Hudson's Bay lays off workers, plans Saks.com IPO

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Feb 2, 2021

Hudson's Bay Company is permanently laying off workers across Canada, as it attempts to keep up with ongoing disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

It will lay off more than 600 workers, which represents about five percent of the company's total workforce. Hudson's Bay has suffered from forced store closures during much of the last year, and currently about half the company's department stores are still temporarily closed. 

Still, the legacy retailer has a star contender as it is reportedly working to spin off Saks.com into a public company. The plan is to separate Saks.com from the Saks brick-and-mortar stores, creating two different entities under one exclusive agreement. 

According to WWD, Hudson’s Bay is currently in discussion with investors to do a private placement, which could lead to an IPO in as little as 12 months. 

Most recently, Saks.com received a facelift with updates including a redesigned new arrivals section and a larger focus on its menswear categories. 

Many retailers have been part of the IPO race over the last few years. Just last month, German online luxury retailer Mytheresa was valued at $2.2 billion in its initial public offering in New York. 

Similarly to Saks, Mytheresa offers ready-to-wear, shoes, bags and accessories for women, men and kids -- from luxury designer brands such as Bottega Veneta, Burberry, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi, Gucci, Moncler, Prada, and Saint Laurent, to name a few. 

Likewise, Poshmark shares more than doubled in the retailer's public debut equally launched earlier this year, while its resale competitor ThredUp revealed back in October that it had also filed confidentially for an initial public offering.

Unlike fellow long-established department stores like J.C. Penney and Neiman Marcus, Hudson’s Bay has managed to stay clear of bankruptcy amid the Covid-19 pandemic.