Upscale grocer Pusateri’s Fine Foods has announced it will consolidate its operations into one location, on Avenue Road, while other outlets permanently close and commence bankruptcy proceedings.
The locations to be closed include Pusateri’s Bayview Village, Pusateri’s Yorkville, Pusateri’s Little Italy, Pusateri’s Kitchen and Pusateri’s Financing.
Co-owner Ida Pusateri shared the news Friday in a memo to suppliers. The memo linked to the website of the insolvency trustee, Albert Gelman Inc., which offered additional details about the filing.
“We are writing to inform you of an important and difficult decision,” the memo notes. “After careful consideration of ongoing financial pressures, we announce that Pusateri’s will consolidate operations into one location, Avenue Road.
“Pusateri’s Eaton Centre will remain open in a limited capacity as a food service-only operation.”
The memo said the move was being made “for the long-term success and sustainability of the brand.”
The news comes shortly after the company permanently closed its Bayview Village location this week, in response to “ongoing financial pressures impacting business operations, lingering effects of COVID, and higher operational costs,” wrote Paolo Pusateri, head of marketing, in an emailed statement Friday.
Pusateri’s also closed its Yorkville location in February 2024 after more than 20 years in business.
When the Yorkville location of Pusateri’s opened back in 2003, complete with valet service and the finest products, it was a very big deal.
Andrew Stawicki/Toronto Star file photo“We want to deeply reiterate our commitment to our supplier relationships as we forge ahead with our restructured business model,” notes the memo sent out on Friday.
The restructuring is essential to “the long-term success and sustainability of the brand,” the memo adds. The company hopes to “right-size” the business and “return it to a sustainable and profitable future.”
Several Pusateri’s suppliers contacted by the Star said that payments from the grocer have been slow or haven’t arrived at all for recent orders.
The Pusateri’s chain is well known in Toronto and credited by some for introducing a new kind of upscale market to the city, despite its origins as a small produce market on St. Clair Avenue in Toronto’s Corso Italia neighbourhood.
When Cosimo Pusateri and his wife Ida took over the business, they transformed the market into a “fine-food emporium,” specializing in imported goods and specialty products, such as prosciutto, breads, cookies, balsamic vinegar and olive oil.
When Cosimo died in 1995, Ida continued to run the business with her brother Frank Luchetta, who currently serves as president and chief executive.
Pusateri’s declined to comment on the store closure announcement when reached by the Star.
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