La Maison Simons (colloquially Simons) is a Canadian department store chain founded in 1840 by John Hamilton Simons. The business was first established as a dry goods store.

While historic Canadian department stores such as Eaton's, Sears, and Hudson's Bay have closed or downsized, La Maison Simons and Holt Renfrew continue to operate and expand. They both represent the last large-format department-style clothes retailers in the country.

Founding to 1950s

left|thumb|Simons & Foulds store in 1895 on côte de la Fabrique, Quebec City.

Peter Simons, born in Scotland in 1785, arrived in Lower Canada in 1812 and settled on a small farm in Beauport, near Quebec City. He raised a family of five, including a son – John Simons – who went on to open a small dry goods shop in Quebec City in 1840 at the age of 17. Placing an emphasis on quality products, John Simons made more than 70 crossings of the Atlantic Ocean in order to seek out quality English and Scottish goods to stock as merchandise.

In 1870, John Simons moved his shop to 20 Côte de la Fabrique, where it remains today. Business increased following the move, and in 1952, the post-World War II boom brought new market opportunities. This is when Gordon Donald Simons entered the company and led the business into a new era, transforming it into a department store. The company introduced youth-oriented, fashion-focused brands such as Twik, named after the model and cultural icon Twiggy, reflecting fashion trends of the period.

Celebrating the 400th anniversary of Quebec City in 2008, La Maison Simons gifted a restored fountain, the , imported from France. The fountain was originally positioned in Bordeaux's Allées de Tourny, named after Aubert Tourny, a French intendant remembered for his contribution to the beautification of Bordeaux, Quebec City's sister city. It was built in the mid-19th century and won a gold medal at the Paris World Exposition of 1855. The Fontaine de Tourny was installed in front of the National Assembly of Quebec in April 2007.

In August 2008, the retailer chose to withdraw its fall catalogue after complaints its models were too thin.

2012 to present

thumb|Simons store in 2014 on côte de la Fabrique, Quebec City.|252x252pxIn 2012, Simons expanded to its seventh and largest location at West Edmonton Mall, its first outside of Quebec. It spent nearly $50 million on the store alone. The success of the location led other shopping malls to seek out La Maison Simons as an anchor tenant. On March 27, 2013, Simons announced it would open a new location in Ottawa, Ontario's Rideau Centre in 2015 (although the store did not actually open until August 2016). This was followed by an announcement on December 6, 2013, stating that a flagship store was to open at Square One Shopping Centre in Mississauga, in spring 2016. The new store, which opened in March 2016, occupies a large portion of the former Sears Canada store.

Simons store locations are each uniquely designed. Former CEO, Peter Simons, said in an interview in 2015 with Canadian Business "We're trying to hold on to this belief in creativity and architecture and art. We're working with Doug Coupland, for instance, on an art piece in Vancouver, and we try to do that with all the stores we build." All stores incorporate art installations and unique architectural elements.

A new store in Gatineau, Quebec, opened on August 13, 2015, investing $21 million in the location. Furthermore, in 2015, a location opened at Park Royal Shopping Centre in West Vancouver, British Columbia. In May 2018, La Maison Simons received outside investment for the first time in its history as part of efforts to open a new distribution centre in Quebec City.

In February 2020, Canada Goose ended its wholesale agreement with La Maison Simons, which accounted for millions in sales for the company. At the same time and through the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, Simons was having troubles with credit insurance on deliveries and all stock from designers, such as Balmain, had been moved to Simons' website. In August 2020, La Maison Simons claims to have regained profitability and sent letters to vendors in July assuring payment in full and fall deliveries will be delayed to preserve cash.

In March 2022, Bernard Leblanc succeeded Peter Simons as chief executive officer, becoming the first person outside the Simons family to lead the company.

thumb|255x255px|Entrance of Toronto Eaton Centre store

On August 14, 2025, La Maison Simons opened its first Toronto store at Yorkdale Shopping Centre, occupying a 118,000-square-foot, two-storey space formerly held by Nordstrom. Unique to the location is Ciel, a geometric ceiling mural by French artist Nelio, along with a "walk of frames" displaying works from 24 artists.

Locations

The chain includes 19 stores throughout Canada. It also has business offices in London, Paris, Florence and Hong Kong.

thumb|right|Downtown Montreal store on [[Saint Catherine Street]]

thumb|right|Park Royal store in [[West Vancouver]]

thumb|right|Place Sainte-Foy store in Quebec City

Alberta

  • The Core Shopping Centre, Downtown Calgary, Calgary
  • Londonderry Mall, Edmonton
  • West Edmonton Mall, Edmonton

Quebec

  • Les Promenades Gatineau, Gatineau
  • CF Carrefour Laval, Laval
  • Carrefour Industrielle Alliance, Downtown Montreal, Montreal
  • Galeries d'Anjou, Montreal
  • Fairview Pointe-Claire, Pointe-Claire
  • Galeries de la Capitale, Quebec City
  • Côte de la Fabrique, Old Quebec, Quebec City
  • Place Sainte-Foy, Quebec City
  • Promenades Saint-Bruno, Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville
  • Carrefour de l'Estrie, Sherbrooke

Ontario

  • Square One Shopping Centre, Mississauga City Centre, Mississauga
  • CF Rideau Centre, Downtown Ottawa, Ottawa
  • Yorkdale Shopping Centre, North York, Toronto
  • CF Toronto Eaton Centre, Downtown Toronto, Toronto

British Columbia

  • Park Royal Shopping Centre, West Vancouver
  • Pacific Centre, Downtown Vancouver, Vancouver

Nova Scotia

  • Halifax Shopping Centre, Halifax

See also

  • List of Canadian department stores
  • History of Quebec City
  • Holt Renfrew, another fashion store chain founded in Quebec City in the mid-19th century
  • Les Ailes de la Mode, another department store chain founded in Quebec in the 1990s
  • Scots-Quebecers

References