Coquitlam Centre is on the list for Zellers stores popping up across Canada this month.
On Wednesday, Sept. 6, the retail giant under the Hudson's Bay banner announced it would have its Coquitlam location open by Sept. 22 along with these B.C. locations:
- Metrotown Centre, Burnaby
- Park Royal Shopping Centre, West Vancouver
- Richmond Centre, Richmond
- Mayfair Shopping Centre, Victoria
- Village Green Mall, Vernon
- Orchard Park Shopping Centre, Kelowna
Currently, Zellers has 24 "store-in-store" sites across the country, as well as 22 pop-ups that opened earlier this year.
The expansion will cover a total of seven B.C. locations plus 13 in Ontario, six in Alberta, four in Quebec and one in Manitoba — bringing the number of Hudson’s Bay stores with a Zellers presence to 78 sites.
"We continue to see Canadians embrace Zellers and are delighted by the experience of people discovering the amazing quality and style of the assortment we carry," said Hudson’s Bay president Sophia Hwang-Judiesch in a news release.
"As I've said before, pop-ups are a key ingredient in our expansion strategy, allowing us to explore and test in new markets and fine-tune our offering before establishing larger format store locations.”
Zellers was founded as a Canadian discount store in 1931 by Walter P. Zeller and was bought by the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1978.
In the Tri-Cities, Zellers was at Coquitlam Centre until 2013 when the American chain Target took over; that mall space is now being leased by Walmart.
"We are excited about the recent Zellers announcement and look forward to welcoming the retailer to Coquitlam Centre," a mall spokesperson told the Tri-City News on Thursday, Sept. 7.
"This is good news for consumers who will be eager to experience the new Zellers within Hudson’s Bay."
Added Leslie Courchesne, CEO of the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce, "There is a lot of nostalgia for the Zellers brand and, in this economic climate, shoppers are certainly looking for value and good deals. The Tri-Cities Chamber welcomes the Zellers pop-up within The Bay at Coquitlam Centre and the added choice it will bring for local consumers."
