Whatever Happened to Consumers Distributing?
Stubby pencils, order forms and a catalogue full of wishes. How a Toronto catalogue showroom grew into a national chain, and why it vanished in 1996.
Retail Rewind
The stores, catalogues, food courts and malls Ontario shopped in.
Kmart Canada: The Discount Chain Ontario Lost
Canada's first Kmart opened in London, Ontario, in 1963. Thirty-five years later the chain was sold to the Hudson's Bay Company, and the name disappeared within weeks.
Remember Towers?
Before the signs changed to Zellers, Towers was a discount department store fixture in Ontario. Here's where it came from and where it went.
Eaton’s: When a Department Store Became Part of Canadian Life
From a cash-only shop on Yonge Street to the catalogue, the Santa Claus Parade and the Eaton Centre: how Eaton's wove itself into Ontario life, and how it came apart.
The Ontario Malls We Grew Up In
From Hamilton's Centre Mall to Yorkdale, Square One and the Eaton Centre: how Ontario learned to shop indoors, and why so many of those malls have changed or vanished.
Simpsons: Ontario’s Other Great Department Store
Eaton's had the parade, but Simpsons had the Arcadian Court and a landmark at Queen and Yonge. Now that the Bay is gone, its old name is showing through the stone again.
Things Every Ontario Mall Had in the 1990s
Sam the Record Man, Electronics Boutique, RadioShack, Thriftys, Le Château, Coles: the stores that filled Ontario malls in the 1990s, and what became of each one.
The Department Store Restaurant: A Lost Canadian Tradition
From the Georgian Room and the Arcadian Court to dime-store lunch counters and the Zellers diner: a look back at when Ontario's stores fed their shoppers.
The Stores You Remember From the Food Court
Orange Julius, Mr. Sub, Manchu Wok, New York Fries, Yogen Früz, Arby's: the food court chains Ontario grew up on, where they came from, and which ones are still around.
Woolco Before Walmart
Red Grille lunches, $1.44 Days and stores of 100,000 square feet. Woolco was Woolworth's discount chain, and in 1994 it became Walmart's way into Canada.