An Ontario court has granted Hudson’s Bay Co. ’s request to conduct an auction to sell its art collection, which includes more than 1,700 pieces of art and over 2,700 artifacts dating back to 1670, as the retailer tries to raise money to pay back millions of dollars it owes its creditors.
This specific auction won’t include the Royal Charter, a historical document that gave Hudson’s Bay exclusive trading rights over a portion of Canada in 1670, as the company wants to host a separate auction to sell that document.
The art auction will also not include 24 artifacts believed to be of Indigenous origin, according to court documents. In addition, the company said it donated many items, mainly related to the fur trade and those representative of Indigenous culture, to the Manitoba Museum in 1994.
The art auction is expected to begin on Nov. 12.
“In my view, the relief is appropriate,” Justice Peter Osborne of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice said in his ruling. ”I think that the order reflects an appropriate balance of one trying to maximize the monetization of proceeds from these assets, but it does it in a way that’s respectful of both the cultural and historical impact of the materials.”
Hudson’s Bay first sought protection from its creditors in March. Aside from the art auction, the company has also sold its intellectual property rights and is also looking to sell its leases.
In June, the company said it had reached a deal to sell its charter to Whittington Investments Ltd., a private entity owned by the Weston family, for $12.5 million. Wittington said it would donate the charter to the Canadian Museum of History.
However, in August, the company received another offer of at least $15 million from DKRT Family Corp., according to court documents, which also said other parties could be interested.
As a result, the company decided to host a separate auction for the charter. The hearing to approve that auction will take place on Monday.
• Email: nkarim@postmedia.com
