Suit, André Courrèges, purchased at Lily Simon, 1973. Gift of Carol Kouri, M985.17.1.1-2 © McCord Museum
For over 60 years, Lily Simon was a leading Montreal purveyor of luxury women’s fashion, selling European brands like Courrèges, Jean Paul Gaultier and Giorgio Armani as well as clothing by Quebec designers like Leo Chevalier.
Founded in 1951 by Lily Simon (1917–1989), the business was originally located on Beaubien Street. It quickly made a name for itself by staging fashion shows in major Montreal hotels. Lily Simon then opened four other boutiques in the city, located on Sherbrooke Street, in the Rockland Centre, the Promenades Cathédrale and Westmount Square.
In 1989, four years after Lily Simon had sold a majority share in her company to a Montreal business group headed by Eloi Dulac, the stores were on the verge of bankruptcy. The founder then stepped back in to manage the company, just before dying suddenly of a heart attack on a trip to Florida in December of that year.
The Lily Simon stores stayed open another 20 years after the death of their founder, finally closing their doors in 2013.
Tailleur, André Courrèges, acheté chez Lily Simon, 1973. Don de Carol Kouri, M985.17.1.1-2 © Musée McCord
Sources
« Federal Corporation Information – 245869-1 » Gouvernement du Canada, Gouvernement du Canada, https://www.ic.gc.ca/app/scr/cc/CorporationsCanada/fdrlCrpDtls.html?corpId=2458691. External link
« Haute couture retailer Simon dies in florida. » The Gazette, 3 décembre 1989.
Le Journal de Québec. « 600 000 $ de robes volées » canoe.ca, Québecor Inc., 23 juin 2007, http://chroniqueurs.canoe.com/infos/societe/archives/2007/06/20070623-092902.html#. External link
« Lily Simon, la mode continue », La Presse, 15 mai 1990, (récupéré dans BAnQ numérique)
« Lily Simon lutte pour éviter la faillite », La Presse, 16 mai 1989, (récupéré dans Eureka)
« Lily Simon, une pionnière de la mode à Montréal, meurt subitement en Floride », La Presse, 30 décembre 1989, (récupéré dans Eureka)
Registraire des entreprises Québec, Gouvernement du Québec, https://www.registreentreprises.gouv.qc.ca/RQAnonymeGR/GR/GR03/GR03A2_19A_PIU_RechEnt_PC/PageEtatRens.aspx?T1.JetonStatic=87b288aa-8b2e-4122-a041-3e59be430625&T1.CodeService=S00436. External link
Poitras, Jean-Claude. « Les tribulations du haut de gamme » Le Devoir, Le Devoir, 28 décembre 2013, https://www.ledevoir.com/opinion/chroniques/395984/les-tribulations-du-haut-de-gamme. External link
Publication date
01/10/2004
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Madeleine Goubau, Contributor
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