The Bank of Canada announced yesterday that it had cut its key interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.0 percent. Governor Tiff Macklem said that monetary policy can do little to ease the burden on the Canadian economy if U.S. President Donald Trump levies tariffs on Canadian imports. Trump has threatened that they will be 25 percent—and that they will be imposed on Canada 48 hours from now.

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

RONA’s path to national prominence was not without some hiccups. One of them was the Quebec giant’s decision to open a RONA Retail Ontario office in Toronto, to give it—theoretically—an advantage in its pursuit of national expansion. On Feb. 7, 2000, a quarter of a century ago, we reported that Rick Blickstead, a veteran retail executive at Holt Renfrew, BiWay, Walmart, and Peoples Jewellers, had been hired to run that office. About 18 months later, Blickstead departed, shortly after RONA acquired Western Canada-based Revy Home Centres Ltd., giving it 50 stores, many of them big boxes.

An unknown rate of tariffs will be charged to Canadian imports on Feb. 1, the White House reiterated yesterday. U.S. President Donald Trump has talked about a 25 percent tariff. He mused yesterday about using the tariff revenues generated by his newly-created Department of External Revenue to lower—or even eliminate—income tax for U.S. citizens. Canada has threatened “dollar for dollar” retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods coming into Canada, if the U.S. imposes tariffs on Canadian products.

(We will have a full report on the tariffs/trade war issue in Monday’s Hardlines Weekly Report, our exclusive e-newsletter sent exclusively to Hardlines Premium Members.)

Peavey Industries has just released a statement confirming it will close all of its stores. The company has obtained creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). Following the news last week that Peavey Industries would close 22 stores, Peavey will now begin store closing sales at all remaining locations across Canada.

The Red Deer, Alta.-based farm and hardware retailer has 90 Peavey Mart stores and six MainStreet Hardware locations (We incorrectly stated Peavey has three MainStreet stores in a previous report.—Editor). Calls by Hardlines to stores across the country confirm that liquidation efforts have already commenced.

“This was a profoundly difficult decision, but one that allows us to explore the best possible alternatives for the future of the company,” said Doug Anderson, president and CEO of Peavey Industries LP.

Robert Rozon (via LinkedIn)

Geneviève Gagnon has announced the appointment of Robert Rozon as managing director of Évolution Structures. Rozon is moving over from the same role at sister company Gagnon – La Grande Quincaillerie, where he has been in post since February 2023. The role will be full-time in order to support Évolution’s growth.

Grocer Metro Inc. has posted Q1 adjusted net earnings of $245.4 million, or $1.10 per share, up 4.0 percent from $235 million ($1.02) a year earlier. Revenues rose by 2.9 percent to $5.1 billion. Same-store sales were up by 1.0 percent at Metro’s grocery banners and 5.1 percent at its pharmacies.

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Following the news last week that Peavey Industries would close 21 stores in Ontario, plus one in Nova Scotia, Hardlines has determined that most or all stores will in fact be closed. Peavey has some 90 stores under the Peavey Mart banner, plus three locations in Alberta under the MainStreet Hardware banner.

Calls to various Peavey Mart stores confirmed that all its stores are holding “going out of business” sales. Hardlines reached out to Peavey Industries, which declined to give us a formal statement at this time. (We will keep our readers updated as we learn more.—Editor)

(See full coverage of last week’s announcement in today’s edition of our sister publication, Hardlines Weekly Report.)

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The Globe and Mail reports that organized retail theft is becoming more brazen—and more violent. At a Toronto Shoppers Drug Mart location, an employee was pushed to the ground while following a group of seven people charging the exit with more than $8,000 worth of product in tow.

“Retailers across the country are experiencing a rise in violent incidents, threats, and increasingly aggressive behaviour,” Darrell Jones, president of Pattison Food Group, told the newspaper.

The latest instalment of our podcast series What’s In Store goes online today. In this episode, we talk to retail veteran Bill Morrison, who was inducted last fall into the Canadian Home Products Trade Association’s Hall of Fame along with Hardlines president Michael McLarney. Morrison, whose career includes tenures at TruServ Canada and Ace Hardware, shares his insights on what Canadian retail can expect in 2025. Sign up now to get updates about the latest podcasts in your inbox!