Doug Stephens and HBC

Richard Baker: The stock price climbed 10 per cent the day the deal was announced, according to CBC. We're ... questioning the relevance of department stores in a world where we have online convenience.'- Doug Stephens, retail futurist The $3.36-billion acquisition announced this week will be almost completely financed by the sale of a number of Kaufhof stores into a REIT that partially owned by HBC. It the type of business prowess that has defined the leadership of HBC owner and chairman, American real estate mogul Richard Baker. "He made a killing by selling the Zellers' leases to Target," says Alex Arifuzzaman, a Toronto retail analyst. "And then he releveraged that into buying Saks." Meanwhile, the real estate value of the Saks Fifth Avenue flagship store in New York City has been pegged at more than what Baker paid for the entire company. But will shoppers — here and there — buy in Many financial analysts had already rated HBC shares as a "buy" for investors. HBC to acquire Galeria Kaufhof department stores Middle class retailers dying a slow death: Don Pittis But some retail industry insiders were left wondering if the deal will actually change the experience for Canadians shopping at The Bay. Stephens notes that Germany is no different when it comes to department store trends and questions whether HBC can be successful with its latest acquisition. "Kaufhof is under the same sort of pressure in Germany. Department stores struggling "We know that department stores are under siege," says Doug Stephens, a self-described retail industry futurist who appeared on The Exchange with Amanda Lang this week. "We're talking about an entire channel coming apart at the seams, and really questioning the relevance of department stores in a world where we have online convenience and we have very strong specialty retail." HBC CEO Richard Baker won kudos for financing the deal through a real estate investment trust. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.