Army & Navy Stores Inc. was a Canadian department store chain billing itself as "Canada's Original Discount Store". It operated five stores in Alberta and British Columbia before closing permanently on May 9, 2020.[1]
History
Samuel Joseph Cohen, Joseph Cohen ("Joe"), and Harry Cohen, Canadians, opened the first Army & Navy location in Vancouver, British Columbia on West Hastings Street in 1919, selling liquidation stock from closing, bankrupt, or destroyed stores, and World War I army and navy surplus goods at low prices.
A second store was opened in Regina, Saskatchewan on Scarth Street in 1920, and a third location was opened in Edmonton, Alberta in 1928 on 104th Street and Whyte Avenue. A fourth store opened in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan in 1933. Army & Navy opened a store in New Westminster, British Columbia in 1939. An additional Edmonton store, located at 97th Street and 103rd Avenue east of the downtown core, was opened in 1955 and renovated and enlarged in 1968. In 1969, Army & Navy renovated and doubled the size of its Regina location.
With the death of Samuel Cohen in 1966, Garth C. Kennedy became president of the company, with Jack D. Cohen as vice-president.