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| Towers/Bonimart Store Locations (by store name) | ||||||
| Store Name | Store Number | Location | Shopping Centre | Store Name | Opened | Photos & Notes |
| Aldershot | 23 | 124 Plains Road Burlington, Ontario |
Aldershot Plaza | Towers | 1962-63 | Note 1 |
| Barrie | 55 | 450 Bayfield Street Barrie, Ontario |
Bayfield Mall | Towers | 1980s |
|
| Baseline | 54 | 1980
Baseline Rd. Ottawa, Ontario |
Towers | late 1970s | ||
| Bedford | 61 |
1658 Bedford Hwy. |
Bedford Place Mall | Towers | 1978 | |
| Belleville | 25 | 540 Dundas St. West Belleville, Ontario |
Towers | - | ||
| Bridgewater | 74 |
441 Ld Have St. |
Bridgewater Mall | Towers | - | |
| Bracebridge | 67 |
505 Hwy. 118 W Bracebridge, Ontario |
Bracebridge Shopping Centre | Towers | - | |
| Brantford | 40 | 410
Fairview Dr. Brantford, Ontario |
Brantford Centre | Towers | - | |
| Brampton | 46 | 400 Queen St. West Brampton, Ontario |
This store later closed and moved to Hwy 10 | Towers | - |
|
| Cole Harbour | 64 |
900 Cole Harbour Rd. |
Colby Village Shopping Centre | Towers | - | |
| Chateauguay | 44 | 15
Boul. St. Jean Baptiste Montreal, Québec |
Bonimart | - |
Note 1 |
|
| Charlottetown | 71 |
670 University Ave. |
Charlottetown Mall | Towers | 1974 | |
| Collingwood | 63 | 55 Mountain Road Collingwood, Ontario |
Blue Mountain Mall | Towers | October 21, 1980 |
|
| Cyrville | 42 | 1205 Cyrville Road Ottawa, Ontario |
Towers | 1962 | ||
| Dartmouth |
64 |
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia | Towers |
- |
||
| Decairie |
73 |
6855 Clanranald Ave. Montreal, Québec |
Decairie Square | Bonimart |
Late 1970s |
|
| Dixie | 26 | Dixie and Dundas Mississauga, Ontario |
Dixie Plaza | Towers | July 1961 |
|
| Dufferin & Dupont | 47 | 1245 Dupont
St. Toronto, Ontario |
Galleria Mall | Towers | 1972 |
|
| Finch & Warden | 59 | 2900
Warden Ave. Toronto, Ontario |
Bridlewood Mall | Towers | 1975 | |
| Goreway | 60 | 7205
Goreway Dr. Malton, Ontario |
Westwood Mall | Towers | - |
|
| Greenfield Park | 28 | 5000
Boul. Taschereau Montreal, Québec |
Mall Carnaval | Bonimart | October 5, 1961 |
Note 1 |
| Hazeldean | 62 | 300
Eagleson Rd. Kanata, Ontario |
Hazeldean Mall | Towers | 1979 |
|
| High Park | 22 | 2290 Dundas St. West, Toronto, Ontario |
High Park | Towers | June 14, 1962 |
|
| Jane and Finch | 38 | 3929
Jane St. Toronto, Ontario |
Jane Finch Mall | Towers | - |
|
| Kipling/Queensway | 53 | 1255
The Queensway Toronto, Ontario |
Towers | mid 1970s | ||
| Kitchener | 65 | 700 Strasburg Road Kitchener, Ontario |
Forest Glen Mall | Towers | - | |
| Laval | 70 | Laval Montreal, Québec |
Centre Commercial Deux Mall | Bonimart | late 1970s | |
| London | 32 |
1441
Wellington Road London, Ontario |
Treasure Island Plaza | Towers | 1961 | Note 1 |
| Metropolitan |
24 |
7600 rue Viau Montreal, Québec |
Place Viau | Bonimart |
October 6, 1961 |
|
| New Minas | 45 |
9121 Commercial St. |
Towers | 1970 | ||
| Niagara Falls | 39 | 6777 Morrison
St. Niagara Falls, Ontario |
Niagara Falls Plaza | Towers | - | |
| Newmarket | 66 | Newmarket, Ontario | Towers | - | ||
| North Bay | 58 | 1899
Algonquin Ave. North Bay, Ontario |
Towers | - | ||
| Oakville | 41 | Trafalgar Rd. & Leighland,
Oakville, Ontario |
Towers | Fall 1969 |
|
|
| Owen Sound | 37 | 911 10th St W,
Owen Sound, Ontario |
Sunset Strip | Towers | May 1967 | |
| Peterborough | 35 | 950 Lansdowne St. W., Peterborough, Ontario |
Towers | Late 1960s |
|
|
| Place Desormeaux |
50 |
2877
Chemin de Chambly Montreal, Québec |
Place Desormeaux | Bonimart |
May 19, 1971 |
|
| Place Duvernay | 51 | 3100
Boul. de la Concorde E Laval, Québec |
Place Duvernay | Bonimart | mid 1970s | |
| Place St. Jean | 49 | 400
Boul. Seminaire Montreal, Québec |
Place St-Jean | Bonimart | - | |
| Rexdale | 43 | 2267 Islington
Ave. Toronto, Ontario |
Rexdale Mall | Towers | - |
|
| Riverdale | 30 | 447 Carlaw
Ave. Toronto, Ontario |
Towers | - |
|
|
| Saint John |
52 |
Prince Edward St. Saint John, NB |
Towers |
1973 |
||
| Scarborough | 21 | 2650
Lawrence Ave. E. Toronto, Ontario |
Towers | November 17, 1960 |
|
|
| Sorel
|
68 | 450
Boul. Poliquin Québec, Québec |
Bonimart | - | ||
| Ste. Foy | 29 | 2700
Boul. Laurier Québec City, Québec |
Bonimart | October 12, 1961 | ||
| Ste. Roche | 41 | Ste.
Roche Québec City, Québec |
Bonimart | - |
Note 1 |
|
| Stoney Creek | 31 | 640 Queenston
Rd. Hamilton, Ontario |
Towers | - | ||
| Stratford | 57 | 1067
Ontario St., Stratford, Ontario |
Towers | 1961 | ||
| Sudbury | 48 | 100
Elm St. Sudbury, Ontario |
City Centre Mall | Towers | 1971 | |
| St. Catherines | 33 | 366
Bunting Rd.
St. Catherines, Ontario |
Towers |
September 14, 1961 |
||
| Summerside | 72 |
100 Water St. |
Waterfront Mall | Towers | 1974 | |
| Westside | 34 | 2400 Eglinton Ave. W. Toronto, Ontario |
Westside Mall | Towers |
- |
|
| Waterloo | 27 | 70 Bridgeport Road East Waterloo, Ontario |
First City Plaza | Towers |
1961 |
Note
1 |
| Welland | 36 | 1000 East Main
St. Welland, Ontario |
Towers |
- |
||
| Woodstock | 56 | 645
Dundas St. Woodstock, Ontario |
Towers |
- |
||
Store list at bottom of flyer
(circa 1984)
Store List by District
Towers/Bonimart Store Locations (by district, as of April 1990)
[Ed note: Thanks to Bill Douglas for providing
this list of stores by district.]
| District 1 | |
| Dale Stoke, District Manager | |
| 25 | Belleville |
| 35 | Peterborough |
| 42 | Cyrville |
| 54 | Baseline |
| 62 | Hazeldean |
| District 2 | |
| Al Waechter, District Manager | |
| 27 | Waterloo |
| 32 | London |
| 40 | Brantford |
| 56 | Woodstock |
| 57 | Stratford |
| 65 | Kitchener |
| District 3 | |
| Bob Hogg, District Manager | |
| 23 | Aldershot |
| 26 | Dixie |
| 31 | Stoney Creek |
| 33 | St. Catherine |
| 36 | Welland |
| 39 | Niagara Falls |
| District 4 | |
| Roger Delledone, District Manager | |
| 34 | Westside |
| 38 | Jane & Finch |
| 43 | Rexdale |
| 46 | Brampton |
| 53 | Kipling & Queensway |
| 60 | Goreway |
| District 5 | |
| George Campbell, District Manager | |
| 21 | Scarborough |
| 22 | High Park |
| 30 | Riverdale |
| 47 | Dufferin & Dupont |
| 59 | Finch & Warden |
| 66 | Newmarket |
| District 6 | |
| Al Hammond, District Manager | |
| 37 | Owen Sound |
| 48 | Sudbury |
| 55 | Barrie |
| 58 | North Bay |
| 63 | Collingwood |
| 67 | Bracebridge |
| District 7 | |
| Jacques Valence, District Manager | |
| 24 | Metropolitan |
| 29 | Ste. Foy |
| 41 | Ste. Roche |
| 44 | Chateauguay |
| 51 | Place Duvernay |
| District 8 | |
| Mike Sanfacon, District Manager | |
| 28 | Greenfield Park |
| 49 | Place St. Jean |
| 50 | Place Desormeaux |
| 68 | Sorel |
| 70 | Laval |
| District 9 | |
| Art Peck, District Manager | |
| 45 | New Minas |
| 52 | Saint John |
| 61 | Bedford |
| 64 | Dartmouth |
| 71 | Charlottetown |
| 72 | Summerside |
|
Claude Leduc writes: |
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Here's additional historical information about Hypermarché, or
Hypermarket superstores, taken from
Wikipedia, including a reference to the
Oshawa Group: Fred Meyer, which today are very large stores which combine a supermarket and a department store, opened its first one-stop shopping center in 1931. It included a grocery store alongside a drugstore plus home products, off-street parking, gas station, and—eventually—clothing. In 1962, Meijer opened its first hypermarket in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1962, entitled "Thrifty Acres", and calling the format a "Supercenter", and in Europe by Carrefour, which opened its first such store in 1963 at Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois, France. In the Americas the format remained in regional use only until the late 1980s, however the Oshawa group introduced a hypermarket near Montreal in 1973. |
|
Rexdale Towers
![]() ![]() |
This used to join the mall to Towers department store.
When you entered the mall, Rexdale hobbies was to the right and a
restaurant was to the left. Rexdale Plaza was built in 1957, Catalina Restaurant with its solarium on the left, was originally a tire store when the plaza was extended this far in the 60's. Two garage service bays were to the left of the photographer. This laneway was part of a public thoroughfare called Blairmore Rd. while The Elms golf course occupied the lands to the right on which the Towers building was erected in the 70's. |
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Another remembrance: Up until I was 10 years old I lived in Rexdale too, on Islington Ave. near Dixon Blvd. There were a lot of boons in the building but for the most part they only caused trouble for each other. I used to love going to Rexdale Plaza as a kid - there used to be a Towers department store where you could go to the cafeteria in the store and a waitress would serve you. Biway, Woolco, Consumers Distributing and Bargain Harold's were OK stores at Rexdale plaza (at least to me until I was 10) - now all those chains are gone :( |
||
Finch and Warden
A remembrance:
I used to love the Towers Department store in
Bridlewood Mall. Personally, I think the mall just isn't the same without it. I
think I liked it better in the mid-1980s. I saw a Towers shopping cart outside
of a storeroom at The Bay not too long ago.
| Bonimart |
| Brief glimpse of Bonimart photos in this video -- Montreal in the 1980s.. |
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Going. Going. Gone. How much for a store?
| Chain | Date | $Millions/Store | Store Size (sq.ft.) |
| Simpsons | 1979 | 14.0 | 150,000 |
| Future Shop | 2001 | 7.0 | 25,000 |
| Towers/Bonimart | 1990 | 3.6 | 67,000 |
| Miracle Food Mart | 1990 | 3.4 | 25,000 |
| Woolco | 1994 | 2.9 | 120,000 |
| Dominion | 1984 | 1.5 | 25,000 |
| Zellers | 1980 | 1.2 | 65,000 |
| K-Mart | 1997 | 1.2 | 85,000 |
| BiWay | 2001 | 0.4 | 5,000 |
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Hudson Bay Company The Canadian company has been founded 1670. Today Hudson Bay is in its fourth century of retailing business in Canada. Hbc's main channels include: the Bay, Zellers, Home Outfitters, Designer Depot and Fields. All of these channels together offer more than 2/3 of the retail needs of Canadians. It all started when two Frenchmen, Radisson and des Groseilliers, found a wealth of fur in the north and west of the Great Lakes. The two needed permission in order to explore the region. They contacted Prince Rupert, who was the cousin of King Charles II and were able to acquire the Royal Charter. In May 1670, the charter granted the Frenchmen the territory of Hudson Bay watershed to "the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England trading into Hudson Bay." In the end of the 18th century the firm decided to expand its activity due to competition. It opened a chain of posts that ranged along the river networks and end up in such cities as: Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton. After the beginning of the retail era, Hbc steadily shifted their activity from ordinary posts into sales shops that featured a wider range of goods. 1912 started with an aggressive upgrading program within the company. In the end Hbc had six department stores located in Victoria, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Saskatoon and Winnipeg. In 1980 HBC rethought its priorities and decided to return to its main activity. It sold all non-retail businesses. In some time the company acquired: Zellers (1978), Simpsons (1978), Fields (1978), Robinson's (1979), Towers/Bonimart (1990), Woodwards (1993), and K-Mart Canada (1998) following in the tradition of Cairns (1921), Morgan's (1960) and Freiman's (1972). |
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Zellers faces deluge
of U.S. hardballers Canadian discount retailer faces increased competition from US firms Discount Store News, Feb 20, 1995 by Jim Fox MONTREAL - Zellers, a Canadian retailing institution since 1931, is in the midst of an intense mass-marketing battle but stands determined to remain Canada's leading discount department store retailer. Facing
an onslaught of invading U.S.-based megastore chains, Zellers is moving
ahead, "confident that we have a time-proven formula that works," Paul
Walters, president and chief operating officer, told DSN.The Montreal-based subsidiary of Hudson's Bay Co. is giving customers "more value for their hard-earned shopping dollars," while spending millions on renovations and new stores, he said. At yearend, Zellers added 12 new stores for a total of 292 from coast to coast. It also plans another 14 this year and 80 more by the end of the decade. Canadian retailers are repositioning their businesses "to deal with an entirely new set of economic, competitive and consumer realities in the '90s," Walters said. "What we've learned so far in this decade is that the consumer in Canada today is quick to bankrupt retailers who are not extremely well-focused, efficient and meeting their value expectations." The move into Canada last year by Wal-Mart, with the purchase of 122 Woolcos, "substantially intensified competitive activity in the mass market segment," Walters said. Regarding the new competitive forces, Walters said: "The emergence of several U.S.-based power formats are just beginning to reveal their impact. [PriceCostro] is eating up significant market share. Aikenheads [Home Improvement Warehouse stores!, now The Home Depot, are redefining the DIY market with tremendous customer response. Electronic superstores, office-supply depots and sporting goods superstores, office-supply depots and sporting goods superstores are all looking to duplicate in Canada their success south of the border." Zellers is building upon its position of strength to create more value for Canadian consumers committed to "low-price leadership that is stronger than ever." The company's positioning statement is "Zellers. . . Because the Lowest Price is the Law!" - a phrase well-known by Canadians. The mass merchandiser targets the budge-minded customer with the assurance of the lowest price. The primary target is women 25 to 55 years old with a family, who shop frequently to satisfy basic or staple clothing and leisure needs. They have low discretionary income, require credit and are very responsive to price promotions. The secondary customer is the department store shopper with more discretionary income who buys only household basics or consumable-type merchandise at Zellers. Its stores are characterized by self service and central checkout. Most are in shopping malls and the average size is 70,000 sq. ft., with new stores about 120,000 sq. ft. Although some analysts suggested the company is exploring a supercenter concept, Walters declined to comment on the possibility. The Zellers merchandise strategy is to offer "narrow" but "deep" assortments in the low- to moderate-low price range for each category. Price ceilings are determined for each category to ensure that the offerings suit the target market. The strategy also embraces change and acknowledges that assortment modification is a never-ending process. Stores are configured in a racetrack format that flows customer traffic through all major merchandise categories, with hard lines on the outside and fashion on the inside. Power displays and clear item/price message. Zellers plays on nationalistic sentiments. It is positioned as the "truly Canadian" store working hard to give hard-working Canadians more for their money. The highly successful customer-reward program, Club Z, has expanded with more rewards with the accumulation of fewer points. Since its inception in 1986, Club Z has become Canada's most successful customer loyalty rewards program, now topping 8 million members. Zellers has issued 1.6 trillion Club Z points and redeemed several hundred billion points for 5.5 million gifts and services. The value people place on their Club Z points is "particularly gratifying" to Walters, who noted some customers have included the points in their wills, passing them down to family members and carrying on the tradition of shopping at Zellers. The company was founded on July 31, 1931, by Walter Zeller, who opened a small "Five and Dime" in Waterloo, Ontario. From the start, Zeller positioned his business on outstanding customer value with a slogan: "Zellers ... Serving the Needs of Trinity Canadians." While agreeing the positioned today is "perhaps a little bit more aggressive," Walters said the underlying premise is still the same. In 1952, Zellers stores became affiliated with U.S.-based W.T. Grant Co. and a period of expansion began over 24 years when more than 100 stores were added. Fields stores of Vancouver acquired control from W.T Grant in 1976 and remains part of the company today. Two years later, Zellers was acquired by Hudson's Bay Co., of which the Thompson family of Toronto controls 25%. Fueled by the acquisition of the Towers/Bonimart chain in 1990, Zellers added 58 stores. In 1993, Zellers acquired Woodwards' 10 stores in British Columbia and Alberta adding sought-after retail space in Western Canada. Despite the economic recession, Zellers had record sales, surpassing $3 billion ($2.1 billion U.S.) in 1993 for the first time as operating profits reached $256 million ($179 million U.S.). In the third quarter of 1994, sales and revenue were up by 5.1% at $8.28 million ($5.81 million U.S.). However, earnings before taxes were lower - off 23.2% or $15.2 million ($10.7 million U.S.) to $50.1 million ($25.2 million U.S.) - "due to reduced margins resulting from more aggressive price competition in the discount store segments." |
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