Boycott the following: The Bay, Zellers, Home Outfitters

PLEASE CHECK UPDATE AT BOTTOM OF PAGE


The Bay, the once proud pillar of Canada is today a shameful edifice of cowardice. What the The Bay has done hurts the most.  To me, and  to a great number of  Canadians.... we thought The Hudson Bay Company (HBC)  stood for  Canadian values.  How wrong we have been proven to be !!   They have let politics play nasty games within their BOD and within their Customer Services dept.


Why does  The Bay,  Zellers and Home Outfitters deserve our boycott.

This is why:

They have removed AHAVA products from their shelves in a boycott against Israel.

Cut up the HBC credit card you might have into tiny little bits. I took great pleasure in doing so to my HBC card today and I have vowed never to step into The Bay ever again.

Everything that The Bay, or Zellers or Home Outfitters have on offer.... you will be able to find at SEARS. In fact, if you visit the SEARS outlet stores (I think there are 3 in Toronto) or the one at Fairview Mall in Toronto, you will be amazed at the kind of deals you can get which are a good 10-30% below what The Bay offers. Check out their Perfume Dept and you will see what I mean.

If SEARS also succumbs to the blackmail of boycotting Israeli products.... than boycott them too. There are plenty of other stores to choose from or better still, order online directly from the manufactuers.

Here's a letter that was sent to The Hudson Bay Company by an enraged customer and which I have taken the liberty to post  minus the sender's name.

Dear Madam and Gentlemen:

I am outraged to hear that The Bay in Toronto has removed Ahava products from its store, apparently in response to a boycott" organized by "Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East".

If this is true, it is a travesty, not only from a moral standpoint, but also from a legal standpoint.

Morally, such an act would be based on false information. Not only that, but it would be inappropriate for The Bay to participate in an activity that is aimed at the State of Israel, which has bilateral relations with Canada and the Province of Ontario and is a country with which the Federal and Provincial governments wish to increase trade at every level. I cannot imagine The Bay taking a contrary position - and at the behest of an organization which is dispensing lies and false propaganda. In addition, Ms. Brooks is an honouree of Israel Cancer Research Fund on May 3 at the Four Seasons Hotel. What a very strange situation such a dichotomy would be!

Legally, it is my understanding that you have received communications from that organization, or its members, threatening to boycott The Bay, unless Ahava products are removed. If that is so, it is in breach of the Ontario Discriminatory Business Practices Act.

In addition, under subsection 5(8) of that Act, if you have received such a request, you are obliged to report it to the Director, appointed under that Act, within 30 days. If you require details of the Director and his address, I shall be happy to provide information.

All in all, I strongly suggest that if the products have been removed, they be returned to your store(s) and be available for sale.

h/t: PamB


UPDATE: Jan.13, 2011


http://buycottisrael.ca/alerts/

Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) discontinued sales of AHAVA beauty products, primarily because of sales results which had been declining for several years.

Although this decision was made by HBC solely for commercial reasons, it occurred at the same time as an aggressive campaign by several groups advocating a boycott of AHAVA products. At no point did political considerations enter into the exercise of HBC’s business judgment. HBC has made it clear that it has not “bowed to political pressure” in the past, has not done so now and will not do so in the future. HBC neither subscribes to nor endorses politically-motivated boycotts of merchandise from countries

with whom Canada has open and established trading relationships, including Israel.

AHAVA products will soon be reformulated and redesigned as a totally changed brand. The new AHAVA products will be ready by mid-spring and is planned to be re-launched at HBC stores across Canada. We encourage consumers across Canada to purchase those products as soon as they are available.