This Jewish Family Built a Montreal Fashion Empire — Then Filed for Bankruptcy Protection

In 1926, Romanian-born Herman and Sarah Reitman opened a general store on Montreal's Saint Lawrence Boulevard, then a women's-only clothing shop. This video tells the full story: the 1911 dressmaking shop in Le Prix Courant; the 1936 Ottawa opening amid boycotts of Jewish merchants; the 1947 Montreal Stock Exchange listing; the 968-store peak of 2011; Jeremy Reitman's death in 2019; the May 19, 2020 CCAA filing and the closing of Addition Elle and Thyme Maternity; and the $95 million settlement of January 2022. It ends where the story stands now — about 388 stores, a first CEO from outside the family, and a centennial in 2026. — SOURCES: "Reitmans (Canada) Limited" — EncycloFashionQC, McCord Stewart Museum https://encyclomodeqc.musee-mccord-stewart.ca/en/entry/reitmans-canada-ltee/ "Reitmans" — Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reitmans "Sarah Reitman" — Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Reitman "Fusgeyer" — Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusgeyer "The Reitman Family" — Juifs d'ici, Federation CJA https://www.juifsdici.ca/en/famille-reitman/ "A.J. Freiman" — Historical Society of Ottawa https://www.historicalsocietyottawa.ca/publications/ottawa-stories/personalities-from-the-very-famous-to-the-lesser-known/a-j-freiman "Reitmans Canada Limited Announces Important Measures Affecting its Employees Amid COVID-19 Crisis" — Reitmans Media Room https://reitmans.mediaroom.com/2020-03-26-Reitmans-Canada-Limited-Announces-Important-Measures-Affecting-its-Employees-Amid-COVID-19-Crisis "Reitmans Emerges from Restructuring with Eye to Future Growth: Interview" — Retail Insider https://retail-insider.com/retail-insider/2022/01/reitmans-emerges-from-restructuring-with-eye-to-future-growth-interview/ "Reitmans (Canada) Limited Announces CEO and Executive Chair Appointments" — Reitmans Media Room https://reitmans.mediaroom.com/2023-06-06-Reitmans-Canada-Limited-Announces-CEO-and-Executive-Chair-Appointments "RCL Announces Board Leadership Transition" — Reitmans Media Room https://reitmans.mediaroom.com/2026-02-19-RCL-Announces-Board-Leadership-Transition "A Century is Just the Beginning: Reitmans Unveils a Bold New Era for Canadian Fashion" — CNW Newswire https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/-a-century-is-just-the-beginning-reitmans-unveils-a-bold-new-era-for-canadian-fashion-888556430.html "Reitmans CEO Jeremy Reitman has died" — The Globe and Mail https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-reitmans-ceo-jeremy-reitman-has-died "Reitmans' strategy: forget about high-end fashion" — The Globe and Mail https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/reitmans-strategy-forget-about-high-end-fashion/article20418249/ "Target entry won't affect Canada retailers equally" — Reuters via FashionNetwork https://us.fashionnetwork.com/news/Target-entry-won-t-affect-canada-retailers-equally,511047.html "All Addition Elle and Thyme Maternity stores in Canada to close down" — CBC News https://www.cbc.ca/1.5594944