DavidsTea only reopening 18 stores as it shuts down 166 Canadian locations

TORONTO — Canadian retailer DavidsTea is closing the vast majority of its stores in Canada and all of its U.S. locations following months of financial troubles and a renewed focus on online shopping.

Only 18 DavidsTea locations in Canada will reopen as 166 stores permanently shut their doors. In the U.S., all 42 locations will be shuttered.

The sweeping closures, announced Thursday, more than doubles the 82 store closures announced earlier this month.

“The new retail landscape has forced us to re-evaluate how we can bring tea to our fans most efficiently,” the company said in a statement. “While we believe in the need for evolution, change can be hard.”

The speciality tea company announced earlier this month that it would shift its business online and “significantly reduce” the number of stores while restructuring under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, the Canadian law that covers insolvent companies.

DavidsTea was founded in Montreal in 2008 and gradually expanded to malls and standalone locations across Canada. But since the pandemic forced stores to close on March 17, the company failed to pay rent on stores in April, May and June.

The shift away from brick-and-mortar businesses comes after years of challenges for DavidsTea. Last month the company reported that it lost $23.2 million on $146.5 million in revenues. Those losses include a US$4.3 million loss in its fiscal fourth quarter on US$54.8 million of revenues.

With files from The Canadian Press