Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Feb 23/00) - After just six months as the new manager of Northern Reflections, Ghizele Ray found out the owners were shutting the clothing store down.

"The first week after this happened, I couldn't even talk about it," she said. "I have to look for work."

Ray said the owners, Venator Group, Inc., told her at the end of January they would be closing the Yellowknife shop, located in the Centre Square Mall, effective March 4.

The move is part of a group of closures by the company.

Once the liquidation sale started, customers practically cleaned the shelves.

In fact, some extra clothing was shipped in from as far away as Saskatoon, Sask.

Including Ray, one other full-time staff and three part-time employees will be out of work.

Ray said that when she sold her sewing business to take on the Northern Reflections manager's job, she was not told that the store would be closed in six months.

Northern Refections, which opened in November 1994, was among the original tenants when the Centre Square Mall was built around the existing Yellowknife Inn.

A Venator spokesperson from the retailer's "closure team" could not be reached for comment.

Venator, a public company which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, owns not only Northern Reflections but also Foot Locker. In 1997, the company closed its FW Woolworth chain and closed 467 Kinney Shoe stores. It also sold the Woolworth Building in New York.