Less than eight years after entering the Canadian market, Nordstrom has announced that it will be closing all 13 of its stores north of the U.S. border — Rack locations included — with a "wind down" period that will end in June.

While a sad day for Nordy Club members (not to mention the 2,500 employees who will eventually lose their jobs in Canada,) some locals are already seeing silver linings around the soon-to-be-vacant department stores.

They're taking the form of enormous Dollarama, Zellers, Giant Tiger, Simons and even Arby's outposts.

Canada is too impoverished a country to sustain a large luxury goods sector. Too much of our income goes to housing.

We need more Dollarama’s and Giant Tigers. This is Canada’s reality.

— Peter Jakes (@PeterJakes) March 2, 2023

At present, Toronto has five Nordstrom properties: Two "off-price" Nordstrom Racks (one at One Bloor, one at Vaughan Mills) and three proper, multi-floor department stores

There's the Sherway Gardens Nordstrom, the Yorkdale Shopping Centre Nordstrom and, of course, the OG Eaton Centre Nordstrom. All three are massive, but the Eaton Centre location holds special significance in this city.

Not only does it have the cleanest bathrooms in the entire neighbourhood, it's also one of the nicer ways to access the mall, serving for many as a pretty walkway between Yonge Street and the bowels of the bustling Eaton Centre.

if they expect me to walk outside and through y&d to get there they are outta their goddamn mind

— I a n (@gnarlygaejepsen) March 2, 2023

"So I have to enter Eaton Centre through the Canadian Tire now," remarked one Twitter user upon hearing the news.

"Walked through that Eaton Centre location hundreds of times. Never bought a thing, but did use their crapper a few times," wrote another.

Some joked that the Eaton Centre's namesake department store chain (Eaton's) should come back from the dead to reclaim its old space, which transformed into Sears in the late 1990s, before it turned into Nordstrom.

Bring back Eaton's to the Eaton Centre https://t.co/Ep2AWFQosX

— 𝐆𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐞𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐬 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭 (@nullborder) March 2, 2023

Others have more avant-garde ideas for the space, like a "mega-sized Dollarama" or a new Honest Ed's.

Haha I was thinking Zellers (ie HBC flanking both ends!)

— Roseanne Carrara (@roseannecarrara) March 2, 2023

Several have suggested turning the space into a Zeller's — a real Zeller's, not the store-in-store kind HBC plans to open inside Bay locations this year.

Time for HBC to open a Zellers at the Eaton Centre. https://t.co/HOGIzsM9fb pic.twitter.com/4Iq8MlwFK6

— Brad Shankar (@bradshankar) March 2, 2023

At least two people are vying (facetiously, I hope) for a really big Arby's at the massive downtown mall.

Put an Arby's in the Eaton Centre you cowards https://t.co/nPE6XG3WXu

— Mark, Anthropomorphic Anuran (@reject_resubmit) March 2, 2023

And some are making some suggestions that are surprisingly realistic for how ridiculous they sound.

3-storey Spirit Halloween at the Eaton Centre, LET'S GO! https://t.co/kDtqH8eUsn

— Gerry Cleary (@GerryCleary) March 2, 2023

"Can't wait for that huge ass space in Eaton Centre to be used as a Shein mega-store," wrote one, summing up the ills of modern clothing production and sales methods in one tweet,

Others pointed out that Spirit Halloween just loves to replace big, empty retail stores for a few months every fall.

Some got more specific, calling upon retailers like Quebec's Simons and Ireland's Primark to take up the mantle and replace Nordstrom.

Simons would be nice, but my money's on Spirit Halloween for fall 2023.