Jewelry chain shutting down after more than 100 years

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This article was published 31/07/2016 (3343 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After more than a century in business, Winnipeg-based jewelry chain Ben Moss Jewellers is closing its doors.

On July 29, Gordon Brothers Canada announced going-out-of-business sales will begin at all 54 Ben Moss Jewellers Western Canada Ltd. locations across Canada, five of which are in Manitoba.

The business has been Canadian-owned and operated since 1910. In May, the company sought creditor protection to undertake a restructuring, and hired Gordon Brothers Canada to oversee closure of 11 of their underperforming stores.

Court records state that since 2013 sales have declined because of currency exchange issues and the weakened economy in Western Canada.

Sales peaked in the fiscal year ending March 29, 2014 at $86.6 million, declined by $1.2 million the following year and a further $6.7 million of 7.8 per cent in the year ending March 29, 2016.

As of May, the company owed creditors $68.18 million.

In 2013, the Winnipeg Trepel family sold the busines to the JSN Group, a private wholesale business that has a manufacturing and distribution operation in Toronto and interests and operations in the U.K.

The closing sales will offer storewide discounts of up to 40 per cent on all merchandise.