'Very discouraging': London customers mourn Hudson's Bay move toward liquidation

Andrew Lupton · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 18, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

Shoppers astatine London's 2 Hudson's Bay stores said they're atrocious to spot the institution successful specified dire trouble, but besides that it's an outcome they've seen coming for immoderate time. 

Hudson's Bay stores are anchor tenants astatine London's 2 largest buying malls: White Oaks and CF Masonville Place. The proprietor of some malls, Westdell and Cadillac Fairview, did not respond to requests for remark CBC News connected Monday.

Hudson's Bay spent Monday successful tribunal asking for support to statesman a liquidation of each of its stores arsenic aboriginal arsenic Tuesday, adjacent arsenic it holds retired anticipation that it volition find a lifeline.

Regardless of however the liquidation process plays out, retail experts who spoke to CBC News said the process volition impact the sell-off of inventory and the closure of most, if not all, of Hudson's Bay stores. 

"It's a fiscal concern wherever they don't person different options connected the array successful their existent incarnation," said Jamie Hyodo, an adjunct prof of user behaviour astatine Western University.

Regular shoppers volition miss The Bay

While galore retailers person suffered akin fates successful caller years, London shoppers said they'll miss their regular visits to the past existent section store with a Canadian individuality and a past that predates Confederation. 

"It's precise discouraging," said Lisa De Marco, who did immoderate buying astatine the Masonville Store connected Monday. "It's a institution that's been with Canada for truthful galore years and so this is precise bittersweet quality for Canada." 

At the White Oaks location, Eileen Clark has been a regular lawsuit for years.

She's bittersweet to spot the institution heading toward its demise but said she's noticed the White Oaks determination has been successful diminution for immoderate time. 

"I truly consciousness similar this store has been neglected," said Clark. "It conscionable seems to beryllium unloved erstwhile you travel successful and determination isn't a batch of staff. I saw the penning connected the wall. It doesn't astonishment me, but I volition beryllium atrocious to spot it go." 

The liquidation process leaves astir 9,000 jobs successful peril. 

"Sad, bittersweet the day," said Wade Steers connected his mode into the White Oaks determination with his woman Marie. "It's the oldest institution successful Canada and we person ever appreciated buying astatine the Hudson's Bay."

Saurin Patel, an subordinate prof of concern astatine the Ivey Business School astatine Western University, said The Bay's troubles began earlier the COVID-19 pandemic.

"There's been a batch of unit connected them from online retailers," helium said. 

Patel said Hudson's Bay struggled to support customers successful an property erstwhile shoppers often look astatine merchandise successful store, past scour the net to find the aforesaid items online astatine the champion price, often with escaped shipping. 

Patel points retired that this week Forever 21, a U.S. covering retailer, filed for bankruptcy and is expected to adjacent each stores. 

"All big-box retailers, particularly section stores, are facing this challenge," helium said. 

Stores looked stale

Patel said 1 origin that kept Hudson Bay down is that the institution failed to heighten and update its in-store experience. 

"I was determination 2 weeks agone and the store hasn't changed successful the past 15 years," helium said. "The layout, everything looks the same. I deliberation that shows you that there's nary concern being made backmost into the store, truthful wherefore would customers spell back?"

The liquidation Hudson's Bay is seeking from the courts volition span the company's full footprint, with Ontario taking the bulk of the deed due to the fact that it's wherever the institution has 32 locations and much than fractional of its employees work. 

Hyodo said malls with Bay stores, including Masonville and White Oaks, volition person to beryllium originative and find caller ways to usage the abstraction successful an property wherever ample retail tenants are hard to travel by. 

He pointed to a inclination successful immoderate malls, to adhd residential units to their properties, thing some White Oaks and Masonville are already moving toward. 

"There is simply a mode guardant for the mall," helium said. "They person to find originative solutions."