Thousands of hand-painted signs are on sale, marking the end of the Honest Ed's era in Toronto.
Hundreds of fans of the discount store joined a long line at the corner of Bloor and Bathurst Streets, hoping to get their hands on one of the hand-painted signs that have lined the store's walls for decades.
Signs that once advertised sales at the iconic department store are being sold off as the store's owner prepares to close at the end of 2016. The store has been in business for nearly 70 years.
"It gives us a chance to share a little bit of memory and history," co-owner David Mirvish told CTV Toronto on Monday. His father, Ed Mirvish, opened the business in 1948.
Those interested can buy a maximum of three signs, and the store is selling about 2,000.
The colourful signs are being sold at 50 cents and up, with proceeds going to Victim Services Toronto.
Bold letters in primary colours advertise products from battery-operated toothbrushes to 25-cent salt and pepper shakers.
Though the signs differ in message, there is one constant among them: "The prices always had to be in red, because red's a good colour to be able to see the signs. And my father liked fire engines," Mirvish said.
The property was sold to Vancouver-based developer Westbank Properties last fall, but Mirvish has leased it until the developer decides what to do with the land and existing buildings.
