Hudson’s Bay Co. ULC
has received several bids for its 355-year-old business, leases and assets as part of its restructuring process, but none came from members related to the company, according to court documents.
Canada’s oldest department store has been looking to raise money by monetizing its leases and selling its intellectual property (IP) in order to pay back about $1 billion to its creditors. The deadline to bid for the company and its IP ended April 30, and bids for leases had to be made by May 01.
HBC hasn’t revealed who the bidders are, but the court document released on Wednesday said there were “several qualified” bidders for the leases, but none from “insiders.”
Similarly, the sales and investment solicitation process (SISP), through which HBC’s IP, such as its brand name, can be sold, also received numerous bids, but none from a “related person.”
The company has also been trying to raise money by liquidating its 96 stores in Canada and auctioning 1,700 pieces of art and more than 2,700 artifacts.
Urbana Corp.
, a Toronto-based investment firm with about $500-million worth of assets, in April said it had placed a bid to purchase HBC’s brand name and the Royal Charter, a historical document that gave the company exclusive trading rights over a portion of Canada in 1670.
Media reports also suggested
Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd.
and a Vancouver-based billionaire are potential bidders.
HBC first went to court on March 7 to seek protection from its creditors through a stay order under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). The application was granted by the court that same day, and the stay order was eventually extended till May 15.
The company will return to court next week to extend the stay period till July 31.
“The extension of the stay period is necessary and appropriate in the circumstances to provide (HBC) the ability to complete the liquidation process, lease monetization process and SISP process, to maximize value for the benefit of the applicants and their stakeholders,” the court document said.
HBC will also try to get court approval to repay some of the cash it borrowed from certain lenders.
The company also said it will be exiting some of its Saks Off 5th stores earlier since the liquidation sales in these “small” stores are expected to be completed sooner than other HBC locations.
Nine of 13 Saks Off 5th stores closed by April 27, and the rest are expected to close by June 1.
• Email: nkarim@postmedia.com
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Hudson's Bay has received 'several' bids, but none from insiders, court documents show
2025-05-07 21:06:19
