Jun. 3, 2026 "Zellers plays with toys, food as retailer's relaunch reaches Ontario": Today I found this article by Tara Deschamps on CBC:
The new owners of Zellers will soon expand the relaunched brand to Ontario but are first making a few tweaks.
A new discount storefront is set to open near
Toronto's Yorkdale Mall on June 18th,
and another at Windsor's Tecumseh Mall in July.
Like the Edmonton location that marked the brand's relaunch last year,
the stores will be stocked with
apparel,
home goods,
luggage
and seasonal items.
The Ontario stores will also introduce
snack foods
and toys,
a category the owners initially wanted to leave out of Zellers because they felt it would be too hard to compete with Walmart and Amazon.
Zellers chief operating officer Joey Benitah says he changed his mind because
a small selection of toys he trialed at the Edmonton location wound up being some of the store's best sellers.
The Benitah family, which owns the brand now,
bought the rights to the almost 100-year-old Zellers name last year after its former owner, Hudson's Bay, went under.
The family is also behind apparel stores Fairweather and International Clothiers
as well as home goods retailer Wyrth.
In the almost 100 years since Zellers was founded,
the discount department store has died
and been revived several times.
Its current owners are less than a year into their relaunch but say they have national expansion plans.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/zellers-relaunch-ontario-9.7221519
There's only 1 comment:
I hope they would be competitors and not allies with the gougers.
Jun. 16, 2026 "Toronto's new Zellers store is bringing back the Zellers restaurant this weekend": Today I found this article by Lisa Belmonte on Narcity and Yahoo:
Zellers is opening a new store in Toronto this week.
Not only is the retailer making a comeback in Ontario, but the Zellers restaurant is also returning!
It was just announced that the iconic Canadian retailer will have a few nostalgic experiences and surprises at the new store in Toronto that celebrate the Zellers legacy.
The new Toronto location at 80 Orfus Road, which is near Highway 401 and Dufferin Street, is opening on Thursday, June 18, 2026.
You can shop the retailer's core
apparel,
accessories,
home
and seasonal departments,
along with new offerings like the
Food,
Snacks
& Specialty Grocery section.
The store hours for opening weekend are
10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday and Friday,
10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday,
and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Zellers has put a 25-foot inflatable Zeddy Bear outside the new store in Toronto to celebrate the opening.
As part of the Toronto opening weekend, the retailer is introducing the Zellers Diner on Wheels.
It's a food truck inspired by the Zellers restaurant that used to be in stores.
The food truck menu will include the
Big Z burger,
a hot gravy chicken sandwich,
chicken fingers,
grilled cheese,
gravy and fries,
and more food items.
You can order from the Zellers Diner on Wheels at the Toronto location from:
10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 18
11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, June 19
11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 20
11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday, June 21
The opening weekend of the new Toronto store at 80 Orfus Road is the first time the Zellers Diner on Wheels will be at a location in Canada,
but Zellers said this pop-up diner will roll in during opening weekends at future new stores across Canada.
Zellers will be offering free Zellers ice pops and Zellers water bottles during the opening weekend from June 19 to June 21 while quantities last.
The first hundred customers at the new Toronto store will get an exclusive Zeddy keychain that's not available for purchase in any stores.
Also, the retailer is bringing back children's rides that were introduced in Zellers stores in the 1980s.
Toronto's new Zellers store will have a red sports car ride for kids, and more rides will make a comeback at select locations in Canada.
Zellers opened the first new location of the small-format "Zellers 3.0" store concept in Edmonton near the end of 2025.
After the Toronto store opens this week,
another location is set to open in Windsor in July.
There are plans for a Canada-wide expansion of Zellers with additional locations in Ontario and other parts of the country expected to be announced this year.
https://ca.yahoo.com/news/torontos-zellers-store-bringing-back-174910413.html
My opinion: I thought Zellers was an average store. They sold all these items for cheap. They were like Wal- Mart.
Zeddy in the Woods
This ad came out in Sept. 6, 2012 when they were closing down Zellers to make room for Target.
I like this ad after all these years. It's so cute and funny.
