Hudson Bay Liquidation Sale Stores: Final 6 Closing in 2025

For 355 years, the Hudson’s Bay Company anchored Canadian retail from fur-trade origins to department-store icon. That run ended in 2025 as the final six stores—a fraction of an empire once spanning 80 locations—went into liquidation. With sales beginning on April 25, 2025, and all doors shuttering by June 1, the wind-down marks a swift and sobering close for Canada’s oldest commercial enterprise.

Stores initially spared: 6 · Total Bay stores affected: 80 · Employees displaced: 8,347 · Liquidation start: April 25, 2025 · Saks Off 5th shops: 13

The table below summarizes the key facts driving the Hudson’s Bay Company wind-down.

Which Hudson Bay stores are getting liquidated?

The final six stores included Canada’s most recognizable flagship locations: Queen Street in Toronto (also home to the licensed Saks Fifth Avenue), Sainte-Catherine Street in Montreal, Yorkdale Shopping Centre in Toronto, Hillcrest Mall in Richmond Hill, CF Carrefour Laval, and CF Fairview Pointe-Claire. These six represented the last survivors after liquidation had already swept through the remaining 74 Hudson’s Bay locations, plus 13 Saks OFF 5TH shops and 3 Saks Fifth Avenue stores (Retail Insider).

Last 6 stores previously spared

• Queen Street, Toronto (flagship + Saks Fifth Avenue license)
• Sainte-Catherine Street, Montreal
• Yorkdale Shopping Centre, Toronto
• Hillcrest Mall, Richmond Hill
• CF Carrefour Laval, Laval
• CF Fairview Pointe-Claire, Pointe-Claire

When the court filing on April 23, 2025 authorized the sell-off at these six locations, it also meant Canada’s last Saks Fifth Avenue was caught in the same wind-down. The Queen Street location operated under a licensed Saks banner that expired with HBC’s insolvency (Retail Insider).

Saks Fifth Avenue and Off 5th locations

Nine Saks OFF 5TH stores closed on April 27, 2025, while the three Saks Fifth Avenue locations—Calgary, Vancouver, and Ottawa—also entered liquidation alongside the Bay flagships (MR Magazine). Flagship closures hit downtown Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, and Ottawa particularly hard (Retail Insider).

The implication: even the most prominent HBC locations could not attract a buyer willing to make the financial commitments needed to sustain operations.

Are all bay locations closing?

Yes. Every Hudson’s Bay store closed permanently on June 1, 2025—well ahead of the “no later than June 15” guidance that had been circulating just months earlier (MR Magazine). The company filed for creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act on March 7, 2025, when it operated 80 Hudson’s Bay stores, 3 Saks Fifth Avenue locations, and 13 Saks OFF 5TH shops (Retail Insider).

Announcement of full liquidation

Liquidation sales began for all but six stores on March 24, 2025. The final six stores—deemed commercially viable enough to attract continued interest—entered liquidation on April 25. By June 1, all locations had closed their doors for the final time (Toronto CityNews).

Scope beyond initial closures

The scale of the collapse surprised even observers familiar with HBC’s struggles. Roughly 8,347 employees lost their jobs by June 2025, while the company employed approximately 9,400 staff at the time of the CCAA filing in March (Retail Insider). HBC blamed the demise on low foot traffic, a lagging COVID recovery, and trade war pressures (Montreal CityNews).

“This decision underscores the low probability of a buyer emerging to continue operating these locations.”

Adam Zalev, Managing Director, Reflect Advisors (Retail Insider)

Who is buying Hudson Bay stores?

No single buyer acquired the stores as going concerns. The sale process for the six final stores officially ended on April 30, 2025, with no viable bidder for any location. A $30 million transaction did occur—but it targeted intellectual property, not retail operations (Toronto CityNews).

Leases for up to 28 stores

Canadian Tire purchased the HBC trademarks for $30 million on May 15, 2025, with court approval coming on June 3, 2025. The deal secured the iconic HBC crest, stripes, and point blanket branding for a Canadian retail giant, not a department-store revival (Toronto CityNews).

Potential takeovers

Separately, B.C. mall owner Ruby Liu had expressed interest in both the HBC trademarks and physical store properties as early as March 23, 2025. Her acquisition strategy targeted up to 28 store leases for a new department-store concept, but the approach faced resistance from some landlords who opposed her lease takeovers (Toronto CityNews).

What this means: Canadian Tire gains a heritage brand without the obligation to operate department stores, while Ruby Liu’s new concept faces an uncertain path through landlord negotiations.

Who will take over Hudson Bay stores?

Ruby Liu took possession of her first HBC lease on June 26, 2025, at Tsawwassen Mills in British Columbia. The court approved three leases to her on June 23, 2025, signaling that some former HBC locations may eventually house new department-store operations (Toronto CityNews).

Court-supervised process

The CCAA proceedings in Ontario Superior Court governed all asset sales, lease assignments, and creditor negotiations. HBC also sought court permission on April 24, 2025, to auction its royal charter and 4,400 art pieces—assets distinct from the retail real estate. The timeline left little room for extended revival attempts: court stay extensions were sought past May 15, 2025, but the operational closure moved faster than anticipated (Toronto CityNews).

Future of locations

The implications vary by geography. In British Columbia, Ruby Liu’s first lease at Tsawwassen Mills suggests some suburban locations may survive as anchor tenants. In Quebec, the Sainte-Catherine Street flagship closure leaves a downtown Montreal vacancy with no immediate replacement. Ontario and Alberta face similar uncertainty at flagship locations in Toronto, Calgary, and Ottawa.

“Bringing these six stores into the liquidation process is not necessarily the end, but it signals that no credible interest has emerged to keep the business running in any recognizable format.”

Boutet, retail restructuring advisor (Retail Insider)

The pattern: Former HBC locations in suburban markets show more promise for reuse than urban flagship spaces, which face higher costs and more complex lease negotiations.

What is the oldest company in Canada?

The Hudson’s Bay Company, founded in 1670, holds the distinction of Canada’s oldest commercial enterprise—and one of the oldest continuously operating companies in the world. For 355 years, it operated through fur trading, retail expansion, and eventually department stores. The company passed through multiple owners, most recently controlled by an American investment firm since 2008, before collapsing under the weight of debt, declining foot traffic, and economic pressures (Montreal CityNews).

Hudson’s Bay Company history

The company began as a fur-trade monopoly granted by King Charles II of England, controlling vast territories across what is now Canada. It evolved into a retail powerhouse, building iconic department stores in major Canadian cities and eventually expanding to Saks Fifth Avenue and Saks OFF 5TH brands north of the border. The 2008 acquisition by the U.S. investment group loaded the company with debt that it never recovered from (Global National).

Founding family

The company was originally co-founded by Pierre-Esprit Radisson and Médard des Groseilliers, explorers who established trading relationships with Indigenous nations across the Hudson Bay watershed. HBC’s original shareholders included English nobility and, critically, the French-Canadian traders who navigated the interior. The modern company traces direct corporate lineage to those 1670 origins, though ownership structures changed repeatedly over three and a half centuries.

After 355 years, the Hudson’s Bay Company has officially closed its doors.

News Staff and The Canadian Press (Montreal CityNews)

Clarity on what’s confirmed and what’s still uncertain

Four verified facts anchor the HBC wind-down story, with several unknowns still unresolved.

The implication: Affected employees and customers face immediate practical consequences—job losses and unusable gift cards—while the legal and financial aftermath unfolds through the court-supervised process.

Summary

The Hudson’s Bay Company’s collapse in 2025 represents more than a retail failure—it closes a 355-year chapter in Canadian commercial history. The final six stores, once deemed potentially salvageable, entered liquidation on April 25 and closed permanently on June 1. No buyer emerged to operate any location as a going concern. Canadian Tire now controls the brand identity, while Ruby Liu rebuilds some former locations as a new department-store concept. For affected employees, former customers, and Canadian retail landlords, the path forward demands adaptation: workers must find new employment, landlords must fill vacant anchor spaces, and customers with unused gift cards face losses with no recourse.

Related reading: Cyber Monday 2025 Deals

As the final six Hudson Bay stores launch liquidation sales on April 25, the 96-store closure timeline details how all 96 locations wrap up by June.

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