Mar. 13, 2025 "Hudson's Bay is in limbo after filing for creditor protection. Here's what you need to know": Today I found this article by on CBC:
Hudson's Bay Company filed for creditor protection last week, saying it's struggling to pay
landlords,
vendors
and employees
— and it's a process that could lead to the sale or closure of Canada's oldest company.
Retail experts say the writing has been on the wall for several years, with
some stores in disarray,
the shopping experience lacking,
several locations shuttered
and many workers laid off.
"The brand is not in good condition and the reasons for that go back decades. This is not something that has happened in the last few years," said Doug Stephens, the CEO and founder of Retail Prophet.
The company's restructuring plan includes
closing some stores
and downsizing its operations.
So where does that leave customers with outstanding gift cards or rewards points?
For now, you can still shop at Hudson's Bay, both in stores and online. But a few things have changed, and the company's future is still up in the air. Here's what you need to know.
Stores still open, but closures could come
Some physical locations — if not all — could eventually close. If you do pop into the retailer,
you'll notice significant clearance sales and markdowns
as the company tries to clear out inventory.
No decisions have been finalized regarding store closures, a company spokesperson told CBC News. The Bay is reportedly considering closing 40 of its 80 stores, according to The Canadian Press.
Meanwhile, some stakeholders are already taking action against the Bay for missed payments.
A mall landlord in Sydney, N.S., tried to block entry into a Hudson's Bay store last week because the company was behind on its rent payments,
and a team of bailiffs in Sherway Gardens mall in Etobicoke, Ont., tried to seize merchandise from another Bay store, according to the company's court filing.
Gift cards, yes; rewards program, no
Customers can't redeem or earn points right now,
because the company's rewards program is on pause,
a Hudson's Bay spokesperson told CBC News.
So if you have an outstanding amount of points on your rewards card, you'll just have to hang onto it for now.
And if your account hasn't seen any activity for 24 months, the points might have already expired, the court filing says.
As of Feb. 1, more than eight million Canada customers had outstanding points worth a total of $58.5 million.
A note on the company's website also adds that it cannot track or accumulate points on purchases made during the program's pause "and apply them retroactively."
Shoppers can still use existing gift cards, which are "redeemable right up until the company goes into bankruptcy," said Boutet.
But they can't buy new ones because the company isn't currently selling them.
What happens next?
The Bay filed for creditor protection through the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, which will decide on Monday whether the company can secure the financing it needs or if it will have to close and liquidate its assets to pay off the money it owes.
"The first steps for them are going to be to try and clean up the balance sheet. They're going to be trying to offload extraneous debt," said Stephens.
If they close stores,
a portion of the company's 9,000-plus employees will be laid off.
It will have fewer leases to pay
and will likely renegotiate existing ones,
he added.
But alleviating debt alone won't be enough to solve the Bay's problems, said Stephens.
"If they are going to simply resurrect the Bay to be the old Bay, that's not going to bring, particularly, young consumers to their door."
"They really have to rethink the whole experience from the ground up," he said.
"What could they put in those stores in the way of
food,
entertainment,
social engagement,
things that draw people into their stores
and breathe new life into that brand?
That's what they need to do."
"Buy Canadian" rebranding
Though it has a storied Canadian history, Hudson's Bay was bought by an American private investment firm, NRDC Equity Parners, in 2008.
Boutet said that Hudson's Bay is not sustainable in its current format.
The best case scenario is that
"somebody acquires the brand
and brings it back from a much more focused, Buy Canadian sort of angle.
Much smaller footprints in a specialized retail format,"
he said.
Several major department stores (or their Canadian footprints) have encountered significant challenges or closed in recent years, including
Sears,
Nordstrom,
Target
and JCPenney.
One outlier is Montreal's Simons, which has expanded since the pandemic.
"Department stores in general — there's some pockets in Europe and Asia where they still function, but it's just that the format doesn't work anymore," Boutet said.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/hudsons-bay-shoppers-what-you-need-to-know-1.7482709
Mar. 14, 2025 "Hudson's Bay says it will liquidate entire business if no financing can be secured": Today I found this article by Tara Deschamps on CBC:
The death knell is ringing for Canada's oldest company.
Hudson's Bay announced late Friday evening that unless it finds a more viable path forward, it will begin liquidating its entire business as soon as next week, putting more than 9,000 jobs at risk.
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 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.
Though the situation looks bleak, the company is holding out hope for a Hail Mary.
It said it remains optimistic that it can
drum up capital
and find a solution with key stakeholders,
particularly its landlord partners,
to avoid a full shutdown.
"Our team has worked incredibly hard to identify a viable path forward, and our resolve is strengthened by the overwhelming support from
customers and associates who have shared heartfelt stories about Hudson's Bay and what our stores have meant to
them,
their families,
and their communities
across the generations,"
said Hudson's Bay president and CEO Liz Rodbell.
"These powerful experiences remind us why we must continue
to pursue every possible opportunity
to secure the necessary support
from key landlords and other stakeholders to save The Bay."
The company's plea for help comes about a week after it laid bare its financial struggles in a creditor protection application it made with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
In its application, Hudson's Bay said it was facing financial struggles because of subdued consumer spending, trade tensions between the U.S. and Canada, and post-pandemic drops in downtown store traffic.
The filings show the company owes $950 million to 26 pages' worth of listed creditors:
landlords,
suppliers
and other partners,
including fashion heavyweights
Ralph Lauren,
Chanel,
Columbia Sportswear,
Diesel
and Estee Lauder.
Jennifer Bewley, the chief financial officer for Hudson's Bay's parent company, said in a court filing made on March 7 that the business had to defer certain payments to such companies for many months because it was having so much trouble making payments to landlords, service providers and vendors.
The situation was so severe that she said
a landlord "unlawfully locked" Hudson's Bay out of a store located in Sydney, N.S.,
and a team of bailiffs attempted to seize merchandise from another location it runs in Sherway Gardens, a suburban Toronto mall.
The March 7 filing was not meant to be the precursor to the closure of the business because Hudson's Bay was intent to on keeping the company alive and as much of its sprawling footprint operational as possible.
One week later, the company finds itself in much more dire shape. It said the store-by-store liquidation is necessary because it has only secured
"limited" debtor-in-possession financing
—a form of capital companies can seek for restructuring purposes after they make creditor protection filings.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/hudson-s-bay-liquidation-funding-1.7484691
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