Pirate Joe’s in Vancouver shuts down
Posted June 8, 2017 7:04 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – It has been years since Pirate Joe’s has been selling products to Canadians from the US retailer Trader Joe’s, but that practice has now come to an end.
Pirate Joe’s in Vancouver has permanently closed its doors. This comes as its American counterpart turned up the heat on a legal battle against the local store.
Owner Michael Hallatt posted the news on social media saying, “If you just so happen to be a millionaire and have $50,000 available to donate to us to stand up to Trader Joe’s in federal court, please call immediately.”
NEWS 1130 spoke to Hallett last week when he was feeling defeated. “It’s getting really expensive and really tricky to defend myself on all the aspects of going to trial.”
He had been fighting Trader Joe’s for years and believes the American company had no real reason to prevent him from buying its products and reselling them at its Kitsilano store. “Trader Joe’s is trampling over our rights as individuals to re-sell our stuff.”
At the end of his social media post, Hallett says “at least we had some fun while we were at it, right?”
In 2013, a judge in Washington State dismissed against Pirate Joe’s claiming the alleged crimes happened in Canada.
