Zellers is back. First locations open Thursday, including in Cambridge

Zellers is officially back.

The first Zellers concept stores are opening Thursday in Ontario and Alberta, with each new location inside a select Hudson’s Bay location. (Full list below)

Hudson’s Bay Co.(HBC), the parent company of Zellers, has said the new stores will “tap into the nostalgia of the brand Canadians know and love, while introducing a refreshed identity and a unique and exciting product assortment for families at everyday value.”

The return of the discount retailer comes as inflation pushes consumers toward cheaper shopping options.

Nine of the twelve stores opening on Thursday are in Ontario, including at Erin Mills Town Centre, Scarborough Town Centre, and Burlington Mall in the GTA. There will eventually be 25 locations in seven provinces across the country.

The company says the new stores are up to 10,000 square feet, but sizes vary depending on the location.

Zellers locations opening on March 23:

Ontario

• Erin Mills, Mississauga
• Burlington Mall, Burlington
• White Oaks Mall, London
• Scarborough Town Centre , Scarborough
• Pen Centre Shopping Plaza, St. Catharines
• Cambridge Centre, Cambridge
• Rideau Center, Ottawa
• St. Laurent Center, Ottawa
• Cataraqui Town Centre , Kingston

Alberta

• Kingsway Garden Mall, Edmonton
• Medicine Hat Mall, Medicine Hat
• Sunridge Mall, Calgary

The Zellers Diner on Wheels is scheduled to visit different stores in the coming days to mark the opening. It will be in Cambridge on Saturday, March 25.

The trucks will serve food from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Canadians were asked to vote in a poll to decide what would be included in this nostalgia-inspired food menu. The trucks will be serving up the “Big Z Burger,” “Hot Chicken Sandwich,” “Grilled Cheese,” “Chicken Fingers,” and “Fries and Gravy.”

Zellers Diner on Wheels schedule:

Thursday March 23

• Scarborough Town Centre , Scarborough
• Rideau Center, Ottawa
• Sunridge Mall, Calgary
• Kingsway Garden Mall, Edmonton

Friday March 24

• St. Laurent Center, Ottawa
• White Oaks Mall, London

Saturday March 25

• Erin Mills, Mississauga
• Cataraqui Town Centre , Kingston
• Cambridge Centre, Cambridge
• Medicine Hat Mall, Medicine Hat

Sunday March 26

• Pen Centre Shopping Plaza, St. Catharines
• Burlington Mall, Burlington

The new online store is also live as of Thursday at Zellers.ca.

No timetable has been provided for when the remaining Canadian locations will open in British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Quebec and Saskatchewan. The company has said they expect all locations to open in the spring of 2023.

HBC first announced the comeback last summer after making plans to sell the majority of its remaining Zellers leases in 2011. Most Zellers retailers were closed by 2013, though HBC kept a handful of locations open as liquidation outlets until 2020.

The Zellers department store was founded in 1931 and bought over by HBC in 1978. The store hit its peak of about 350 locations in the late 1990s.

With files from Lucas Casaletto of CityNews