Will you miss Hudson's Bay when it closes?

Photo: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

The owners of the Hudson's Bay department store chain say they will start to liquidate the business this week.

A liquidation plan at Canada's oldest company could begin at all of its locations as soon as Tuesday and last for up to 12 weeks, but Hudson’s Bay is still holding out hope that it will find a lifeline.

Lawyers for the beleaguered retailer said in an Ontario court Monday morning that if approved by the judge, the liquidation would span 80 stores as well as three Saks Fifth Avenue stores and 13 Saks Off 5th locations in Canada that it owns through a licensing agreement.

The process Hudson’s Bay is proposing would allow the retailer to remove some stores from the liquidation, should it find sufficient financing during the 10 to 12 weeks when lawyer Ashley Taylor expects the company to offload its inventory.

“A quick start will maximize the value of the business ... and preserve whatever chance there is of a restructuring,” Taylor told Ontario Superior Court judge Peter Osborne in a hearing at a Toronto courtroom Monday.

The hearing attracted so many lawyers, media and other observers, an overflow room had to be opened to facilitate spectators there to hear about what will come of the retailer dating back to 1670, when the country was involved with the fur trade.

The hearing was meant to advance a creditor protection case Hudson’s Bay launched March 7, when it admitted it was struggling with financial difficulties amid subdued consumer spending, Canada-U.S. trade tensions and post-pandemic drops in downtown store traffic.

It said the situation has become so bad that it deferred some payments to landlords, service providers and vendors and was days away from not being able to meet payroll obligations.

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