The downfall of the Pusateri’s grocery empire struck many in Toronto by surprise this week in a shocking bankruptcy filing that revealed a staggering $37 million was owed to creditors.
While it may have come as a surprise to patrons, it was less of a shock to the long list of businesses listed as unsecured creditors in the filing, including many notable Toronto restaurants, bakeries, and other well-known food suppliers owed money by the chain.
The high-end grocery brand announced it would shutter all but one of its locations last Friday, leaving the flagship Avenue Road and Lawrence store as its lone holdout. The news came alongside documents published by insolvency trustee firm Albert Gelman Inc., shedding light on the grocer’s financial woes.
The Pusateri’s prep kitchen division owes a whopping $19.3 million to creditors, followed by its Bayview Village location at $10.1 million and its Yorkville location, which owes at least, at $8 million.
Pusateri’s larger creditors that make up the bulk of this sum have been well documented in recent days, including secured creditors Scotiabank and QuadReal Property Group.
However, the documents also contain a multi-page list of unsecured creditors, including many well-known local businesses.
Here are just some of the dozens of businesses included in the document, as well as the sums the document claims are owed by Pusateri’s:
Co-owner Ida Pusateri posted a bittersweet message to customers and vendors, saying that the end of the expanded luxury grocery empire was a “necessary step” to ensure the remaining business’ long-term success and sustainability.
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