March 6, 2017 Volume xxiii, #10

Words empty as the wind are better left unsaid.”—Homer (Poet of Ancient Greece, circa 8th century BCE)

______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

Meet the Buyers Breakfast: Featuring the Senior Lowe’s Team

WORLD HEADQUARTERS, Toronto — Here at the Hardlines World Headquarters, we are proud to be able to bring this industry together in a number of ways, online, in print, and in person. We are particularly proud to be able to co-ordinate our next Meet the Buyers Breakfast event, which will host the senior buying executives from Lowe’s Canada.

The Meet the Buyers Breakfast will be on April 26, 7:30 to 10 a.m., at a Toronto-area hotel location close to Pearson International Airport. (We’ll confirm the location very soon!)

These top buying influences for Lowe’s, RONA, and Réno-Dépôt stores will be presenting:

• Alan Blundell, Divisional Vice President, Merchandising, Lowe’s;
• Marc Gingras, Divisional Vice President, RONA Proximity Stores;
• Christian Dauphinais, Divisional Vice President, Merchandising for Réno-Dépôt;
• Igor Halencak, Vice President National Procurement, Central Merchandising, and Global Sourcing, Lowe’s Canada.

Lowe’s is the fastest growing home improvement retailer in Canada. If you are a vendor, find out how you can be part of that growth. At this seminar:

• you’ll learn what it takes to sell to Lowe’s Canada;
• if you’re already selling to Lowe’s and/or RONA, you’ll discover new ways to enhance your existing relationships;
• you’ll find out what changes are occurring at head office as the Lowe’s and RONA businesses are combined and how your company can grow your business there;
• and you’ll have the chance to network with these individuals directly.

This is a must-attend for any new vendor hoping to connect with Lowe’s Canada—and for existing vendors who wish to understand the changes occurring with one of the Canadian marketplace’s largest home improvement retailers.

(Cost for this once-in-a-lifetime vendor-only event is just $129. Click here to reserve your spot now!)

back to top

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

TIMBER MART’s Bernie Owens: independents will weather changes ahead

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — The 50th anniversary of TIMBER MART finds President Bernie Owens enthusiastic, but also reflective. For him, the milestone offers a chance to look back at the evolution of this industry and question what lies ahead. “Talking about the next 50 years, the pace of change and consolidation in the industry, especially in recent years, I look at it and say, ‘How are we going to differentiate ourselves going forward?’ ”

In conversation with HARDLINES at the group’s recent trade show in Toronto, he touched on a lot of themes, but with a big-picture perspective. For example, the recent overtures by competitors to increase off-the-top rebates on invoices had him worried about the entire eco-system of the Canadian supply chain. For him, all sides have to succeed, for the sake of a strong Canadian-based industry—including vendors. His group works from that principle: “We have that intimacy with the vendor community, but we have to make sure we’re buying right for our members,” he adds.

Owens talks about the independents competing alongside the big chains and offers some sobering thoughts about the next wave of consolidation that this country could face. Besides Lowe’s and Home Depot, there are numerous smaller, regional chains in the U.S. that are still huge by Canadian terms. He points out the acquisition last summer of the Construction Products division of Superior Plus (which includes Allroc and Winroc), which was bought by Foundation Building Materials in California.

“That company didn’t exist two years ago,” he says. “It’s all private-equity money.” Could this become a larger trend that could impact more Canadian companies? “We have to be eyes-open that it’s an evolving industry.”

Nevertheless, Owens sees the independent model as both sustainable and healthy, one that the buying groups are an important part of. The volume purchases that TIMBER MART can achieve for members, both big and small, he notes, provide plateaus that give them all a competitive advantage against the large chains.

back to top

_________________________________________________________________

Feds give Fort McMurray a boost with gypsum tariff ruling

FORT MCMURRAY, Alta. — Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced last week that the federal government will cut duties on U.S. drywall imports to Western Canada by 32%. At the same time it is pouring $12 million from duties collected to date into a rebuilding grant for the wildfire-stricken community.

The duties were imposed to combat the dumping of U.S. drywall into the Canadian market, but Canada’s International Trade Tribunal agreed with complaints from Western homeowners and contractors that the tariffs were hurting their economy.

In its December decision and the full report published in January, the tribunal found that the dumping of U.S. gypsum into the Canadian market was injurious to Canada’s economy, but that tariffs at the rates originally imposed were more harm than help. U.S. drywall has been a boon to the restoration efforts around Fort McMurray, Alta., where thousands of residents were evacuated last May during a two-month wildfire outbreak. (The fire was declared under control in early July but continues to smoulder below the surface in remote areas.)

The tribunal found that the duties would lead to “house buyers paying thousands of dollars more for a typical home... in a market where builders and ultimately house buyers have already seen other major increases in costs.”

back to top

______________________________________________________________________

Ace banner keeps growing under the direction of Lowe’s Canada


WINNIPEG ― The recently announced move of Ace Canada into the Lowe’s offices in Toronto (as reported in our February 20, 2017 edition —your helpful Editor) may seem like an unlikely investment by the world’s second-largest home improvement retailer, but the growth of the Ace banner in this country reinforces the wisdom of the move.

There are now 163 stores in Canada carrying the Ace banner. Seventy-one of them are fully branded as Ace, while another 92 are home improvement stores currently co-branded with the TRU banner. Those stores are all expected to switch to Ace over time and include seven which are converting by the end of March.

Supporting the Ace brand will include the relocation of Ace’s management and buying teams from Winnipeg. That facility will be closed in August. Another smaller DC, in Kitchener, Ont., will shut down later in the fall.

However, Ace’s commitment in the field will be unchanged: its team of district managers will stay in place, helping dealers as they make the switch to the Ace name.

back to top
____________________________________________________________________

Dan Higgins has joined Home Hardware Stores Limited as cleaning supplies and commercial sales and marketing product manager. Formerly a commercial maintenance specialist and a retail sales manager, his expertise is expected to help Home dealers to improve their sales of commercial supplies and services.

____________________________________________________________________

CLASSIFIED ADS

FCL invites applications for the position of Saskatoon Co-op Home and Building Solutions (HABS) Division Manager located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

The Saskatoon Co-op HABS Division Manager provides leadership, direction and support for the Saskatoon Co-op Home Centre team. This position will establish the vision, develop long term strategies, and foster a culture that is focused on exceeding customer expectations and delivering outstanding results to the organization.

To see a full position description and to apply directly, please click the following link to be taken to our career page: https://www.fcl.crs/careers/current-opportunities/job/HABS-Division-Manager-R1

_____________________________________________________________________