Activewear owner pulls inventory from Hudson’s Bay as stores liquidate

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Olivia Glauberzon, owner of the After9 maternity activewear brand, says the situation is ‘unfortunate,’ but she has opted to pull its inventory from Hudson's Bay locations in Toronto, adding that retail is a ‘people business’ and that wasn’t prioritized in stores. Hudson’s Bay is liquidating all but six of its stores; its flagship location on Yonge Street in Toronto is one of the stores that will be spared.  Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/1.7489551   »»» Subscribe to CBC News to watch more videos: http://bit.ly/1RreYWS  Connect with CBC News Online:  For breaking news, video, audio and in-depth coverage: http://bit.ly/1Z0m6iX Follow CBC News on TikTok: https://bit.ly/3TnHioe Follow CBC News on Twitter: http://bit.ly/1sA5P9H Find CBC News on Facebook: http://bit.ly/1WjG36m Follow CBC News on Instagram: http://bit.ly/1Z0iE7O Subscribe to CBC News on Snapchat: https://bit.ly/3leaWsr  Download the CBC News app for iOS: http://apple.co/25mpsUz Download the CBC News app for Android: http://bit.ly/1XxuozZ  »»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»» For more than 80 years, CBC News has been the source Canadians turn to, to keep them informed about their communities, their country and their world. Through regional and national programming on multiple platforms, including CBC Television, CBC News Network, CBC Radio, CBCNews.ca, mobile and on-demand, CBC News and its internationally recognized team of award-winning journalists deliver the breaking stories, the issues, the analyses and the personalities that matter to Canadians.

Transcript

00:00Okay, let's stick with this story because it's not just employees that are going to be affected

00:03It's all the thousands of Canadians who sell their products to HBC. So let's turn now to Olivia Globerson

00:10She is the owner of after nine an athleisure brand for mums in pregnancy and beyond now her company had merchandise in two Hudson's Bay

00:18Locations in Ontario and we've reached her today in Toronto Olivia. Thanks for making some time for us today

00:23I bet it's been a stressful day. Oh

00:26Oh

00:27Yes, it's been a stressful

00:30Week, I would say but the situation, you know, we saw it coming. So I braced myself

00:38so tell us about your situation because you sell these goods for mums and

00:43You put your heart and soul into this business and you get this amazing opportunity to sell your

00:48Wares at two different Bay stores in Ontario and I understand one of those locations is going to survive the liquidation

00:56So what does this mean for you and your stuff? That's at the other store. That is going to be liquidated

01:02So we actually

01:04We pulled a lot of our inventory on Wednesday because as a small made in Canada brand

01:11We can't risk

01:13Our inventory getting mixed in with the liquidation goods and shoppers shopping on liquidation are not

01:21Interested shopping full price

01:23So to have our stuff sit there in a sea of liquidated items just didn't make sense anymore

01:30But it is a really sad, you know

01:33This whole situation is very sad when we first started with Hudson's Bay in 2022

01:39This was so exciting and there was so much promise and potential and it's just really unfortunate to see the way it's rolling out

01:46Now when you say you took your stuff off the racks

01:49Does you just took it back from the store and it does that mean that's a financial loss for you?

01:57So the reality is the Hudson's Bay

02:01Hasn't had a lot of traffic like the traffic has just been on a steady decline

02:08Black Friday for instance barely anyone was in there

02:13It both locations. I've watched the decline in Queen and Oakville

02:19So after nines revenue has no hasn't been dependent on Hudson's Bay for over a year and a half

02:26But we kept our stuff in there because we really believe that moms need access to in-person shopping

02:33Experiences, so we've pulled our inventory to focus on

02:38some of the luxury boutiques

02:40Luxury bra boutiques we've partnered with and maternity stores to provide them with that inventory

02:46We've seen so much analysis Olivia in the last couple of weeks about how HBC was running its operations that it was really

02:53Not great at communicating. It wasn't it wasn't in line with what's happening in the stores versus what's happening on the website

03:00How did you find them as a business to work with?

03:04You know in the beginning we had a dedicated rep for the licensees

03:10Which is the relationship I had with Hudson's Bay. We are not a wholesale account

03:14So we had been paid this almost this entire time

03:19So I would say in the beginning when we have that dedicated rep it was a great partnership

03:24We were really building together. We were running events in Hudson's Bay and we were both benefiting from the partnership

03:31however, once that person left head office the communication just went radio silent and

03:39You know, we were operating on a unrenewed contract for over six months

03:46So with the news of Hudson's Bay potentially going bankrupt it, you know, it was just time to pull our inventory

03:54Which we own which you own. Okay, so and you said

03:59The bay really hasn't been the source of a lot of income for you

04:02So that tells us something about how they've been running their business and how other retailers might be doing it more successfully

04:08So where have you seen growth?

04:12Yes, um, so here's the thing about Hudson's Bay it's a it's a big place even in the smaller Hudson's Bay

04:19It's still quite big and shoppers really need a personal touch

04:24So as I guess the bay was trying to cut costs and staff the same person working the cash

04:31would end up

04:33working the floor and then every time they stepped away from the cash to help a customer a

04:38Whole lineup of customers would build up at the cash leaving other customers on the floor in a lurch

04:44So we found our our sales in Hudson's Bay were quite successful when we were there at the section

04:51personally talking to shoppers

04:53However, when our contract didn't get renewed and the communication went silent

04:59That's that's when we stopped showing up and let our sales. I'm gonna say, you know passively

05:06You know, we passively be on the floor

05:08so our stuff was on the floor, but no one was actively manning the section unless a customer booked an

05:14Appointment through the afternoon website where we would show up to serve them specifically

05:20You know, I think retail is very much a people business. It's a personal business

05:26Customers when they come into a store

05:28They want to be greeted by someone especially when they're looking for something in such a big place

05:33So, I think that was a huge part of where the decline in sales

05:40You know at the floor level were happening in Hudson's Bay, you know live here

05:44You're giving us such a good insight not only as a business owner

05:48Dealing with the bay but as an analyst really of what's happening in the retail sphere and you know

05:53You either want to really efficiently online and not have to deal with anyone or as you said you want a more

05:59For lack of a better word luxurious personal experience

06:02Like this is someone who knows me and knows my taste and will cater to it

06:05Like I walk through the bay that's gonna survive on Queen Street every day on my way home from work

06:10And I'll tell you those escalators don't work and then it makes the place look depressing

06:14And so all of this has contributed

06:17I mean, it's a thing, you know

06:18People have said that when you're this big luxurious department store and the escalators haven't worked in months

06:24It brings down the mood so with that in mind and since your stuff is at the Queen Street store

06:30Considering everything that's happening with the bay and in retail in general

06:33Do you want to keep your stuff there beyond this immediate experience of liquidation?

06:39Yeah, so Natasha just to correct you our stuff is we pulled it on Wednesday. So we have

06:47From both stores. You took it out of both stores. Yes. Oh

06:51I see

06:53Because again

06:54Even though Queen is remaining open and you you know cream

06:58Queen they call it the Queen store like it is the place to be when you're in Hudson's Bay

07:04And it was so sad too. It was heartbreaking to do that

07:08But again as a small made in Canada operation to have our goods sit in a sea of liquidated

07:16Items especially when we own the inventory and there's a big risk that they could get miss tickered

07:22You know with like liquidation

07:25We've we've seen miss tickering in the past where our goods have been marked down without our approval

07:30So because of that I just couldn't take the risk

07:34Okay, Olivia Gloverson. Thank you so much for your time. Best of luck with your business

07:39Thank you

07:45You

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