Remembering a more glamorous time
UNFORGETTABLE SAGAS, SCOOPS AND SCANDALS
from Toronto Life’slong-form archives |
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Dear reader, There is nothing less glamorous, less dignified, than a liquidation sale. That’s not to pass judgment on savvy deal-seekers. In this city, we do what it takes to stay afloat. But clearance sales are particularly humbling—the harried, sweaty shoppers; the unruly mounds of fabric; the heavy atmosphere of impending bankruptcy. Nothing screams corporate desperation like a neon tag with multiple past prices slashed out. For the past week and a half, such a scene has been unfolding at Hudson’s Bay. Once a successful department store with a historic origin story (remember the fur trade?), it’s been hit hard by restrained customer spending, declining foot traffic and the US–Canada trade war. The Bay is now on the brink of receivership and has filed for creditor protection. It’s in the process of liquidating the inventories of all but six of its locations (Yonge Street and Yorkdale are safe for now). It’s a far cry from the Bay’s glory days, when Dan Levy, Jeanne Beker and Suzanne Rogers attended its label launches and the company was flush enough to launch a retail war with its ritzier rival: Holt Renfrew. This week, we’re eulogizing Hudson’s Bay by revisiting Leah McLaren’s 2010 feature “Department Store Rehab.” In retrospect, HBC’s attempt to seduce socialites and other big spenders away from Holts may have marked the beginning of the end. For more great long-reads from Toronto Life, subscribe to our print edition here. |
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| —Maddy Mahoney, features editor |
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The sensible shoes and twin sets are gone, replaced by stilettos and crystal-encrusted gowns. There are valet parking and personal shoppers, and they’re serving champagne up on three. It’s all a part of the Bay’s scheme to win the loyalty of society shopaholics—and steal the fashion crown from Holts |
BY LEAH MCLAREN | NOVEMBER 1, 2010 |
The Bay on Yonge Street is enormous: it’s Canada’s original big box store. Holt Renfrew, on the other hand, is small, chic and exclusive, the little black dress of department stores. For decades, the two chains catered to different clientele, until the Bay decided to go after urbane, fashion-savvy shoppers—the kinds of women who typically didn’t shop there unless they were sending their personal assistants to do it for them. The Bay stopped at no expense to seduce this demographic, flying in Sarah Jessica Parker to lure in Toronto socialites and sending representatives to Paris, Milan, New York and London to wine and dine Holt Renfrew’s designers. In other words, the department store wars had officially begun. |
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