Fabricland
Founded in 1968 by members of the Kimel family, the Fabricland Group of Companies is a Canadian, family-run business, with over 100 stores, employing over 2000 people across the country. Warren Kimel has been the president of Fabricland Distributors Inc. for 45 years.
Pro-Israel Connections
The Kimel family has very strong ties to Israel and has been involved in various monetary efforts on behalf of Israeli causes. Warren and Debbie Kimel are prominent members of the Toronto Jewish community with strong ties to Israel, and they have been actively involved with United Jewish Appeal Federation and Israel-related initiatives for over 40 years.
The Kimels are currently leading the Jewish Future Pledge initiative in Toronto, which encourages philanthropists to commit at least half of their charitable giving to Jewish causes and/or to Israel.
In 2020 the couple received the Yakir Keren Hayesod Award in recognition of their support for Israel through Keren Hayesod, a global organization funding immigration to Israel.
https://www.kh-uia.org.il/we-thank-you/in-gratitude/debbie-and-warren-kimel/
Warren Kimel’s involvement with Israel began 40 years ago when he participated in a Young Leadership mission to Israel with his wife Debbie. Since then, he has served as Chair of the Marketing & Communications Committee for The Jewish Agency.
https://www.jewishagency.org/warren-kimel/
Kimel has also supported various projects related to Israel, including hosting IDF military orphans at his family cottage.
https://thecjn.ca/news/idf-orphans-find-respite-gta/
In November 2023 he and his wife Debbie, hosted a fundraising event on behalf of the Jerusalem Foundation (JF) of Canada, despite the fact that East Jerusalem is considered illegally occupied territory. The JF refers to Jerusalem as ‘Israel’s capital city’ – a status not recognized by the international community, which regards East Jerusalem as the future capital of a Palestinian state.
https://thecjn.ca/arts-culture/pathway/
In summary, based on the available information, the owner of Fabricland, Warren Kimel, can be considered a Zionist due to his extensive involvement with and support for Israel-related causes and organizations.
Reitmans Canada
Reitmans is one of the largest publicly-owned retail companies in Canada, specializing in women’s clothes. The company operates several store brands, including Reitmans, Penningtons, and RW&CO.
Reitmans was founded in 1926 by Herman and Sarah Reitman in Montreal, Quebec. By 2016, the company was active in 685 locations with stores in every province and two of three territories. In 2022 the company closed their Thyme Maternity and Addition Elle stores.
In June 2023, Andrea Limbardi was named as president and chief executive, the company’s first non-family member to occupy this position, though Stephen F. Reitman is Executive Chairman of the Board, and his daughter, Gillian Reitman (who was Sr. Manager of Marketing & Digital Strategy at Tory Burch), is also a Director on the Board.
Pro-Israel Connections
Herman and Sarah’s descendants have been deeply involved in Jewish pro-Israel causes. Their daughter-in-law, Dorothy Reitman, was President of The National Council of Jewish Women of Canada, and of the Canadian Jewish Congress.
Their grandson, Stephen Reitman, was a member of the “Israel Emergency Cabinet,” a group of influential Canadian Jewish leaders formed to advocate for Israel. The group was formed in response to Concordia University’s cancellation of a speech by right-wing Israeli politician Benjamin Netanyahu in 2002. The event sounded an alarm for powerful people sympathetic to Netanyahu, including Gerald Schwartz, Heather Reisman, Larry Tanenbaum, and Stephen Reitman family.
https://canadiandimension.com/articles/view/the-new-israel-lobby-in-action-david-noble
Stephen also served as a past Board Member of CIJA (Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs).
https://canadiandimension.com/articles/view/the-new-israel-lobby-in-action-david-noble
Sarah Reitman-Rubin was Women’s Chair of the 2006 Combined Jewish Appeal Campaign & Board Member of North American Women’s Philanthropy.
Julia Berger Reitman was President of the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre and Chair of Jewish Federations of Canada / United Israel Appeal. She described her father as having been ‘a Zionist’.
Allen Rubin, married to Sarah (nee Reitman), was Past Chair of the Foundation of the Jewish General Hospital and Immediate Past President of the Jewish General Hospital.
https://jghnews.ciussswestcentral.ca/allen-f-rubin-becomes-jgh-president/
https://www.juifsdici.ca/en/famille-reitman/
Jeremy Reitman, who served as chairman and CEO of Reitmans until his death in 2019, was described as “a strong supporter of Israel and Jewish causes”.
“A passionate golfer, skier, Moishes regular, toastmaster and philatelist, Jeremy was also a strong supporter of Israel and Jewish causes and a most devoted friend,” read his obituary notice.
https://montrealgazette.remembering.ca/obituary/jeremy-reitman-1078167493
https://www.castanet.net/news/Business/273530/Canadian-business-leader-Jeremy-Reitman-has-died
Tepperman’s
Tepperman’s is a Canadian family owned and operated home furniture and appliance retailer serving Southwestern Ontario, with locations in Windsor, London, Sarnia, Chatham, Kitchener-Waterloo, and Ancaster. It was founded in 1925 by Nate Tepperman, his son Bill took over from him, and the current company president is Bill’s son, Andrew Tepperman. Another son, Noah Tepperman, is co-owner and the company’s treasurer.
Pro-Israel Connections
The Teppermans have long been supporters of causes and organizations related to Israel. Bill Tepperman was a longtime board member of the Jewish National Fund of Canada, a Zionist organization founded in 1901, created to raise money for the takeover of land and infrastructure in Palestine.
Over the years the Bill and Rochelle Tepperman Foundation made multiple donations to JNF Canada, and in 2005 the couple were event honourees at the Windsor Negev Dinner. Negev Dinners are annual fundraising events hosted by the JNF across Canadian cities to support community projects in Israel, and particularly in the Negev region.
https://windsorstar.com/news/negev-dinner-targets-open-green-space-in-israel
Company treasurer, Noah Tepperman, is a prominent figure in Windsor, Ontario. In the past he has served as director of the Windsor branch of the Jewish National Fund, and is still a board member. Noah also serves on the National Advisory Board for the Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee (CJPAC), and is a leading figure in the New Democratic Party Riding Association for Windsor-Tecumseh. He is the founder and chair of a Jewish NDP ad-hoc group advising the Ontario and federal NDP on issues affecting the Jewish community, and in that position he has lobbied hard in opposition to all Palestine resolutions, including tweeting that “BDS = Racism”.
Tepperman’s dual involvement with the JNF and NDP has been a source of controversy. Critics argue that his position on the JNF board conflicts with the party’s progressive values.
https://www.fightit.ca/tepperman
https://dissidentvoice.org/2018/05/confronting-anti-palestinianism-in-canadas-ndp/
https://yvesengler.com/2018/05/15/it-is-long-past-time-to-confront-anti-palestinianism-in-ndp/
Brown Shoes
Founded in Montreal in 1940, Browns Shoes is a family-owned business currently led by the third generation of the Brownstein family. Michael Brownstein has been president since 1998, and the company has grown to become North America’s leading independent footwear chain.
Israel Connections
In June of 2023, Michael Brownstein was honoured by the Israel Cancer Research Fund (ICRF) at their 46th Annual Gala Event in Montreal.
https://www.icrfmontreal.org/icrf-46th-annual-gala-event
https://www.instagram.com/icrfmtl/p/CrB5KC2OFG4/
The Browns Shoes Charitable Foundation has donated to many Israeli causes, including $62,600 to the United Israel Appeal (UIA), a fundraising organization supporting Israel.
Over $1.3 billion from other charities to UIA (United Israel Appeal)
Say no to these brands and boycott them! By refusing to spend money on products that help fund or legitimize Israel’s genocidal campaign against Palestinians, we can demand corporate accountability. You are not powerless—there are many ethical alternatives available, and every dollar spent is a vote. With enough people speaking out and taking action, these companies may be forced to reconsider their support for Israel’s mass killing of children, ethnic cleansing, and Apartheid regime ensuring they are not complicit in these grave human rights abuses.