By Tara Deschamps and Nono Shen
Ruby Liu’s provide places a $2 million price ticket on every of the leases at Tsawwassen Mills, Mayfair Buying Centre and Woodgrove Centre in B.C., malls she owns via her actual property enterprise, Central Stroll.
The deal nonetheless wants court docket approval. It’s separate from a bid Liu made for as much as 25 different leases held by the Bay and sister firms Saks Fifth Avenue and Saks Off Fifth.
The brand new particulars about how a lot cash Liu is placing behind her push to maneuver into outdated Bay properties are in court docket paperwork filed by the 355-year-old division retailer. It asks a choose to green-light the deal.
In her first interview since Hudson’s Bay introduced it needed to promote a lot of its leases to her, the Chinese language billionaire and actual property entrepreneur mentioned the preliminary $6 million was only a sliver of what she might spend on the complete 28-store bundle and overhaul that the websites want.
“Mayfair Buying Centre and Woodgrove Heart all require renovations because the gear in shops was outdated, which requires me to spend no less than $30 million on renovations,” Liu mentioned in Mandarin.
The purpose of the renovations will likely be to remodel the enterprise into a contemporary retailer she’s going to title after herself and emblazon with a purple jewel brand.
The shops are anticipated to incorporate some former Bay distributors however would even have a product vary properly past the standard assortment for North American shops.
“We are going to attempt to embody make-up, jewellery, stunning clothes, a kids’s playground, (one thing for) seniors, tech merchandise and health amenities in these three shops,” she mentioned. “I hope the mall generally is a place to eat, drink and have enjoyable.”
A number of former Bay workers she has already employed will assist her develop the brand new model and revamp the Bay’s huge areas, together with some which are in determined want of repairs.
Courtroom information present the oldest of the leases in her three-store deal dates again to 1993 and is linked to Mayfair Buying Centre in Victoria, the place the Bay held an area spanning greater than 166,000 sq. ft.
A second lease for a 146,000 square-foot property on the Woodgrove Centre in Nanaimo was signed in 2000 and a 3rd 32,700 square-foot spot for Tsawwassen Mills was occupied by Saks Off Fifth.
Hudson’s Bay began looking for consumers for its 96 leases in March after it filed for creditor safety and started an finally unsuccessful seek for an investor or purchaser that would maintain the corporate alive.
Actual property advisors had approached 60 companies in hopes of drumming up curiosity within the Bay leases. A dozen finally made presents on a collective 39 places.
In Might, Liu was chosen because the profitable bidder for as much as 28 leases in Alberta, B.C. and Ontario, however neither firm has revealed precisely which places past the three she owns are a part of the deal.
Anybody who made a proposal for leases needed to make a deposit of 10 per cent of their estimated buy worth. Courtroom paperwork present Liu made a deposit of $9.4 million, which might equate to a purchase order worth of just below $100 million.
Any landlords who personal properties that the Bay leased and Liu desires to maneuver into should comply with the deal for it to maneuver ahead.
Landlords weren’t a part of the method that chosen who can be given the leases and thus might select to struggle Liu’s choice or compel her to satisfy the identical phrases Hudson’s Bay and Saks had agreed to.
Apart from Liu’s deal, Bay legal professionals have teased that two different firms curious about a few of the division retailer’s properties will likely be introduced quickly.
Aside from Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd., which was chosen to buy the Bay’s mental property for $30 million, it’s unknown who else made a play for leases.
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british columbia Hudson’s Bay real esate Regional Ruby Liu The Canadian Press
Final modified: June 18, 2025