Sudbury's downtown loses 3 well-known businesses

Three businesses are shutting their doors in downtown Sudbury this month.

The Black Cat magazine store closed its doors Jan. 1, and Records on Wheels and Joe Lesar Menswear are expected to shut down in the next few weeks.

At Joe Lesar Menswear on Cedar Street, owner Tony D’Angelo is trying to clear out all of his stock by reducing the prices on merchandise by half.

D'Angelo has been working in menswear for 50 years and, for the last 15 years or so, he said business has been going down.

While D’Angelo acknowledged the fashion industry has changed, he said he has a different reason for closing his store.

“I want to retire,” he said. “I’ve been in it a long time. Maybe do a little bit of travelling, goof around.”

D'Angelo said he feels like it’s the right time to retire.

“At one time, we had six salesmen [and] two tailors,” he said. “It’s shrunk a little bit, because there aren’t as many people wearing … good clothing.”

On nearby Durham Street, another downtown store is getting ready to shut its doors.

The owner of Records on Wheels said his store will close at the end of January.

“People just stopped buying music. People don’t care about music anymore, that’s the bottom line,” Tony Anselmo said.

“I mean, I put my blood, sweat and tears into this business over 40 years. But it’s a decision that had to be made.”

Downtown about service

At nearby Sentia Hair Design, the owner there said things are actually going well downtown, despite these closures.

“A lot of people really do like the convenience of the big box store, but they really aren’t getting the service,” said Deb Brouse, who has more than 20 years of experience with different businesses in Sudbury's downtown core.

“And that’s what I believe downtown is about.”

Brouse said she’s hopeful more upscale shops and restaurants will continue to move into the downtown core.