Hudson’s Bay Company Launches 25 New Zellers Stores Across Canada, Bringing Back Nostalgia and Diner Fare

Hudson’s Bay Co. has announced the revival of Zellers, a Canadian discount chain that closed its last standalone location in 2013. The company has launched 12 new stores in Ontario and Alberta, along with a new retail website, marking the first of 25 new locations to be opened across Canada.

The new Zellers stores, spanning 10,000 square feet, will offer a range of products under the company’s in-house brand name Anko, including home decor, clothing, toys, baby and pet products. The Anko label is exclusive to Zellers within Canada, offering customers a unique shopping experience.

In addition to the assortment of products, Hudson’s Bay Co. plans to serve a “hint of the nostalgia that Canadians know and love” by bringing back a version of the Zellers Diner. While the floorplans for the new stores do not include a restaurant, the company will have food trucks at select locations offering top menu items from the original Zellers Diner. The menu, decided by nationwide poll, includes popular items such as the big “Z” burger, hot chicken sandwich, grilled cheese, chicken fingers, and fries with gravy.

The food trucks will be available at new locations in Alberta until March 25th and in Ontario until March 26th. Depending on the popularity of the comeback, Hudson’s Bay Co. plans to embark on a cross-country tour with their mobile diner fleet this summer.

Here are the locations of the new stores, by province. Stores indicated with an asterisk are now open:

BRITISH COLUMBIA

-Pacific Centre, Downtown Vancouver

-Aberdeen Mall, Kamloops

-Guildford Town Centre, Surrey

-7 Oaks Shopping Centre, Abbotsford

ALBERTA

-Kingsway Garden Mall, Edmonton*

-Medicine Hat Mall, Medicine Hat*

-Sunridge Mall, Calgary*

SASKATCHEWAN

-Midtown Plaza, Saskatoon

MANITOBA

-St. Vital, Winnipeg

ONTARIO

-Erin Mills, Mississauga*

-Burlington Mall, Burlington*

-White Oaks Mall, London*

-Scarborough Town Centre, Toronto*

-The Pen Centre, St. Catharines*

-Cambridge Centre, Cambridge*

-Rideau Centre, Ottawa*

-St. Laurent Centre, Ottawa*

-Cataraqui Town Centre, Kingston*

QUEBEC

Place Rosemère, Rosemère

Galeries d’Anjou, Ville Anjou

-Carrefour de l’Estrie, Sherbrooke

-Les Promenades Gatineau, Gatineau

-Les Galeries de la Capitale, Quebec City

NOVA SCOTIA

-Micmac Mall, Dartmouth

-Mayflower Shopping Mall, Sydney

The revival of Zellers comes after years of closure, with parent company Hudson’s Bay Co. (HBC) shuttering nearly all of the original Zellers stores in 2013. The final two stores closed in 2020, leaving a void in the Canadian retail market. However, HBC announced in 2022 its plans to bring back the iconic brand and the recent store openings mark the beginning of this comeback.

The new Zellers stores aim to provide Canadian customers with a sense of nostalgia and an opportunity to rediscover a beloved brand. The decision to bring back the Zellers Diner, albeit in food truck form, is an example of how the company plans to recreate this sentiment.

Prabhnoor Kaur