The End of an Era

We are extremely saddened to inform you of the loss of a great man, and leader in the Canadian retail fashion industry. Laurence "Laurie" Lewin, President and co-founder of La Senza Lingerie Corporation, passed away yesterday, the 12th of November 2008 at Mount Sinai Hospital in Montreal, after an unfortunate struggle with lung cancer. He was merely 64 years of age.

Born and raised in London, England, Mr. Lewin began his career as a computer programmer, and later moved to Montreal, a European-style city, where he entered the fashion industry for the first time. Mr. Lewin worked for apparel retailer Suzy Shier when he co-founded the La Senza brand. Since the first store opening in 1990, La Senza now owns and operates over 300 stores in Canada and over 300 internationally. As well, La Senza Corp. has since been acquired buy Victoria’s Secret parent company Limited Brands.


Throughout his 35-year career in retailing, Mr. Lewin received many awards and honors for his business savvy ways. In 2006 he appeared on CBC's "Dragons' Den¨ where aspiring entrepreneurs have the chance to pitch their business concepts to the ¨dragons¨ in hopes of having one of them believe in the idea and invest in them. In 2008 he also received the distinguished honor of "Canadian Retailer of the Year". La Senza’s growth and success is largely based on Mr. Lewin’s hard work and dedication to the company.

This unfortunate news definitely hits home for us, as we are employees of the La Senza Corporation and have had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Lewin in person. He was a very intelligent, kind and friendly man, and his sense of humour will definitely be remembered.



To read Mr. Lewin's obituary & an article in his honor, please visit the Montreal Gazette

Information sources:
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/entrepreneur/financing/article.jsp?content=20070928_102826_5844
http://www.zoominfo.com/people/Lewin_Laurence_1180153.aspx
http://www.legacy.com/can-montreal/Obituaries.asp?Page=LifeStory&PersonID=120136098
http://www.retailcouncil.org/news/media/press/2008/pr20080515b.asp
http://www.cbc.ca/dragonsden/about.html