Toronto / Edmonton — Beloved Canadian discount retailer Zellers is making another comeback — this time under new ownership and with a refreshed business model focused on affordability, smaller store formats, and modern family appeal.
The revived Zellers will officially reopen Thursday at Londonderry Mall in Edmonton, marking the first of several new locations planned across Canada. The brand — famous for its slogan “Where the lowest price is the law” — will continue to emphasize value for families, but will operate out of compact retail spaces rather than the sprawling department stores it once occupied.
Zellers’ new owners, the Benitah family, have decades of experience in Canadian retail through brands such as Fairweather, International Clothiers, Bombay, and Bowring. Their company, Les Ailes de la Mode Inc., acquired the Zellers name, logo, and mascot “Zeddy” from the now-defunct Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) earlier this year. Court filings suggest the acquisition price was around $100,000.
“We’ve always loved the brand and its history,” said Joey Benitah, the new Chief Operating Officer of Zellers. “Value never goes out of style — and that’s what we’re bringing back.”
A Smaller, Smarter Zellers
The new stores will average 50,000 square feet or less, focusing on men’s, women’s, and children’s apparel, home goods, luggage, and seasonal décor. Categories like toys and pharmaceuticals — once staples of Zellers — will be dropped, as Benitah said it’s difficult to compete with Amazon and Walmart in those segments.
Zellers’ updated merchandise lineup will include brands such as Reebok, Spyder, Chaps, DKNY, Disney, Marvel, and Nickelodeon, with footwear and other departments to follow in later phases.
While the iconic Zellers diner won’t be part of the relaunch, Benitah hinted at “fun, interactive food concepts” being developed for future stores.
A Nostalgic Brand With a Modern Mission
A new Zeddy teddy bear line and customization area will be introduced in 2026, and discussions are underway to support camps for children affected by cancer, continuing a legacy partnership that began when HBC donated the Zeddy mascot to such a camp in 2012.
Benitah said he plans to expand Zellers to every major Canadian market in the near future, focusing first on former Hudson’s Bay locations and other retail properties already in transition.
“We don’t need 250,000 square feet anymore,” he said. “We’re building a version of Zellers that fits today’s Canada — efficient, affordable, and full of heart.”
At its peak, Zellers operated 350 stores nationwide, before HBC shuttered nearly all locations by 2013. The last two — in Toronto and Ottawa — closed in 2020.
Now, after nearly a century of reinventions, Zellers 3.0 is ready for another chapter — smaller in size but aiming big on nostalgia and value.