JRTech Solutions has integrated the “Well Made Here” logo into its electronic shelf labels (ESL) system. Now retailers stocking products that are accredited by the non-profit organization can have that designation automatically included in their shelf tags. JRTech, a distributor of Pricer electronic labels since 2008, has installations in over 700 hardware stores and home improvement centres across the country.

Canadian Tire Corp. reported Q4 sales of $4.5 billion, up by 1.5 percent from a year earlier but short of analyst expectations of $4.58 billion. Net income surged to $411.5 million from $172.5 million in the comparable period of 2023. In the Canadian Tire Retail division, sales rose by 1.1 percent to $5.38 billion, with comp sales also up by 1.1 percent.

TIMBER MART is holding its National Buying Show for 2025 today and tomorrow. The hybrid format includes an in-person event at the Toronto Congress Centre and a cloud-based virtual tradeshow platform. More than 1,100 dealer and vendor participants are expected at the show. Hardlines will also be on the scene, so watch this space for more coverage!

West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. reported fourth-quarter 2024 results that included a loss of $62 million on sales of $1.405 billion. The company reports that its engineered wood products business in North America enjoyed some resilience, while the lumber segment also realized modest improvement. Full-year sales were $6.17 billion, down from $6.45 billion in 2023. West Fraser’s loss shrank to $5 million from a loss of $167 million in 2023.

Ace Hardware reported record fourth-quarter revenues of US$2.3 billion, a 7.6 percent increase from Q4 2023. Net income for the quarter hit another record for the company, reaching $53.8 million. Sales by the 3,700 Ace retailers (including no Canadian Ace dealers) were up 1.6 percent, reflecting a 1.9 percent increase in average ticket but slightly offset by a 0.3 percent decrease in same-store transactions. Consolidated revenues for fiscal 2024 totalled $9.5 billion, an increase of 3.9 percent.

Castle Building Centres Group has announced the launch of a new centralized Estimating & Design Services (EDS) program for its membership. The program is touted as a first for a buying group in the industry. In a release, one member dealer described the program as “very easy to use, very fast, and most importantly accurate.”

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

Twenty-five years ago, RONA announced that it had purchased Cashway Building Centres for around $50 million. The move constituted “a major step forward and a realization of RONA’s expansion strategy,” said the RONA chairman at that time, Henri Drouin. The deal added Cashway’s 61 stores in Ontario and 1999 sales of $322 million to RONA’s network of 424 stores, for a combined annual sales of $1.8 billion. Cashway was, at the time, Ontario’s third-largest retail home improvement chain.

Peavey Industries is sounding the alarm about fraudulent websites seeking to prey on consumers interested in its liquidation sales. The retailer, which announced in late January that it would close all 90 of its Peavey Mart locations, has reminded the public that it does not offer online shipping. The RCMP says customers should look for a blue verification checkmark on social media pages and a Canadian phone number to avoid having their credit card information stolen.

The contractor business has never been hotter. Whether it’s GSDs, LBM-based pro yards, specialty pro yards, or ICI dealers, it seems like everybody wants to get a piece of the pro action. As DIY consumers are buffeted by an uncertain economy, one thing remains true—Canada needs to build homes at a rate never before seen. Hardlines is supporting this sector with two new publications. The quarterly Pro Dealer magazine is free to dealers—subscribe here! The monthly Pro Dealer Business e-newsletter is also free to dealers and its first issue deploys this week—subscribe here!

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an order Monday that would impose 25 percent tariffs on all aluminum and steel imports to the U.S. The tariffs are slated to go into effect March 4 and will cancel existing exemptions and duty-free quotas for major suppliers in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and other countries around the world.

In a statement following the tariff announcement, the United Steelworkers union condemned the tariffs, saying they were unjustified measures that threaten thousands of Canadian jobs, disrupt supply chains, and undermine decades of economic cooperation.

“Trump’s tariffs are a direct attack on workers and communities,” said Marty Warren, USW national director for Canada. “We’ve been through this before, and we know these kinds of reckless trade measures don’t work, and hurt workers, destabilize industries, and create uncertainty across the economy on both sides of the border.”