RONA inc. has released the news that it will consolidate its distribution operations, moving resources into its head office warehouse in Boucherville, Que., on the South Shore of Montreal.

The company says it has reviewed its national distribution operations, resulting in the planned closure of regular operations at its DC  in Terrebonne, a suburb on Montreal’s North Shore, on March 22. The move will result in 40 job losses. One of RONA's DCs in Calgary, on 60th Street SE, will close in October 2024, but those jobs “are being transferred to another distribution centre,” according to RONA.

The 60th Street facility was built almost 20 years ago and represented 380,000 square feet of space at the time. The other DC is likely RONA’s Calgary-area distribution centre, at High Plains Industrial Park northeast of the city, which opened in 2021. At 1.23 million square feet, the High Plains facility is much larger than the older DC.

Reductions will also take place at RONA’s Boucherville head office, where 115 employees in various roles there will be impacted.

The closures will result in the layoffs of about 300 people in total, says the company. RONA was sold by Lowe’s Cos. to Sycamore Partners, a New York-based private equity firm, at the beginning of 2023. In June of last year, the retailer laid off 500 people, then another 50 in the fall, in addition to the 300 that will be impacted by the latest cuts. RONA has about 22,000 employees in total.

The changes, which included last year’s replacement of Tony Cioffi with Andrew Iacobucci as company president, can be seen as a response by the new owner to maximize profitability from its new holding. But the shakeup also reflects a more sombre outlook within the retail home improvement industry in general, one which anticipates a slow turnaround through the first half of 2024.

In an email, RONA said, “As part of this next phase in our evolution, we have to focus on further simplifying our operations and eliminating inefficiencies created over the last few years. Doing so is critical for our aspiration of becoming the leading home improvement retailer in Canada.”

The company went on to say that the streamlining will benefit other aspects of the business, “and will fund important strategic investments in areas like RONA+, digital, and our dealer network that will help us better serve Canadian consumer and market.”

The message from RONA took a reflective turn, offering a positive note for the future. “Decisions like this are never taken lightly but we are confident that these changes will make RONA inc. stronger for the years to come.”

The major trade show for building centre dealers and lumberyards in western Canada was held at the Winnipeg Convention Centre from Jan. 17 to 19. The Western Retail Lumber Association hosted its annual Building & Hardware Showcase and, according to WRLA president Liz Kovach, “It was probably our best show ever.”

The show’s attendance was up over last year, Kovach added, despite weather challenges, especially for people flying in from British Columbia, which was hit by a huge snow storm a couple of days prior. Pre-registration reached almost 700 before the doors even opened this year, as dealers from across the west converged in Winnipeg to check out the products and services of close to 200 vendors.

The show was preceded by a daylong series of workshops to help dealers manage and grow their businesses, under the theme of “Build, Hire, and Plan.” On the first morning of the show proper, before the floor opened, delegates enjoyed a breakfast and keynote from Lauren Johnson, a business coach and expert in mental conditioning who has worked with organizations such as Google, the New York Yankees, and Johnson & Johnson.

Her presentation explored the potential of harnessing the power of the mind and conditioning one’s team to excel. She offered many inspiring anecdotes about working with young athletes to help them do better, to push them to new levels of achievement.

At the close of day one, a gala reception was held next door at the Delta Hotel. During the festivities, Murray Finkbiner took to the stage as the WRLA’s 2023 Industry Achievement Award recipient. "Winning the Industry Achievement Award is, for me, an industry pinnacle," he told the crowd.

A long-time supporter of the WRLA, Finkbiner joined AFA Forest Products in 1988. In 2014, he took over as president and COO, and led the company until its acquisition by Gillfor Distribution in 2022.

Delegates at the show included some of the biggest dealers from all banners in the West, such as Fraser Valley Building Supplies, Igloo Building Supplies, McMunn & Yates, Federated Co-op, UFA, J&H Builder’s Warehouse, and Fries Tallman Lumber.

While shows have given way to online technology as the best way to access the latest pricing, the retailers Hardlines spoke with found value at the show in three ways. Whether from head office or from the stores, big commercial dealers or local building centres, they all found it a valuable forum to meet existing suppliers, form connections with new contacts, and get information and product knowledge.

During the show, Kovach announced that the Hardware & Building Showcase will relocate in 2025 and 2026, when it will move to Edmonton.

The retail home improvement business at Federated Co-operatives may be a small part of its overall business, but the Home & Building Solutions (HABS) division services a network of stores that put Federated Co-op firmly in the Hardlines Top 20 list of retail players in this sector.

Cody Smith is director of the HABS division. In this issue, we continue our conversation with Smith that began in last week’s edition.

One area of FCL’s business that’s growing in importance is its private labels. Smith says the company continues to invest in its house brands, which, he says, are recognized and trusted by co-op customers. “There’s a couple of different areas we look at, across all lines of business. The co-op brand is pretty strong. It’s recognized out here, so the more we can build on that and create new products, it really entrenches you with the customers.”

There are some guidelines around which types of products to focus on. “We’re typically looking at private label to be a product that’s unique and different in the marketplace. And where there’s opportunity, we use it on our import program as well.”

As they are for many retailers, seasonal products are a big part of FCL’s import program. But unlike most other home improvement retailers, FCL has a whole food and grocery division, which carries a lot of housewares and kitchenwares on its grocery shelves. Do the two sides share merchandising opportunities? “We do share information,” says Smith. “The food business—as you’re aware—has a lot more data, so they can dig a little deeper. As we gain more business intelligence, we’re going to use some of their strategies and some of their methodologies to help us.”

He underscores that the goal is not strictly to sell more products, but to sell products that make sense to FCL customers, and make their lives easier, with reliability and in-store expertise. “We’re not selling products, we’re selling solutions, so we’ve got to continue to go beyond the product and make sure we’re taking that customer right to the end stage.”

That process includes providing product knowledge—“training for staff to think beyond product and the transactional sale.” But FCL’s digital footprint is also important here. “The other piece would be awareness with our online catalogue to make sure people are aware that we’re in a lot of these categories. So that’s a key one.”

Bath fixtures maker Luxo Marbre has unveiled the addition of two new business segments. The Saint-Rémi, Que., supplier has launched two kitchen lines, Luxo Kitchen and a high-end brand called Luxo Signature. It is also complementing its offerings to retailers by getting into the wholesale game.

VP Marc-Antoine Héroux told Hardlines that getting into kitchen fixtures only makes sense for Luxo. “The vanity and the kitchen, it’s basically like the same product, it’s the same technology, and it’s the same customer,” he said. “It doesn’t make sense to be only on one side of the business when we can offer the two streams of revenue.”

For example, the company already has the gloss paint needed to finish its bathroom fixtures, so it can easily–and affordably–make it available for use on kitchen installations. That finish “doesn’t exist in the retail market because it’s more high-end,” Héroux explains. “It’s like a kitchen of $50,000 that we can sell directly. So for [dealers], it’s much more profitable.”

In support of this growth, Luxo has received $335,000 in financial support from Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions, allowing to upgrade its sub-assembly operations, which have been repatriated to Canada from China.

The repayable financial package will also allow Luxo to set up an innovation department and an international marketing strategy, all while cultivating a national deployment strategy. During a tour of the revamped facility, Luxo president Mathieu Gosselin explained that its proximity to the nearby highway will help keep transportation costs down.

“We understand that our customers on a national basis, they are looking for sales on the west side of the Canada and the Vancouver port as well,” says Héroux. “So we’re looking for a warehouse down there to make sure that we can push the sales coast-to-coast in Canada.”

Gosselin adds that dealers benefit when they can order directly from Luxo. “It’s easier for the retailer to develop the business and to grab a new segment of the market because we have a large scoop of inventory for the different models of vanity and accessories.”

Alexandre Lafrance has joined Garant as national business development director and a member of the company’s executive committee. Lafrance brings more than two decades of experience to the roles, most recently overseeing U.S. and Canada sales at Stelpro. Previously, he was sales director for Quebec and the Maritimes in the pool and spa division of Groupe Sani Marc.

At Lowe’s Cos. in Mooresville, N.C., Margi Vagell has been named executive vice-president, supply chain, effective March 1. She is also vice-chair of the Lowe’s Foundation and serves on the boards of trustees of two universities. Vagell succeeds Don Frieson, who has served as EVP, supply chain since 2018. He will retire on April 1.

Burlington, Ont.-based store design and fixture supplier BMF (Burlington Merchandising and Fixtures) has made three personnel announcements. Mike Tonner has joined BMF as business development manager. Tonner has nearly two decades of sales experience working with Canadian retail partners in the home improvement and hardware channels. Ty Pierson joined BMF in 2023 as a business development manager. He has spent his career focused on store operations across various national retailers. And Valerie Stark has joined BMF as marketing manager. With over eight years of marketing and e-commerce experience, Stark will lead strategic marketing efforts, showcasing BMF’s projects across Canada and the U.S.

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RETAILER NEWS

The stadium that is home to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers has a new name. IG Field, the 32,000-seat stadium in Fort Garry, Man., has been renamed Princess Auto Stadium. The 10-year sponsorship is the result of a new deal between the Winnipeg Football Club and the hardware and automotive retailer. Princess Auto is headquartered in Winnipeg and has been a long-time sponsor of the pre-game tailgate party.

Greater Montreal-based Distribution G.I. is the latest independent retailer to join TIMBER MART. Co-owners Alexander Ferro and Yannick Trottier launched the business in 2022 in Chambly, Que. The business moved into a larger location soon after opening. It now occupies 7,500 square feet, consisting of 4,000 square feet of outdoor storage and a 3,500-square-foot building that houses a showroom, office, and warehouse.

Home Hardware Stores Ltd. has been recognized on Forbes’ list of Canada's Best Employers 2024. Forbes and Statista Inc. co-present this award to recipients based on independent surveys from Canada-based employees who gave feedback on their workplace. Evaluations were based on recommendations from employees who were asked to rate their willingness to recommend their employer to friends and family, based on factors including working conditions, salary potential, and company image.

Costco is testing out a new procedure requiring customers to scan their membership cards at store entrances in a bid to curb unauthorized sharing of cards. The pilot project has begun in Costco’s home state of Washington and builds on previous moves to verify membership at self-checkout in the same way as for those in cashier lanes.

Hand-held scanners in warehouses are standard practice in 2024. One of the data sets they provide is, of course, employee productivity. But Amazon went too far in France in monitoring its employee activity and performance, according to the country’s data protection watchdog, CNIL. It has fined Amazon €32 million ($47 million) for “excessively intrusive” monitoring of employee scanner data.

Richelieu Hardware posted Q4 earnings of $29.4 million, 36 percent below the comparable period of 2022. Sales were down by 0.8 percent to $453.7 million, the decline tempered by acquisitions. In Canada, sales fell by $2.6 million, or 4.4 percent, to $1.05 billion. On a call to analysts, CEO Richard Lord said, “Richelieu is well positioned to achieve good results in 2024.”

Renoworks Software is reaching out to contractor customers with the launch of a Pro Partner program. Through the program, the visualization platform will enable contractors to take advantage of co-selling, co-promotion, and referral opportunities. At the same time, the firm has introduced a new API Hub, allowing partners to create, retrieve, and display 2D and 3D visualizations within their applications, including CRMs, measurement, quoting, estimation, and sales/marketing automation software.

The Tando division at Derby Building Products has been renamed Tando Composites. The business offers two exterior cladding options:  the Beach House Shake composite shingle and TandoStone composite stone. “Updating the brand’s name to Tando Composites reflects decades of manufacturing development,” Derby CEO Ralph Bruno said in a release.

Retail sales declined by 0.2 percent to $66.6 billion in November. Sales were down in four of nine subsectors, led by decreases at food and beverage retailers and in five provinces, with the biggest drop in Quebec. Core retail sales, which exclude fuel and automotive categories, were down 0.6 percent. LBM and garden sales amounted to $3.9 billion, down 0.1 percent from the previous month and down 3.3 percent from November 2022. (StatCan)