The Fields Dollar Depot in Invermere will remain open after FHC Holdings Ltd. (FHC) announced on Monday (May 1) it had closed its deal with Hudson’s Bay Company to purchase 57 Fields stores across Canada, of which the Invermere location is one.
“Fields has been an integral part of many communities across Western Canada for many years,” FHC President Jason McDougall stated in a press release. “Our team is very excited at the prospect of serving the 57 communities in which it has acquired stores, and will work to ensure people continue to be able to get what they need in their local communities.”
The Valley Echo had previously reported on April 10 that FHC was moving toward acquiring the leases of 37 Fields store locations, including Invermere, with the opportunity to assume an additional 22 more.
The Vancouver-based company, which recently formed specifically for the purchase of the Field stores, has also acquired the inventory, fixtures and the Fields brand, allowing operations to continue under the Fields name.
In April 2011, the Invermere location held a grand re-opening after undergoing weeks of renovations, and was one of six stores in the country that upgraded to a new Dollar Depot model.
“Some Fields stores say Fields, some say Fields Dollar Depot, some say Fields Mini Mart,” McDougall told The Valley Echo, “so there’s a lot of different signs out and we want to get one, so we’ll get that sorted out sometime in the next year.
“We’re probably going to poll our customers and associates to really get a handle on it.”
He confirmed FHC will be assuming the store’s existing lease which expires in 2020.
The next closest location included in the acquisition is Golden.
Fields, previously owned by HBC, has been a fixture in small Canadian towns for decades, stated the press release, with the first store in Western Canada opening in Vancouver in 1950. The stores newly acquired by FHC are located across British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories.
“The goal is to bring in the merchandise that makes the most sense for each community we serve, and we’re looking forward to bringing in a selection of great products and merchandise to communities across the West,” MacDougall said in the release. “Our stores will be focused on more everyday low prices, providing more value through deals on a regular basis and will continue to provide an assortment of those everyday items customers have always expected as well.”