May 3, 2010, Volume xvi, #18
“We become what we hire. If we hire sharp, world-class people, we become a world-class business. If we hire mediocre people, we become a mediocre business ... and it will end badly.†—Donald Cooper (Canadian business speaker and educator, 1941- )
Kent makes acquisition in Nova Scotia
ST. JOHN, N.B. — Kent Building Supplies, the privately held chain owned by the Irving family, has purchased another independent dealer. The new signs went up last week in front of Nauss TIM-BR Mart in Bridgewater, N.S. Kent now has eight locations in Nova Scotia.
The Nauss family will continue to own and operate the contracting side of the business, Nauss Brothers General Contracting, at a new location.
Kent continues to scout out acquisition targets. In the fall of 2008, it purchased Petitcodiac, N.B.-based Fawcett Lumber. Fawcett, a third-generation building centre founded in 1932, became the 17th Kent store in New Brunswick.
Kent now has a total of 36 outlets, including two truss plants and a drywall facility.
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Rationalization of ranks continues at Stanley Black & Decker
NEW BRITAIN, Conn. & OAKVILLE, Ont. — The newly merged company Stanley Black & Decker turned in its first quarterly results under its new structure last week, and began a program of rationalization among staff.
Stanley Black & Decker had a first-quarter loss of $108.6 million, or $1.09 per share. Excluding one-time charges related to the acquisition of Black & Decker, the company earned 70 cents per share. Stanley’s acquisition of B&D was completed on March 12. First-quarter financials are inclusive of Black & Decker's operations for the period from March 13 to April 3.
Net sales for the period were $1.3 billion, up 38% versus prior year due to the inclusion of Black & Decker's results for that period.
On the heels of the results, layoffs began around the world. According to the Baltimore Sun, 37 people were let go at the Towson, Md., offices. The Jackson Sun reports that another 69 people are being laid off from the Stanley Black & Decker manufacturing plant in Jackson, Tenn.
The company initially said it expected to cut up to 4,000 jobs worldwide from a work force of 38,000. A total of 330 staff are being cut in this round of layoffs, including a number of people in Canada. They include former President Dave Howe, a 29-year veteran of B&D. Jeff Crews is now President of Stanley B&D’s Construction and DIY Group. He was formerly Vice-President and General Manager of Stanley Canada Corporation-CDIY. Greg Lavigne, formerly director of marketing for all Canada, is also gone.
Penny Mauro was VP & General Manager, Price Pfister at B&D’s Hardware and Home Improvement Division, but she resigned before the cuts began. The HHI division in Canada is now being managed by Jerry Manko, who has the title of Vice-President for Canada’s Stanley Black & Decker’s Hardware and Home Improvement (HHI) Division. Jerry held responsibility for Black & Decker’s Canadian division previously, and will now become involved in the Canadian business from HHI headquarters in Lake Forest, Calif.
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Home Depot agrees to vendor meetings to explain MET
SPECIAL REPORT — The recently announced initiative by The Home Depot Canada to move its in-store service and detailing operations in-house has put the country’s agencies that deliver those services currently on alert. And those concerns came flooding into the Hardlines World Headquarters.
Agents say that thousands of jobs will be lost across the country as the very teams they have built up over the years to manage stock and shelves at Home Depot stores are expected to become redundant.
In turn, Home Depot plans to build its own in-store team, called the Merchandising Execution Team, or MET, comprising between 1,000 and 1,400 people. However, the vendors, either on their own or through their rep agencies, will be expected to continue performing other tasks, including in-store product knowledge sessions, store resets and planograms.
Hardlines made numerous calls and emails to Home Depot’s head office to bring vendors’ concerns to the forefront with management, and especially with Gino DiGioacchino, Vice-President of Merchandising for Home Depot Canada. We further encouraged the retailer to step up plans to explain the MET program more directly with the vendor community in a public forum.
It looks like our efforts have paid off.
To assuage the concerns of the vendor community, Home Depot Canada have finalized two one-on-one meetings in June and September. The meetings were announced in a memo last Thursday signed by Joe Allen, the new Director of Vendor Services, who oversees the MET program. The first meeting will be held June 4.
Home Depot Canada will complete its MET implementation in two phases following a pilot implementation in September. The first phase of the formal implementation begins in December, 2010; the second and final phase begins in June, 2011.
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RONA upbeat at annual meeting
BOUCHERVILLE, Que. — Addressing shareholders at its AGM last week, RONA President and CEO Robert Dutton said, “businesses with staying power ... continue to prepare for the future, no matter how troublesome the present may be. That is exactly what RONA did in 2009.†Those measures included improving gross margin and reducing inventories.
Dutton reported that phase one of the company’s strategic plan, called “PEP†(Productivity, Efficiency, Profitability) proved to be “the right approach to help RONA weather the worst of the economic storm.†Improvements included an increase in gross margin by 123 basis points; improved profitability for under-performing stores; increased penetration of private-label products from 16 to 19%; and a $168 million reduction in inventories.
Phase two of RONA’s strategic plan, called the “New World†program, focuses on renewed growth. Dutton said the program, which is being implemented during 2010 and 2011, includes initiatives aimed at providing an enhanced customer experience attracting next-generation entrepreneurs to RONA. For example, RONA has introduced a succession-planning program for store owners.
During 2010 and 2011, RONA will focus primarily on growing its market share in Ontario and Western Canada while reinforcing its strong position in Quebec. Development of the professional and commercial market is another priority.
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BMR launches home staging program
BOUCHERVILLE, Que. — BMR Le Groupe has launched a service, “BMR Home Staging Signed by France Arcand.†The program offers consumers ways to showcase a home and facilitate its sale. BMR has partnered with France Arcand, a columnist and popular host of the “Bye Bye Maison†television program, who has extensive experience in design and teaching.
Customers get an in-home consultation service followed by an in-store meeting, during which recommendations are made and a plan of action instituted. More than 100 BMR store staff have been trained by Arcand, who also helps participating BMR store employees with their selection of products such as floor coverings, lighting fixtures, faucets and fittings, and decorative accessories.
So far, about 40 BMR stores are preparing to launch “Home Staging†and “Relooking†services.
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Classifieds
DIRECTOR OF VENDOR RELATIONS, PURCHASING, EDMONTON, AB
A leading distributor of building materials in Edmonton is seeking a Director of Vendor Relations/Purchasing responsible for overall company purchasing as well as maintaining and developing vendor relations. Knowledge and experience with buying groups is required.
MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Vendor Relations
- Vendor relations on local level as well as national level with buying group
- Participate and represent the company for vendor product negotiations with buying group
- Negotiation/collection of vendor volume rebates
- Purchasing
- Direct and coordinate activities of purchasing and inventory control personnel
- Develop and implement purchasing policies and programs
- Analyze market information for commodities and other product categories
- Maximize margin for purchasing department and compan
KEY COMPETENCIES
- Team builder/player
- Ability to provide mentorship and leadership to team members and make key decisions.
- Customer focus
- Detail oriented, organized and disciplined, attention to accuracy
- Ability to multi-task in a fast-paced environment
- Excellent analytical ability
- Willing to accept responsibility and advancement
- Self starter - able to work with little supervision
KEY QUALIFICATIONS
- Minimum 10 years experience in purchasing management/vendor relations
- Knowledge and experience in the lumber/building materials commodity markets
- Post secondary diploma or equivalent preferred
- Proficient in Microsoft Office applications especially Microsoft Word and Excel programs
Please submit résumé via email to:
Black Eagle Executive Search
c/o Richard Simms at rsimms@blackeagle.ca
DEDICATED ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE
Reporting to the CEO, the Dedicated Account Executive will advance efforts and activities aimed at developing, maintaining and deepening relationships with new and existing Earth Innovations Inc. clients across North America, with a particular focus on the US market.
The primary sales focus will be on our flagship product and category leader ecoTRACTION, a volcanic mineral used for traction on icy winter sidewalks. It is already carried coast-to-coast in Canada in Home Depot, Canadian Tire, Home Hardware, Acklands-Grainger, and Unisource among others, and was featured on the CBC television show Dragons' Den in 2008 & 2009.
Duties and Responsibilities:
- Develops new business in retail and industrial markets in Canada and the US
- Manages the entire business development cycle
- Develops and manages relationships with independent sales agencies
- Leads a small internal team of Customer Service Representatives who assist with business development efforts
- Responsible for quarterly forecasting, annual budget planning, channel marketing and promotional campaigns
Requirements:
• Minimum of ten (10) plus years of demonstrated sales success
• Proven experience in consumer and industrial markets in both Canada & US
• Successfully developed and managed 3rd-party sales agencies in Canada and the US
• Working knowledge of Salesforce is considered an asset
• Bilingualism (English and French) is considered an asset
Key Competencies:
• Driven and goal oriented
• Entrepreneurial spirit
• Loves a fast paced environment
• Strategic thinker
• Strong planning and organizational skills
Please send your resume to Heidi Hauver, Human Resources Coordinator, at heidi@ecotraction.com. Thank you.
Please note that we are accepting applications until April 23rd 2010.
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