Army and Navy closing permanently after 101 years of operation

May 9 2020, 9:03 pm

After announcing back in March that it was closing “until further notice” largely due to fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, Army and Navy owner Jacqui Cohen announced today that the business is closing permanently.

Calling it a “difficult” decision, Cohen says in a letter that the business had hoped to reopen following its March closure, “but the economic challenges of  COVID-19 have proven insurmountable.”

And although the decision has now been made, Cohen writes that the decision is still “hard to comprehend.”

This time last year, she notes, “we were celebrating the centenary of Army and Navy – a company my grandfather started in 1919 – and we were looking forward to the years ahead.”

Now, “we are closing a company that was at the heart of eight communities in western Canada over its 101 years.”

In this time, writes Cohen, the retail sector has “dramatically” shifted.

“Army and Navy stood alongside Canadians for the country’s highs and lows, but the economic impact of this global pandemic is beyond anything we have experienced,” she adds.

Cohen writes that she is “proud of Army and Navy’s history and our contribution to the Canadian landscape.”

Moving forward, Cohen writes she will be spending these upcoming weeks “ensuring the women and men who have worked for Army and Navy have our support. I am full of gratitude for our staff and their years of service, our suppliers with whom we forged decades-long relationships, and of course, our loyal customers who were at the heart of our business.”

Eric ZimmerEric Zimmer

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