Herschel Segal, the entrepreneurial fashion visionary and founder of Le Château and David’s Tea, died in Montreal on May 6. He was 94.
Segal created affordable, fashionable clothes for young Canadians during the 1960s and 1970s, then founded David’s Tea in 2008. He was also known for his philanthropy and for supporting entrepreneurs seeking direction and advice to help launch their businesses.
Segal’s family had established themselves in Montreal as pioneering fashion manufacturers. His grandfather came to Canada in the 1880s and founded Peerless Clothing, which is today the largest manufacturer of men’s and boys’ tailored clothing in North America, supplying major department and specialty stores.
He was born in January 1931 and grew up in Outrement where his classmate at Strathcona High School was actor William Shatner. Segal studied politics and economics at McGill University then attended the New School in New York. He returned to Montreal when he graduated.
Although his family expected him to step into a management position at Peerless, he decided that he preferred to deal with people and products rather than working on the administrative side of a manufacturing firm. He saved up and in 1959 opened his first store.
After a rocky start, he was a week away from closing the business when he introduced a tight-fitting men’s leather coat and matching pants. The design was modern and unique, in conservative, early-1960s Canada, and it sold out immediately. He travelled to Paris and London for ideas and was inspired by the youth and energy of Carnaby Street, England’s fashion and style hub where iconic names like Mary Quant and Twiggy were setting trends. By 1972, Segal had 10 Le Château stores and eventually expanded to 123 locations with 3,000 employees.
“My dad loved working,” his son Philip told The CJN. “He retired at 90 and only stopped because his body was tired. He would seek new businesses where he could be an angel investor. I know he was involved in several small local companies in Montreal, including a granola business and a furniture business.”
Segal had an eye for anything extreme and non-conventional and introduced bell bottom pants to Canada. In 1969, when John Lennon and Yoko Ono were holding a “bed-in” for peace at Montreal’s Queen Elizabeth hotel, they decided to get dressed and venture outside. They sent the hotel bellboy, Tony Lasha, to purchase clothing for them – his only stop was Le Château, where he bought velour jumpsuits for them to wear.
When Segal hired staff for Le Château, he was one of the first employers to embrace inclusivity, extending benefits to the partners of his gay employees, long before gay rights were recognized by the government.
Eva Friede, former fashion editor at the Montreal Gazette, called Segal “a pioneer in the now essential business model of bringing the fashion of the moment to market. Through the decades, he built the company into a fashion phenomenon across Canada. He was also truly a gentleman and a mensch – always kind, generous and curious.”
The Le Château chain closed its doors in 2021, and the brand was purchased by Canadian retailer Suzy Shier.
In 2008, Segal founded David’s Tea with his cousin David Segal. Their innovative approach aimed to make tea fun and accessible, offering more than 150 products and a ‘tea wall’ experience. By 2015, there were more than 150 stores in Canada and the United States.
Since then, David’s Tea has restructured. Hersch Segal assumed the CEO position, then parted ways with the company and subsequently returned. He remained the company’s largest shareholder. Today his daughter Sarah is CEO, and his wife Jane Silverstone Segal is chairman.
His son recalls an energetic man who was tremendously interested in the world.
“My dad encouraged exploration,” Philip said. “He was an eclectic reader and loved music. We had a huge book collection in our house, and he had all kinds of records – classical music, jazz and comedy. He was an insomniac, so he read a huge number of books. When I was 13, he would say ‘Here, I just finished this 900-page book about Teddy Roosevelt. It was very interesting.’ So, he encouraged me to read a lot of histories and biographies.
“He loved cross-country skiing. We had a place in the Laurentians, and he would go out with an axe, blazing a trail through the woods and we would go out for three, four or five hours at a time. He befriended (Herman) ‘Jackrabbit’ Johannsen, who at one point was the world’s oldest person at 112. He was also the Norwegian who brought cross-country skiing to Canada.
“He wasn’t shy about introducing himself to people. He had a real curiosity. James Laver was the head of the Victoria and Albert costume museum in London and dad flew him to Montreal and stayed friends with him. I thought he was a nice, British man but he was also a museum curator and an authority who wrote on the history of fashion. My dad was interested in the intellectual side of what fashion reflected.”
Philip pursued a law degree in mid-life, and he recalls his father sitting in on his first-year law classes at Yale University. “He was interested–he sat in on my contracts class and a torts class. When he left, one of the other students, who was in his 20s said, ‘You are so lucky. My dad would never want to do that.’”
Segal was a philanthropist and supporter of a variety of charities including Israel Bonds and Federation CJA in Montreal. In 1976 he was also one of the backers of the first Jewish film and TV festival in Jerusalem
“He didn’t seek recognition for his charity. He just gave – to family members, cousins, nieces. He did all kinds of kindnesses for people. When I was a little kid people would stop us in the street and when he introduced me, they would say ‘Your dad is a really generous guy,’” his son said.
“When I was five, I didn’t understand it. But as an adult I realized it wasn’t for the splashiness of recognition. He could afford to do it, and it was the right thing to do, so he did it.”
Segal was also involved in many local Montreal organizations that focused on homelessness and youth, including AJOI/Action Jeunesse de l’Ouest-de-l’Île, Dans la Rue, the West Island Women’s Shelter and Le Chaînon, the largest women’s shelter in Montreal, and The Old Brewery Mission, which helps seniors experiencing homelessness.
He was also a long-time supporter of Sun Youth in Montreal which was founded in 1954 to fundraise for sports and recreation programs for children from largely immigrant neighbourhoods. “He was not only a generous donor, but his unwavering support reflected a profound commitment to the values of community, compassion and social justice,” Ann St. Arnaud, director of communications, told The CJN
Segal is survived by his wife of 42 years, Jane Silverstone, children Philip, Robin, Sarah, Emma and Rebekah, his brother Moses and his grandchildren. He is predeceased by his brother Ralph.
