Timothy and Margaret Eaton and the once-great retail giant in Canada
On my fall walk today at Mt. Pleasant Cemetery in Toronto, I visited the grave of former Canadian retail giant Timothy Eaton and his wife, Margaret.
As a 20-year-old apprentice shopkeeper, young Timothy sailed from Ireland to settle with family members in southern Ontario. After a few failed business ventures—including a bakery and a dry goods store—he purchased an existing dry-goods and haberdashery shop at 178 Yonge Street in Toronto.
In promoting his new business, Timothy introduced two retail practices that were groundbreaking at the time: first, all goods were sold at a fixed price (no haggling) and on a cash-only basis; second, every purchase came with a money-back guarantee. This principle was captured in what would become the long-standing store slogan: “Goods Satisfactory or Money Refunded.”
In 1862, Timothy married Margaret Wilson Beattie, daughter of Joseph Beattie, who operated a general store in Woodstock, Ontario. I imagine young Margaret learned a thing or two about the retail business growing up—knowledge that likely came in handy later, helping to manage the Eaton’s department store alongside her husband.
By the time of the Second World War, the T. Eaton Company had grown into a true retail empire, with locations across Canada and more than 70,000 employees. But by the late 20th century, the once-great retailer struggled to adapt to a changing retail landscape.
Sadly, in August 1999, after 130 years in business, Eaton’s closed its doors for good. A year earlier, the company had reported a net loss of $72 million—marking the end of a remarkable Canadian legacy.
Timothy Eaton died in Toronto on January 31, 1907. He was 72.
Margaret Wilson (nee Beattie) Eaton died in Oakville, Ontario on March 18, 1933. She was 91.
Timothy (top) and Margaret (below).
In 1909, Margaret Eaton learned that the Methodists (later the United Church of Canada) were trying to raise money to build the first great Methodist church in Toronto. She offered to donate all the money and made only one request: that they church be named after her husband. The Timothy Eaton Memorial Church, on Toronto’s St. Clair Avenue, was completed in 1914.
