What department stores used to look like in Toronto

The department store in Toronto might not be dying, but it sure has changed in the last 30 years. Gone are the days when a diverse array of companies battled it out for consumers who expected to buy just about everything under the Sun in such stores.

Before the death of Eaton's in the 1990s, the department store wars involved many more players. If you've been around long enough, you'll remember names like Kresge (later K-Mart), Simpson's, Woolworth, Woolco, Morgans, and Towers, not to mention discount shops like BiWay, Bargain Harolds and the more recently departed Zellers.

Through the 1980s, the retail economy had yet to centralize in massive corporations to the degree that it has now. There were the big players like Eaton's, Sears, Simpson's, and the Bay at malls across the city, but despite the reach of these sprawling shops, they never came close to the size, sprawl, and buying power of box stores like Walmart and Costco.

It's hard not to look back at these store's with a bit of nostalgia. These were, after all, the places where a kid's dreams came true in the toy department. In the days before the internet made consumer choice endless, these retail hubs were repositories of desire, as evidenced by the advertisements of the time.

Behold, what department stores used to look like in Toronto.

The Bay at Fairview Mall

Simpson's at Fairview Mall

Towers at Midland and Lawrence

Woolco

Eaton's at the Eaton Centre in the 1990s

Wide view of the anchor Eaton's at the Eaton Centre

The Yonge and Dundas entrance to Eaton's in the late 1970s

Simpson's at Yorkdale Mall

Entrance to Simpson's at Yorkdale in the 1970s

Eaton's at Yorkdale Mall in 1965

The Eaton's location at College Park

Woolworth flagship at Yonge and Queen streets

Eaton's at Shopper's World

The exterior view of the Bay at Fairview Mall

Simpson's location at Sherway Mall

Morgan's Department Store at Lawrence and Bathurst

The old Eaton's at Queen and James streets

The opulent interior of Eaton's at College Park ca. 1940s

Photos via the Toronto Archives, Chuckman's Blog, and Vintage Toronto.

by Derek Flack via blogTO