TORONTO — Mannequins galore, fashion-themed coffee table books and all the machinery you’d need to open a tailoring business.
These are just some of the gems Hudson's Bay is offloading as part of a fixture sale the 355-year-old retailer is running as it winds down its 80 stores and 16 more it operates under the Saks banners.
Liquidation sales underway across the company's entire footprint are due to rid the business of all of its inventory by June 15, leaving little reason for the retailer to hang onto display cases, shelving and decorative accoutrements that would otherwise fill its stores.
A "cheat sheet" it has made available to shoppers at its Yonge Street flagship in Toronto shows the company has at least 24 pages worth of treasures up for grabs from the Saks portion of its business.
Totalling up the prices listed in the document shows the company could make at least $150,500 from the fixtures included. The final amount may be even higher because some items such as a baler, which appears to be used for compressing recycling, have no price provided. Other listings don't make clear how many items are on offer or give a price range rather than a specific amount desired.
Most of the items are expected for a retail business in liquidation; nesting tables, clothing racks, full-body mirrors, shelving units and glass display cases.
Others, such as the gold-coloured vases, leather sofas and velvet armchairs, speak to the opulence of the luxury department store.
A massive glass table will set you back $5,000, the same price the retailer hopes to fetch for an island from its cosmetics department.
Decorative wall art ranges from $50 for a pair of black-and-white prints to hundreds of dollars for specific pieces from artists Cara Barer and Peter Dusek.
Risers to display shoes, racks that hold hangers, trays that fit lingerie and accessories, small step ladders, glass vases, abstract art and coffee table books are much more affordable. They are all priced under $100.
And then there are items that reveal some of the inner workings of the business.
The company has a salon chair, spa massage chair, rolling stool and a towel warmer that appear to come from a salon closing at its Sherway Gardens location in Toronto.
On the tailoring side there are sewing machines, a speed serger, a buttonhole machine and vacuum, dry cleaning and ironing tables.
Lisa Hutcheson, J.C. Williams Group retail strategist, said selling off the fixtures is a standard part of liquidation for retailers.
"It's definitely a way to raise some funds," she said. "Otherwise, these things would go in a dumpster."
Hudson's Bay, which filed for creditor protection in March amid severe cash-flow troubles, is in need of money because as of March 11 it had a 26-page list of creditors owed more than $950.8 million combined. Selling fixtures, in addition to inventory, helps it make a dent in that total and raises the odds of suppliers, landlords, lenders and employees being able to recover some of what they are owed.
Hutcheson expects a mix of potential buyers will step forward for fixtures. Some will be indie retailers strapped for cash and looking for reasonably priced furniture.
Others will simply be casual shoppers wanting a deal on some furniture for their home.
"The public did a lot of purchasing when we think back to the Nordstrom days," Hutcheson said of the department store that decamped Canada in 2023 over struggles with profitability.
"Some of it is just looks, like furniture, and there are some really interesting pieces that are really unique and a really great value."
The fixtures sale underway at Saks is being overseen by a group of retail consultancy companies with liquidation experience. A separate auction process to be run by Heffel Gallery is expected to find new homes for 4,400 pieces of art and artifacts, including the royal charter that started Hudson's Bay.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 7, 2025.
Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press
