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July 23, 2018 Volume
xxiv, #29
“Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
―George Bernard Shaw (Irish playwright and Nobel Prize winner, 1856-1916)
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SUMMER PUBLISHING SCHEDULE: Please note that HARDLINES is published only once in August. There will be no issues on August 13, 20, and 27. We resume our regular publishing schedule with our September 3 edition.
(Click here to receive FREE Daily News updates to keep you informed between issues!)
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Hardlines Conference finalizes speaker lineup with top retail groups represented
WORLD HEADQUARTERS, Toronto — Canada’s leading home improvement retailers will be represented on the podium at the 23rd annual 2018 Hardlines Conference, November 13 and 14 in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont.
With the theme, “The Power of Brand”, the event will bring together some of the top retail brands―and brand leaders―in Canada.
This year, the conference will feature two important independent dealers, reporting from the front lines of home improvement retailing. Jillian Sexton is a TIMBER MART dealer with two stores in Nova Scotia, and now a third in Charlottetown that has taken off. Ray Cyr operates RONA Fraser Valley Building Products in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland.
Bringing a corporate perspective, Charles Valois, VP central marketing at Lowe’s Canada, will talk about how this retail giant is integrating and leveraging a range of retail brands—Lowe’s, RONA, Reno-Depot, and Ace. From Home Hardware Stores Ltd., Darrin Noble, VP of the co-op’s Beauti-Tone paint business, will talk about the power of this private brand for Home’s dealers. From Orgill, Catherine Vaugh will talk about the integrated marketing strategies Orgill has developed for retailers to use to promote their brand to their market. These include tools to let independents create circulars, flyers, shelf talkers and postcards.
Steve Buckle, president of Sexton Group, will talk about how his group supports the individual brands of its members as it continues to find growth with new members across the country.
Other speakers at the Hardlines Conference will include Jules Pieri, co-founder of an online retailer now owned by Ace Hardware, The Grommet; and Anthony Stokan, a familiar name to past conference attendees, will join us this year for a “fireside chat” about the future of bricks and mortar, and particularly what role shopping centres, now under siege in the U.S., will play as retail grows into the online space.
Finally, we are very excited to have eBay Canada join us again this year. Closing out the 2018 Hardlines Conference, Robert Bigler, COO and director of product for eBay Canada, will present “Staying Competitive in the Age of e-Commerce”. He’ll provide an overview of the e-commerce and retail landscape, demonstrating how eBay is innovating to create new experiences that are relevant to both buyers and sellers. Most importantly, Bigler will examine how online marketplaces play into omni-channel sales strategies for traditional retailers looking for a competitive edge.
The Hardlines Conference will be held at the Queen’s Landing in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont., November 13 to 14. (Click here for more information about the 23rd annual Hardlines Conference.)
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Upcoming Orgill market prepares to host Canadian dealers
MEMPHIS ― Orgill will host its Fall Dealer Market in Las Vegas next month and the giant hardware wholesaler will count hundreds of Canadian dealers among the guests attending.
Being held August 23 to 25 at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre, it will feature a range of products, services and promotions. One of the most popular spots on the show floor―which will top out at nearly one million square feet―is the Market Busters area, featuring highly visible items that lend themselves well to promotions by dealers. The Flash Market will feature different products over each of the three days of the market. Pallet buys will be split, as in years past, into bulk pallets of a single item in large quantities and impulse pallets, quarter pallets designed for specials such as stackout or checkout counter displays.
All Canadian promotional areas will be located on the lower level of the convention centre.
The market will also feature a selection of model stores that will showcase a variety of merchandising programs and techniques. Cider Mill Home Centre will feature products that are entirely Canadian compliant. The store fills 12,000 square feet with an assortment of products that would be stocked in a home centre. The products featured in this model store will be available from the Orgill DCs in London, Ont., and in Post Falls, Idaho.
The store is designed with a queue-style checkout area, which channels customers checking out their merchandise to line up past rows of promotional, impulse and seasonal items to encourage increased basket sizes.
Orgill’s Smart Start Program will be on display at the show, as well, to assist dealers who want to convert product lines to a program backed by the Orgill warehouse. This area will feature programs by more than 100 vendors―and the deals being presented can assist a retailer in making product assortment decisions that are right for their business with the benefit of little to no investment to make the change, says Phillip Walker, Orgill’s senior vice president, merchandising services.
Orgill’s plumbing and electrical showcase consists of 6,000 square feet of retail sets. Walker calls it the largest breadth of offering within a distribution model, and it will include well-known national brands with supporting POP to help dealers boost their retail margins.
(And for the retailers headed down to Las Vegas for the show, we’ll be hosting our regular Canada Night reception at the end of the first day. For more information, and to register, click here!)
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Coast Distributors expands product range with its own private brand and new alliance
NANAIMO, B.C. ― Brad McCluskie proudly shows off a roll of house wrap. The label reads “TerraTuff” and the name belongs to his company, Coast Distributors. It’s a key part of the hardware wholesaler’s effort to offer a private-label line of products to the independent dealers it supplies in British Columbia from its distribution centres in Nanaimo and Kelowna.
McCluskie, owner of Coast, admits that the company has been using the TerraTuff name for the past two years. “But we’ve really been building it up over the last year.” Today, more than two dozen lines sport the brand, including hand tools, and more recently, paint brushes and paint accessories. Coast’s full range of products also includes electrical and plumbing, garden supplies, automotive accessories and housewares.
Another way McCluskie is trying to grow the brand is regionally. While Coast is an effective regional distributor, McCluskie reached out, almost on the spur of the moment during a trip to Ottawa, to Todd Schoular, who owns Square Deal, a like-minded family-owned company based in Central Canada.
“We hit it off,” says McCluskie, “and now we’re looking for ways to work better together, including some joint buys.”
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eBay uses summer preview to remind shoppers it’s more than an auction site
TORONTO — eBay Canada held a seasonal preview earlier this month to showcase its selections for summer, back to school and holiday. While the company has previously held previews for holiday, this year’s preview was much larger in size and included stylized vignettes, as opposed to a showcase of just the gift guide offerings.
The goal of the preview was to reintroduce the brand to media through a “show, don’t tell” approach. According to Camille Kowalewski, eBay Canada's head of communications, many still think of eBay as a place to buy used items through bidding. “This is not the case,” says Kowalewski.
“More than 80 per cent of purchases made on eBay are actually for new products, and over 85 per cent of purchases are made at fixed prices. We really wanted to showcase eBay as a destination to buy everything from fashion to home decor to tech,” Kowalewski adds.
All items shown at the preview were sourced through eBay.ca, and many were purchased from Canadian sellers.
eBay also used the preview as an opportunity to showcase a collaboration with Norquay Co., an artisanal paddle company, to design an exclusive line of wall-art canoe paddles. The decorative paddles are crafted from solid cherry wood sourced from Northern Ontario and hand-finished in Toronto. On sale through eBay from June 21 to July 19, the proceeds of paddle sales went to the Canadian Canoe Foundation.
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TIMBER MART has announced the addition of Gary Barrault, commodity trader, to its lumber trading team in the Prairies. Reporting to John Morrissey, VP of distribution and trading, Barrault will be responsible for trading oriented strand board, plywood, spruce and commodity products, as well as developing TIMBER MART’s pressure-treated lumber programs in the Prairie provinces. Barrault has more than 25 years of experience in the building material industry, and a variety of operations and retail management positions under his belt with organizations such as North American Lumber.
Concrete maker Permacon has named Louis-Philippe Gauthier as its director of sales, alternative masonry and retail. Though his specialty is land development, Gauthier also has nearly a decade of experience in construction. He joined Permacon at the beginning of 2014 as Ottawa region sales rep. In his new role, he will oversee sales of alternative masonry products and retail sales for Ottawa, Quebec and the Maritimes.
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CLASSIFIED ADS
Key Account Manager-Ontario
King Marketing is a national manufacturer’s agency focused on representing leading brands in the hardware and home improvement industry. We have an immediate opening for a Key Account Manager in Ontario. The successful candidate will report to the National Sales Manager.
Responsibilities include:
- Selling our represented manufacturer’s products to national and regional accounts based in Ontario.
- Developing trusting relationships with buyers and assistants.
- Expanding product listings, suggesting promotional items.
- Prospecting and soliciting new customers.
- Working with distributors and distributor representatives.
- Participating in the planning and execution of customer trade shows.
- Reporting all activities through an on-line reporting system.
- Meeting sales targets.
Requirements
- Experience in the hardware and home improvement sector as a key account manager.
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills with aptitude in building relationships.
- Self-Starter with excellent organizational skills.
Compensation and Benefits
- Competitive salary including bonus plan.
- Comprehensive health plan.
- Car allowance & gas card.
Send resume and cover letter to stephaniek@kingmkt.com
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Westman Steel Industries is one of Canada’s largest manufacturers of steel roofing and siding products. Westman Steel Industries is a member of The WGI Westman Group, a dynamic entrepreneurial group of companies who values safety, health, community, relationships, growth and fiscal responsibility.
Westman Steel Industries has the following career opportunity in Langley, BC:
GENERAL MANAGER
The General Manager leads a team of production and sales employees in the manufacturing and supply of steel roofing and siding products to the B.C. market. The successful candidate will plan, organize, direct, control, and evaluate the process activities of Production, Customer Service, and Shipping and Receiving staff. Oversees the entire manufacturing process which includes: production and operations management, human resource management and health and safety.
Westman Steel provides a competitive total rewards package including professional growth, career development and continuous learning. The company offers excellent benefits and a deferred profit sharing plan. Interested candidates can apply by visiting https://www.indeedjobs.com/westman-steel-industries/jobs/d5d8013ea3909b6a5357
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