Mark Foote hoofs it over to Loblaw

BRAMPTON, Ont.–Mark Foote, the highly respected president of Canadian Tire's Retail business unit, has moved over to join Loblaw Cos. Ltd. There, he has assumed the role of executive vice-president, general merchandise, effective April 24. At Canadian Tire, company veteran Mike Arnett has replaced Foote as head of the retail division (see "People on the move"). Foote spent 27 years at Canadian Tire, the last 15 of them running Canadian Tire Retail, reporting to Canadian Tire CEO Wayne Sales. Loblaw has been actively beefing up its general merchandise side, with increased inventory in everything from kitchenwares and patio furniture to hardware and even clothing. But the supermarket giant has had its challenges along the way. The entire general merchandise buying team was relocated from Calgary through last summer and fall, and centralized at the company's new headquarters here in Brampton, northwest of Toronto. According to Geoff Wilson, vice-president, investor relations and public affairs, Foote will be a valuable addition to the team; he'll focus on its core retail operations and the pursuit of growth opportunities in its general merchandise business. He will be responsible for all procurement and merchandising activities in the General Merchandise, Health and Beauty, and gasoline bar businesses, reporting to Loblaw president John Lederer. "We're a food and grocery company first and foremost, but we see tremendous opportunities in general merchandise," said Wilson. He adds that Loblaw's forays into hard goods began with its Superstore in Winnipeg in 1978. In the past couple of years the program has been expanded into Ontario with its Great Canadian Superstores there. Despite that progress, Wilson is enthused by the addition of Foote. "We've made great inroads taking it national, but we realize that Mark will be a tremendous asset."

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U.S. and Canadian vendors learn tips from top buyers

TORONTO–An array of top retail buyers gathered recently to tell vendors from Canada and the U.S. how to do business with Canada's leading home improvement companies. The group of almost 100 manufacturers took part in the one-day event, held here and in Montreal, in association with the Quebec dealers' association, ADMACQ, as part of this year's Hardlines Meet the Buyers Seminars. The Toronto event also featured a series of one-on-one meetings between the buyers and a group of U.S. manufacturers who were part of a special delegation organized by the U.S. Commercial Service. Tony DiEmanuele, vice-president development and growth for TruServ Canada, started off by explaining the importance of the independent in a market that is too often overshadowed by large-format retail chains. In a partnership with CanWel, Hardware Division called PRO Retail Services, DiEmanuele's group represents 1,400 dealers. Most of them are in rural markets that are, at least for now, immune to the incursion of big boxes, which creates opportunities for imaginative vendors. In Montreal, Claude Chalifour, head senior director, merchandising for CanWel, Hardware Division and PRO Retail Services, made a similar presentation to Quebec vendors. The regional wholesaler and buying group BMR was keen to connect with a broader range of suppliers as it moves to become a national organization. In Toronto, Dunc Wilson, director of hardware, talked about BMR's hardware and LBM distribution network, which sells only to its 151 BMR dealers. These dealers had traditionally been confined to Quebec, but the group now has 12 dealers in the Maritimes and four in Ontario. Christian Nadeau, director of imports, represented BMR in Montreal. Home Depot was well represented in both Toronto (Andra Matusevics, at that time merchant for kitchen and bath) and in Montreal (Roger Plamondon, vice-president Canada East). They outlined the trends Home Depot is following to stay close to the consumer, and the resulting changes at the shelf level (see last week's issue). Eric Cantin, paint merchandiser for RONA inc., talked in both cities about his company's aggressive expansion of its private label products, and the company's switch to a two-year line review. TIM-BR MARTS Ltd., one of Canada's largest buying groups, joined the Meet the Buyers Seminar in Toronto. Randy Martin, director of purchasing, outlined the size and scope of his group (415 dealer locations across Canada following the merger of three other buying groups over the past two years, with projected purchasing power this year of $1.68 billion).

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New Castle exec won't have consolidation on his plate

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. – Pro Wylie calls him a "breath of fresh air." The president of Castle Building Centres Group is excited about the appointment of Ken Jenkins as vice-president at the member-owned buying group. "I have no concerns about our direction or how we'll get there," says Wylie. Jenkins, who was formerly with CGC, takes the number-two position at Castle after an extensive search that drew a lot of attention, as it is part of a succession strategy to fill the president's job when Wylie himself retires. For the next 12 months, Jenkins will work alongside Wylie, and at the end of April 2007 Wylie will step down. The original search process attracted 116 applications, says Wylie, representing input from all the Castle dealers. "I wanted to be sure every shareholder of Castle, no matter which province they were from, had a chance to put forward their favourite ’Äòson'," he added. Castle's head-hunter, Caldwell Partners, winnowed that number down to 16. More culling brought the list to six, then three. These candidates were turned over to the Castle board for evaluation and final selection. Wylie notes that the commitment has been made to Jenkins; his hire does not involve any trial or probationary period. Much hay has been made of consolidation among buying groups in recent months. Does Wylie expect the c-word to be part of Jenkins' mandate? "As far as Castle is concerned, we are not involved with any other group nor do we have it on the horizon to join or be joined by any other group," he says emphatically. "If you think one organization can provide all the goods and services, serve all the needs of 700-800 dealers, it ain't going to happen. You'd better give your head a shake." As other groups increase their size, Wylie is content to stay focused on the needs of his own members. "We don't mind at all being number two or number three. But we do have one ambition: to be the best at what we do–to increase the growth and profitability of our dealers. And that's not going to change."

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RONA adds $95 million in retail sales in first quarter

BOUCHERVILLE, Que. – RONA Inc. has recruited 17 new affiliate stores to its network since the beginning of 2006, adding an additional $94.8 million to its total annual retail sales. That number puts RONA at the halfway mark in its recruitment goal of $200 million for 2006. Of those new dealers, one is a 2,500-sq.ft. hardware store in Manitoba; in Ontario, four building centres and one hardware store have joined. The greatest activity was in RONA's home province of Quebec. There, a total of 11 stores have been added. They include a chain of three building centres, plus one other dealer, in Quebec City, and a garden centre in Rimouski that has become a Botanix. An existing RONA dealer bought two more stores in Trois-Riviˆ®res. Together, they represent additional retail sales space of some 110,000 sq.ft. In 2004, RONA recruited 25 affiliate stores for additional retail sales of $105 million, and 31 affiliate stores in 2005 for additional retail sales of $191 million.

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Southwire expands reach with Cable Tech purchase

CARROLLTON, Ga. – Earlier this month, Southwire Co., the wire and cable provider based here, completed the acquisition of Cable Tech, a major Canadian cable manufacturer, from its parent company, Gentek. The deal will mean the end of the Cable Tech name, as the business becomes Southwire Canada, a subsidiary of the U.S. parent. The acquisition of Cable Tech's assets includes a plant in Stouffville, Ont., which makes wire and cable products for residential and commercial markets. The facility also is devoted heavily to supplying the OEM market, especially automotive. This part of the business will be evaluated to determine if it's viable, says Eric Schmidt, vice-president sales and marketing for Southwire in Canada and Mexico. Schmidt, himself a Canadian who was at one time a divisional merchandise manager for Home Depot Canada in its early years, He adds that privately held Southwire is already widely distributed in Canada, and the Canadian manufacturing facility will remain intact. "It's very important that Southwire continues to get closer to its customers in Canada and remain sensitive to their regional needs," says Schmidt.

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