Even after reopening, challenging times ahead
M.H. Grover and Sons has become a Montreal retail landmark since it opened in 1925. The men’s specialty clothing store survived the Great Depression and has been selling “big and tall” clothes at its current Wellington St. location in Verdun since 1945.
The family business is now operated by Kenny Grover, grandson of the founders.
But in nearly 100 years of business, Grover said, there has never been something like the COVID -19 pandemic to test the resolve — and bottom line — of the company.
The store reopened on May 25, but sales have been sluggish as Montrealers tentatively navigate their way through state-defined phases of deconfinement.
“The first week was good, but every week after that has been poor,” Grover said. “We’re probably doing about 50 to 60 per cent of our (normal) business. We sell a lot of suits and sports jackets, dress pants — but I can’t even give it away for $5 because you can’t sell clothes if there are no weddings, no one is going to work, no parties, no one can go out. No nothing.”
The city recently closed Wellington St. to car traffic as part of a pilot project to help local businesses and restaurants. But a lack of nearby parking is a problem.
“I’m a big-and-tall store,” he said. “My (customers) can’t walk (far). If I don’t have parking right near my store, they’re not going to come.”
Grover said local retailers have also been affected by years of construction on the Turcot Interchange. And with the Canada-u.s. border closed, he’s not counting on tourist dollars this summer, either.
Not all independent retailers are feeling the pandemic pain.
Business is booming at The Hub Hardware store in Beaconsfield, which has remained open throughout the health crisis because it is deemed an essential business. Store owner Stan Rutkauskas said he can barely keep up with demand for garden supplies and paint as cocooned suburbanites take up gardening and stain their backyard decks.
“People needed something to do and what better to do than take care of your house and your property while stuck in the house,” said Rutkauskas, who ran out of garden seeds for the first time in decades.
He said a “shop local” mentality also emerged during the pandemic because “you don’t want to be standing in a big box store with 100 other people.”
Dr. Thomas Rivera, an assistant professor of finance at Mcgill University, said most retailers face an uphill battle this summer and beyond.
Rivera said reopening will not allow firms to recoup lost revenues because many consumers have already made online purchases.
“I expect firms that rely heavily on their brick-and-mortar revenues and who were unable to successfully build their online business and generate revenue there will be hit the hardest.”
Ivanhoé Cambridge is hopeful its big mall properties in downtown Montreal — the Eaton Centre and Place Montreal Trust — rebound as quickly as its two malls in Quebec City did after reopening on June 1.
“The Place Ste-foy and Laurier Québec malls have up to 75 per cent of tenants reopened and foot traffic is following,” said Katherine Roux Groleau, a spokesperson for Ivanhoé Cambridge.
Retail sales in Montreal fell by 31.3 per cent in April, according to Statistics Canada.
Marc Fortin, president of the Retail Council of Canada- Quebec, said many retailers are facing cash flow issues. He said some retailers have had no revenue for three months, but were expected to pay rent and inventory, and are now fighting for survival.
“Most retailers, except for essential businesses, will not make money this year,” Fortin said. “Their target is how to keep their operations running and people working.”