Analysts expect the market for mass timber to grow in the coming years, CBC News reports. The materials can be used to build high-rise housing faster, and with a lower carbon output, than steel and concrete. In British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and Nova Scotia, manufacturing facilities are being expanded or newly built.

Mass timber still accounts for a slim minority of construction, and its ecological friendliness has been questioned. Still, Canadian Wood Council CEO Rick Jeffery told the CBC that there is room to expand its role in building projects as Canada looks to grow its housing stock. “We see there’s a big opportunity on that residential side.”

Throwback Thursday is a weekly feature in which we dip into the archives of the Hardlines Weekly Report.

What a difference a decade makes. In our June 2, 2014, issue of the Hardlines Weekly Report, we reported that RONA had “refocused” its Quebec-only Réno-Dépôt concept—and had “plans to roll out aspects of the Réno-Dépôt strategy to other markets (other provinces).” Fast forward ten years to the present. RONA inc. announced on May 24 that, by the fall, its approximately 20 Réno-Dépôt stores will be well on the way to converting to the chain’s new big box banner, RONA+.

(We’ll have a full report on the fate of the Réno-Dépôt stores in Monday’s edition of our weekly in-depth newsletter, Hardlines Weekly Report. If you are missing this important publication, you’re missing out! Click here now for a free trial subscription.)

Canac’s newest store is now operational in Sorel-Tracey, Que. After opening to the public earlier this month, it held a ribbon-cutting event yesterday in the presence of local elected officials and media guests. Store manager Gilok Chang Kai was joined by two members of the Laberge family, Canac general director Martin Gamache, and merchandising director Daniel Châtelain.

The more than 40,000-square-foot store, already fully staffed, boasts a building materials warehouse of more than 31,000 square feet and an outdoor lumber yard.

Metro, Inc., one of the biggest grocery chains in the country with stores throughout Ontario and Quebec, announced recently that it will discontinue its association with the Air Miles loyalty program in Ontario. Metro will replace Air Miles with a new program, to be called Moi Rewards. The grocer has been an Air Miles Rewards Program partner since 1998. Two retail banners in our industry continue to use Air Miles: TIMBER MART and Kent Building Supplies.

Elena and Daniel Lubimcev, Canadian Tire associate dealers, held the grand reopening of their renovated store in Gananoque, Ont., earlier this month. The renovations, including planning, took 18 months, Daniel told the Brockville Recorder & Times. The Lubimcevs previously owned a Canadian Tire store in St. Marys, Ont., in southwestern Ontario. (Pictured are the Lubimcevs and Steve Clark, the local MPP.)

CanSave, a premier distributor and manufacturer based in Barrie, Ont., is expanding its team. The company is seeking a dynamic and motivated individual to fill the role of Territory Sales Manager in southwestern Ontario. Visit our Classifieds page for more information!

Instacart, the online grocery delivery company, and The Home Depot have forged a partnership to offer same-day deliveries. The service will be available from Home Depot’s nearly 2,000 store locations in the U.S. Customers can now order a wide range of home improvement items on Instacart’s platform and have them delivered directly to their homes, with some deliveries in as little as one hour. The rollout follows a successful pilot with Instacart earlier this year that’s now expanding nationwide.

Amazon has opened its newest robotics fulfilment centre, YYC4. The 2.8-million-square-foot facility in Calgary, which employs more than 1,500, features new Amazon Robotics technology (not exactly as shown—your tech-savvy Editor) to help fulfil customer orders more quickly. With this launch, Amazon now operates five fulfilment centres, one sortation centre, three delivery stations, and two AMXL delivery stations in Alberta.

Canada’s Competition Bureau has launched an investigation into Loblaw Cos., owner of the Loblaws and Real Canadian Superstore banners, and Sobeys parent Empire Co. The inquiry concerns provisions in the grocers’ lease agreements, which the competition commissioner believes may be anti-competitive. Empire has slammed the proceedings as “invalid and unlawful,” contending that they were initiated for an “improper purpose.”

RONA inc. has announced the conversion of 19 stores to the RONA+ banner this fall. They include all but one of the remaining Réno-Dépôt stores, along with three RONA big box stores: the RONA Home & Garden stores in Winnipeg and Waterdown (Hamilton, Ont.) and the RONA l’Entrepôt store in Quebec City.

The conversion of the RONA Home & Garden Waterdown store has already begun and will be completed this summer. The Winnipeg and Quebec City stores, along with the 16 Réno-Dépôt locations, will celebrate their reopening in the fall.