February 6, 2017 Volume xxiii, #6

“A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.”
—Steve Martin (American comedian, actor, musician, and author, 1945- )

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Home Improvement eRetailer Summit offers buyer meetings and speaker program

TRUMBULL, Conn. — Fueled by a need for the hardware, housewares, and home improvement sector to develop winning e-commerce strategies, the Second Annual Home Improvement eRetailer Summit will be held September 13 to 15, 2017, at the Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Fla.

With a new date and new location, the Summit will provide a dynamic forum for suppliers to get face to face with North America’s leading eRetail buyers and executives. The purpose is simple: to help the hardware and tools, home decor, paint, housewares, lawn and garden, outdoor living, and flooring sectors develop winning e-commerce strategies through mutual co-operation and strategizing.

This invitation-only event was a ground-breaking forum in 2016 for cutting-edge eRetailers to meet, share ideas, and connect with forward-thinking suppliers eager to increase their online business in a series of exclusive one-on-one meetings.

“The eRetailer Summit gave me the opportunity to gather with specific individuals in the same space to discuss ideas, partnerships, and struggles in the hardware and building supply industry,” said Philip Brown, co-founder of SupplyHog.com.

Both the contacts and the content portions of the Summit proved valuable, as underscored by Jeff Golden, director of The Home Store for TheShops.tv: “Very much enjoyed meeting vendors and very much enjoyed meeting other eRetailers. I loved the speakers.”

The education portion of the Summit is being expanded even further this year, with education and sharing of best practices from online retail leaders. The presenters for this year’s Summit are already being confirmed, and include: Al Meyers, of the world-renowned retail consultancy Kalypso; Elizabeth Ragone, director, digital commerce, for HSN.com; and Steve Greenspon, CEO of Honey-Can-Do International.

“The 2016 eRetailer summit was a great experience for Midwest Fastener, especially in terms of education and networking. In 2017, Midwest is excited to participate once again with a continued objective of increasing our knowledge of the online hardware marketplace,” added Jason DeVries, director of marketing at Midwest Fastener.

“The Home Improvement eRetailer Summit has built its success on an intimate model with limited participants who all get the chance to network and interact,” said Sonya Ruff Jarvis, managing member, Jarvis Consultants and the event’s founder. “A combination of great content and solid business-building interactions makes this event a success.”

(For more information about the Home Improvement eRetailer Summit, contact Beverly Allen: 647-880-4589; or bev@eretailersummit.com.)

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How Home Depot analyzes and uses customer data

NEW YORK — The Home Depot collects data from digital resources such as its website, promotional emails, and social media, and uses that information to drive traffic to stores and better target its advertising and marketing efforts. A Home Depot executive discussed those methods recently at the National Retail Federation’s annual convention in New York.

With a presentation entitled “Data: The New Currency for Retail Marketers,” David Abbott, Home Depot’s vice president of integrated media and online marketing, talked about how retailers are changing the way they spend their advertising and marketing funds and how they use data to find creative new ways to reach customers.

To keep growing sales at bricks-and-mortar locations, Home Depot uses a variety of platforms to drive store traffic. The big box chain still makes 94 to 95% of its sales in the physical stores, but the various platforms it uses keep those sales growing, Abbott says.
“As much as our e-commerce business is growing, it’s there to help customers interact with the stores,” he notes. “We work hard to stitch together the interactions of the various devices as they relate to the store.”

Customer personalization can help boost sales to DIYers and, even more importantly, to pros, Abbott adds. Contractors and trades are in a store multiple times a week, so creating personal relationships is key.

“In the store operation, we have individuals who manage our pro accounts. If we have a contractor that spends $1 million a year, they have someone they can call. What we want to do is provide our associates enough information about the pro customer to be able to give a well-rounded look at what that customer’s needs are. That’s one of the things we’ll be focusing on in 2017—figuring out what information we can provide to the stores to provide more relevant information to the customers.”

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Lepage trailer hits the road

CALGARY — It may have been at the back of the hall, but a bright red trailer sponsored by Lepage drew lots of attention at the recent Buying Show of the Western Retail Lumber Association.
                 
The trailer was showcasing a couple of new products for Lepage, its Quad line of sealants, including Quad Max window, door, and siding sealant, which can be applied in wet conditions and is freeze-thaw stable; and Quad Foam, a polyurethane foam for sealing gaps and cracks.

The trailer’s stop in Calgary was part of a cross-country tour to a number of cities and customer events. Right after the show it was heading to Ottawa for a contractor appreciation show hosted by Home Hardware dealers in the region and in mid-February it will be at the TIMBER MART show in Toronto. In mid-March it will be back out West at Slegg Lumber on Vancouver Island and then in St. Jacobs, Ont., for the Home Hardware Spring Market a week later.

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Tembec open to export quotas under softwood lumber agreement


MONTREAL — Tembec CEO James Lopez has signalled that his company could be open to quotas on lumber exports to the U.S., the Canadian Press reports. In a departure from the stance of many competitors, Lopez suggested that, although no restrictions should be necessary, the company “could live with a quota system” as an alternative to duties, in order to reach a compromise with the U.S. Lumber Coalition.

U.S. challenges to the softwood lumber deal under NAFTA are expected as protectionist sentiments grow under the new government of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Lopez believes the Coalition would prefer a negotiated solution, but acknowledged that “if the U.S. is overly ambitious on the reduction in the Canadian market share... it would be better to litigate than negotiate.” The Quebec government is opposed to any duties or quotas, while the B.C. Lumber Trade Council is opposed to a hard quota but is open to discussing a system that is flexible to market conditions.

Tembec posted a Q1 loss of $0.09 per share but saw sales rise to $370 million, from $354 million a year earlier.

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At Lowe’s Canada, Tristan Flanagan is now merchandise manager, storage and household products for RONA’s proximity stores. He was previously assistant merchandiser for tools and automotive for the proximity stores.

On January 26, Jim Thompson closed his career at Wal-Mart. He spent more than 40 years with the company. Most recently he was COO of Wal-Mart China, but his CV includes roles at Walmart Canada as COO, EVP real estate, and head merchant.

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CLASSIFIED ADS

GENERAL MANAGER - RETAIL BUILDING SUPPLIES

Are you a store manager in a big box retailer? Maybe it is time to move away from the corporate life in a big city? A challenging career at the top of a family environment, may offer the quality of life for your next career move. Stan Dawe Limited, an 80-year-old, five location retail building supply business in western Newfoundland is seeking a General Manager.

The General Manager is the most senior position in our company reporting only to the shareholders. This position is reported to by five store managers, one purchasing manager and the accountant/office manager. Regular briefings with the two key shareholders, provide a history of past performance and establish objectives for the future. The General Manager is responsible to develop and implement a plan to meet these strategic goals.

Daily duties include discussions and problem solving with store managers, cash management, purchasing of commodity inventory, working with the purchasing manager on regular and promotional pricing, coordinating distribution to the branch stores with pickup of incoming freight, assisting with pricing of larger customer quotations, maintaining relationships with key customers, reviewing accounts receivable, approving payables invoices, coordinating with store managers for staff levels and wages. This position also establishes standards for exceptional customer service and employee safety.

General responsibilities include seeking new opportunities for growth in sales and/or profits with new products and/or markets, investigating cost reduction strategies and improving the company’s internet prospects.

The General Manager must have a post-secondary business education, a minimum 10 years’ management experience in retail operations in a related field, excellent time management skills, confident decision making ability and effective communication skills for dealing with staff and customer conflict resolution.

To send your resume or request more information, contact:
Tony Dawe
Stan Dawe Limited
191 Riverside Drive
Corner Brook, NL A2H 4A1
tony@standaweltd.com

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