Zellers makes a comeback with pop-up store at Hudson's Bay

Alicja Siekierska and Jeff Lagerquist
·3 min read
HBC has opened a Zellers-themed pop-up store in one of its Hudson's Bay locations.
HBC has opened a Zellers-themed pop-up store in one of its Hudson's Bay locations. (Jeff Lagerquist)

Zellers is back.

As first reported by Retail-Insider.com, HBC has opened a pop-up Zellers shop within its Hudson's Bay store in the Burlington Centre mall. The shop, decked out in the classic Zellers white and red, is the first Zellers pop-up rolled out by HBC, but a spokesperson for the company says future shops may be introduced at other locations.

"Hudson's Bay has created a pop-up Zellers shop at our Burlington Mall location, meant to delight our customers with a fun and nostalgic experience with one of HBC's most beloved brands," HBC spokesperson Tiffany Bourre said in an emailed statement.

The Zellers pop-up shop features a range of goods, from toys to housewares to Canada-themed clothing. Zeddy, the company's beloved mascot, was notably nowhere in sight.

A Zellers pop-up show is now open in the Hudson's Bay department store in the Burlington Centre mall.
A Zellers pop-up show is now open in the Hudson's Bay department store in the Burlington Centre mall. (Jeff Lagerquist)

Zellers is a storied Canadian brand that met its demise not long after it was taken over by Target. The company was founded by Walter P. Zeller in 1931. HBC first took over the Zellers brand in 1978 in an attempt to reach a broader range of customers.

In 2011, HBC reached an agreement to sell the leases of its 189 Zellers stores to Target for $1.8 billion. The remaining locations controlled by HBC were shut down in 2013, with the exception of two stores in Etobicoke and Ottawa that were not closed until early 2020.

Zellers was trending on Twitter in Canada on Friday morning upon news of the pop-up. Many users were excited about the return of their favourite childhood store.

The pop-up has certainly been nostalgic for many Canadians. Lisa Lowe, who worked at the former Zellers location in the Burlington Centre between 2004 and 2012, is unsure if the pop-up will help Hudson's Bay, but it did bring back memories of her former employer.

"When Zellers was around, they catered to the mothers more than anybody else, and the families," she said. "And we were always busy."

Alicja Siekierska is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow her on Twitter @alicjawithaj.

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