The legendary Canadian department store chain, which occupied locations in malls across the Eastern and Western provinces, Zellers is making a dramatic reappearance under new management in order to have a hold over the nostalgic shopper, besides adding a new touch of added value to a market that is tightening its belt due to rising inflation and online Walmart stores.
Les Ailes de la Mode Inc., headed by the Benitah family, who were also retail savvy, announced plans to start a gradual relaunch with pop-up stores in Toronto and Vancouver this holiday season.
The shift brings back the Zellers brand, which was acquired in August at an undisclosed price, its popular mascot, Zeddy the bear, Club Z loyalty program and its portrait studios, which is an indication of a mix of tradition and hustle in the changing retail environment in Canada.
Joey Benitah, the scion and chief operating officer, is the leader at the helm of the company that has been associated with Canadian commerce over the past 5 decades. Dating back to Fairweather apparel and the Bombay housewares, the Benitahs have overcome the boom and bust, introducing millennial-focused Wyrth home furnishings in 2019 in the face of e-commerce disruptions.
It is the one thing that never goes out of style, which is why Benitah informed reporters of the importance of a strategy that is laser-focused on the affordable necessities factor. The first stores will feature customised areas in clothing, toys, and home accessories, which are bought within the US to avoid import duties and benefit local employment.
No bells, no bells: when Zellers fails to conquer a category with prices that cannot be matched, it will either not enter this category at all, Benitah underlined, looking at holes left by Dollarama with its small aisles and Walmart with its exclusive push.
The time could not have been better. Shoppers are in need of bargains with consumer confidence at 2025 lows, with the 4.2% inflation and Bank of Canada rates at 3.75%. Zellers had its final gasp in 2019 in the hands of Hudson’s Bay Co., although its 2022 Hudson’s Bay online pop-up, including social media antics, spawned viral nostalgia with 1.5 million Instagram followers.
The latter is intensified by this relaunch, which collaborates with influencers to do Zeddy-themed unboxings and introduces a Club Z app with AI-powered deals. Current estimates are that first-year sales will be $150 million and rise to 50 brick-and-mortar outlets by 2027, with experiential areas such as Zeddy play areas to attract Gen Z families.
The odds are stacked against a sector in which Amazon controls 40% of e-commerce, and Loblaws is not being antitrust whatsoever. Any supply chain disruptions caused by U.S. port strikes would add to the pressure, and Benitah is afraid of over-expansion since it might have missed the TikTok-led impulse purchase rush.
Sustainability requires loom as well: anticipate eco-lines out of recycled fabric, which is consistent with the green retail incentives of Ottawa at 2 billion. However, the track record of the Benitahs when the Les Ailes de la Mode put its head on the block after a 2008 crash gives one confidence. Rachel Benitah, who was a co-founder of Wyrth, will be the head of merchandising and will combine the boho style with the blue-collar heritage of Zellers.
To the Canadian economy, Zellers’ resurrection puts life in the retailing sector, which is a mammoth of 600 billion with 2million workers. The Yorkdale All-Pop and Pacific Centre pop-ups in Toronto and Vancouver, respectively, may initially provide 500 employees, contributing to the recovery in the leisure sector during and after the pandemic.
With competitors such as Canadian Tire shifting to EVs and home renovations, Zellers plans a niche of happy stinginess, and Zeddy partnerships are being discussed as helping kids’ cancer camps- a reference to the community that may have contributed to the loyalty of the original chain.
The market response was shocking: Hudson Bay shares were up 2% on synergy speculation, and retail ETFs were 1.5%. TD Securities analysts predict a 15% surge in the number of people going to the department stores, attributing it to the anti-AI flair of Zellers in a world dominated by artificial intelligence. Benitah imagines hybrid forms – brick-and-mortar anchors nourishing an omnichannel app – in the pattern of Indigo but with mascot magic.
This is not re-invention, it is re-inventing. At a time when it seems like a tip of the hat towards luxury but the purse is closed and tight, Zellers is offering low-price pleasure: $19.99 hoodies, five-dollar toys, and that family portrait under the watchful gaze of Zeddy.
It can reopen the door of the Benitah clan, and it can reopen the door of Canada, reminding us that great brands survive when they are changed. With the approach of Black Friday, Zellers is not following the trends; it is reinventing value, bargain bin after bargain bin.