From expansion to contraction: A brief history of HBC
May 2, 1670
The Hudson’s Bay Company is born when King Charles II issues a royal charter to a group of British colonists, granting them a trade monopoly to nearly 40 per cent of what is now Canada. Reluctant to recognize Indigenous sovereignty, the British seize 1.5 million square kilometres of land from Inuit and First Nations people — areas then referred to by those communities as Turtle Island, Inuit Nunangat or Denendeh.
1673
The Hudson’s Bay Company expands, establishing trading posts and factories in Northern Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba. The posts are staffed by English officials and Scottish traders who take furs from Indigenous trappers and their middlemen in exchange for goods like guns and wool.
1768
The company’s share of the fur trade begins to decline as independent traders establish outposts in what is now Montreal. The competitors form a company of their own: the North West Company.
1821
The company merges with the North West Company, re-establishing its dominance in the fur trade.
1881
The first Hudson’s Bay retail store is established in Winnipeg. The store supplies dry goods, groceries and hardware to the city’s residents.
1907
The company enters the wholesale business, expanding its offerings to include canned salmon, coffee, tea and other commodities that supplement its traditional fur trade and retail.
1929
Having established department stores in six major cities, the company expands into natural resources and energy production, forming the Hudson’s Bay Oil and Gas Company.
1974
The company’s retail arm, simply known as “The Bay,” opens its first department store in Toronto’s downtown core, at Yonge and Bloor streets. The company relocates its corporate offices from Winnipeg to Toronto.
1978
Amid a mid-century boom in department stores, The Bay devours much of its Canadian competition, buying Zellers, Fields and Simpsons in the span of two years.
1979
Canadian billionaire Kenneth Thomson buys the company and sells its oil and gas business, along with its financial services, distillery and other interests. He chooses to focus the store on retail clothing and accessories.
2000
The company launches the beginnings of its e-commerce platform with www.hbc.com, seeking to stay competitive in an increasingly cutthroat retail landscape.
2008 2011
Facing a decline in sales, HBC sells off Zellers to Target Corporation. Zellers closes two years later.
2012
Needing cash, the Hudson’s Bay returns to the public marketplace with an Initial Public Offering (IPO) of common shares.
2020
The company agrees with a group of shareholders to be taken private in a $1.11-billion cash deal.