Mastermind terminates 272 employees as sale to Unity closes

TORONTO — Mastermind Toys has terminated about 272 employees as the retailer is turned over to new ownership.

In filings made with an Ontario court this month, a monitor representing the toy chain said termination notices have been provided to 232 employees who new owner Unity Acquisitions Inc. will not retain.

Another 40 temporary employees will not be kept, the filings from Alvarez & Marsal Canada Inc. on behalf of Mastermind also reveal.

The details around Mastermind’s workforce come as the beleaguered company announced on Monday the closure of its sale to Unity, which is owned by retail leaders David Lui, Joe Mimran, and Frank Rocchetti. Unity owns brands such Kit and Ace and Casca Footwear.

Mimran, Unity’s chairman who is best known for founding Club Monaco, creating Joe Fresh and reviving Tilley Endurables Inc., called the deal’s closure “exciting.”

“We look forward to continuing to provide leading toys, books and new unique products that ignite imagination and play,” he said in a press release.

“We are excited about the future of Mastermind Toys and bringing new ideas and an enhanced in-store and online experience to build on the company’s strong fundamentals and unlock growth.”

Some 619 Mastermind employees have been given new employment offers. Court filings say they were provided with the offers before the deal’s closing date and if they accepted, would become employees of Mastermind Toys Inc. when the deal closed.

Before Mastermind and Unity entered talks, the retailer had about 800 employees.

Mastermind filed for creditor protection in November, citing increasing competition, disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic and more recently, a deteriorating economy that has customers spending less.

Mastermind and Unity announced their agreement at the start of December, but never disclosed the financial terms of the deal.

At the same time, Mastermind said it would liquidate 18 of its 66 stores.

The stores included nine locations in Ontario, four in Alberta, two in New Brunswick and one each in British Columbia, Nova Scotia and Manitoba.

Mastermind first opened in 1984, when brothers Andy and Jon Levy started an educational software store in Toronto. Its popularity convinced the duo to transform the lone store into a chain and broaden its merchandise assortment.

They spent the ensuring years rebranding the company to focus on educational toys rather than software and renamed the chain Mastermind Toys.