwhile a billionaire from B.C. – mall owner Ruby Liu – also plans to take over 28 of The Bay’s building leases, but that’s pending court approval and landlord consent.

    In court documents, Hudson’s Bay placed the blame for its demise on lower store traffic, a tough recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and the more recent trade war.

    When the 80 Hudson’s Bay and 16 Saks stores closed Sunday, more than 8,300 workers had lost their jobs.

    The job cuts leave about 1,000 staff to work two additional weeks to let people pick up furniture and fixtures they bought and help the retailer vacate its properties.

    After June 15, about 118 employees will remain with 50 dedicated to the company’s retail operations, 58 in its corporate division and 10 at distribution centres.

    The Hudson’s Bay in downtown Montreal, June 2, 2025. (Jonathan Nudell, CityNews)

    Hudson’s Bay has 1,700 pieces of art and more than 2,700 artefacts, including the royal charter that birthed the business.

    It has court permission to begin exploring an auction of the items but Indigenous communities and some governments fear the pieces up for sale might include sacred or cultural items.

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