Home Hardware Stores Ltd. has announced the appointment of John Pierce as chief retail operations officer. Reporting to CEO and president Kevin Macnab, he will oversee field operations, dealer support functions, business development, real estate and construction, store design and space planning, Home’s Innovation Centre, communications, events, and public relations. His previous role was VP of retail business development.

The latest issue of Hardlines HR Advisor hits inboxes this week. In this edition, we explore how Pet Valu attracts top-calibre staff, IKEA Canada’s financial literacy efforts, and tips for creating an inclusive workplace both during and beyond Pride Month. HR Advisor is monthly and it’s free: click here to sign up today!

Retail sales in the U.S. rose by 0.1 percent in May, according to the U.S. Commerce Department, and fell by the same percentage when auto sales are excluded. Wall Street estimates projected an increase of 0.2 percent. Sales of building materials declined by 0.8 percent.

RONA inc. has tapped its existing executive ranks to find its newest president and CEO. Jean-Philippe (J.P.) Towner joined RONA barely a year ago, in October 2023, as CFO. Before joining RONA, Towner spent three years at Dollarama as CFO; prior to that he served as EVP and CFO at Pomerleau Inc., a commercial construction company based in Saint-Georges, Que.

Towner replaces Andrew Iacobucci, who joined exactly one year ago as president and CEO, following a 20-year career in the grocery industry.

Wilson’s Home Hardware Building Centre in Barrington Passage, N.S., is celebrating its centenary. The Wilson family has been in charge for four generations.

“Our roots are as a general store. Then it morphed into a grocery store and then we took on the home hardware banner in 1967 and I’ve just kind of continued to grow from there,” dealer-owner Mike Wilson said.

Sales of existing Canadian homes edged down 0.6 percent between April and May, the Canadian Real Estate Association has announced, remaining a little below the average of the last 10 years. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) monthly activity came in 5.9 percent below May 2023. The number of newly listed homes was up in May, though only by 0.5 percent on a month-over-month basis.

Investment in building construction decreased 2.0 percent to $20.5 billion in April from March, according to new StatCan data. The residential sector declined 2.7 percent to $14.2 billion, while the non-residential sector fell 0.5 percent to $6.3 billion. Nationally, single-family home investment fell 4.7 percent to $6.9 billion. Saskatchewan was the only province to report a spending increase (17.7 percent) in that subsector.

Housing starts rose to an annualized rate of 264,506 units in May, compared to 241,111 in April, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. reports. The actual number of urban housing starts was up 39 percent to 21,652 units in May compared to 15,606 units a year earlier. Total starts declined in Vancouver but increased in Toronto and Montreal.

Employee retention has been on every retailer’s mind since Covid, but now we’ve got some statistics showing how bad it got at IKEA, the Swedish furniture retailer. According to Quartz, the business news service, the company says it lost 62,000 employees globally in 2022. Quartz says that it cost IKEA about $5,000 to replace each employee—so the price tag for employees quitting was a massive $310 million. IKEA has since raised pay, benefits, and introduced more flexible work schedules. IKEA is also using AI to determine whether an employee is likely to quit, Quartz wrote this week.

Listen to our podcast with Michael McLarney interviewing Tanja Fratangeli, chief people officer at IKEA Canada, here.

Castle Building Centres Group has announced the addition of Adam Tools Inc. in Mississauga, Ont., as the newest independent LBM retailer in its ranks. Owners Ron and Marwan Amer founded Adam Tools more than two decades ago. “As independents, we need freedom and really appreciated Castle’s approach to transparency,” Ron Amer said in a release.