|
November 3, 2014 Volume
xx, #41
“The main thing is to love the work that you do, because you may get no other reward.” —Philip Glass (American contemporary composer, 1937- )
______________________________________________________________________
Home Depot breaks ground on Calgary RDC
CALGARY — Home Depot Canada has begun construction of its second rapid deployment centre in this country. The RDC is part of an overall strategy by the giant home improvement retailer to trim costs from its supply chain by flowing products through to its stores more efficiently.
The 425,000-square-foot centre, located in Dufferin North Industrial Park in Calgary’s Southeast, will serve Home Depot’s 70 stores across Western Canada. It is expected to be completed by the end of next year. It’s being built alongside a stocking distribution centre that will be 640,000 square feet in size.
The ground breaking, which took place last Thursday, even elicited a personal appearance by the otherwise low-profile president of Home Depot Canada, Bill Lennie. He was quoted in the Calgary Herald saying that this will be the first time the company has co-located a stocking distribution centre with a rapid deployment centre. “It’s the first of its kind for us. I think it’s the first of its kind in North America.”
Home Depot opened its first Canadian rapid deployment centre in Vaughan, Ont., in late February of this year. That RDC, which is 657,600 square feet, services the retailer’s 110 stores in Eastern Canada. It is big enough to house 12 football fields and features more than two kilometers of conveyor belts.
back to top
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
ILDC prefers to remain selective
SPECIAL REPORT — As it celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, Independent Lumber Dealers Co-operative, the Ajax, Ont.-based buying group, manages to wield enviable leverage with suppliers thanks to a simple strategy. It sticks to its longstanding operational formula whose main ingredient is its members’ total commitment to the purchasing deals that the group strikes with select vendors.
It is now embarking on its next half century, with a newly hired general manager and an eye toward increasing its membership. But a big question for ILDC is whether there are enough companies out there that can meet its criteria and want to become part of what several current members refer to as a “brotherhood.”
Members point to several factors that they claim separate ILDC from other buying groups and keep their companies on the competitive edge. One is the group’s low overhead. It currently operates with only five employees, who are supported by the members’ involvement in various committees that negotiate purchasing agreements with suppliers.
“We can shift business when we have to, and we can recruit members who share our values,” says Lynn Hollingsworth, president of Soo Mill & Lumber in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., which has been an ILDC member since 1984.
ILDC, though, is not for everyone. Throughout its history the buying group has been extremely picky about which dealers or distributors it lets in. “It has never been about numbers,” explains Steve Copp of Copp’s Buildall in London, Ont. “We could have gotten bigger but we decided not to.”
However, says Steve Smith of Central Home Improvement in Antigonish, N.S., and current president of ILDC, “We are open to new members that want to keep their independence and be profitable. We have some of the most profitable companies in the industry,” he adds.
(For the full article on ILDC, check out the latest issue of our sister publication, Hardlines Home Improvement Quarterly, in the mail now to more than 11,500 dealers across the country! —Editor)
back to top
______________________________________________________________________
Conference Report: the importance of retail as “experience”
TORONTO — What consumers want most from their retailers are experiences. This turned out to be one of the key takeaways from the latest Hardlines Conference, held here just two weeks ago.
As Robert Howard, from Kurt Salmon, a management consulting firm, told the audience, consumers are willing to pay a premium for an experience. He went on to reference a study that said 80% of executives thought that their companies were delivering superior customer service, but only 8% of customers agreed.
Even more jarring is the fact that a study also showed that 90% of consumers will leave brands because of a bad customer service experience.
Jo Rossman, of the Association of Retail Environments, presented examples from around the world of innovative store design and POP aimed at engaging customers and making the store visit more exciting.
But if retailers remember that their bottom line isn’t about pleasing their shareholders—or even keeping track of their shares and likes on social media—and instead focus on sharing their knowledge, expertise, and their own personal touch, says Robert Moschorak, from Ace Hardware International, they’re pointed in the right direction.
“You can never lose sight of who you’re serving,” says Moschorak. “Success isn’t about getting it past the goal post, it’s about how you practice every day.”
back to top
______________________________________________________________________
Buying groups find new ways to grow their ranks
SPECIAL REPORT — After an uncharacteristically tumultuous 2013 in their sector, lumber and building materials buying groups are probing the competitive terrain for penetrable soft spots that are increasingly fewer and farther between.
“Let’s face it, there aren’t a lot of [unaffiliated] dealers left in the marketplace, and most people are pretty happy where they are,” says Bob Holmes, general manager for TORBSA, which last year hired its first outside salesperson, whose job “is to knock on doors and tell our story.”
TORBSA managed to recruit five new members in 2013, some in markets where it previously didn’t have much presence, such as Quebec City and Halifax. Those additions include one dealer that specializes in spray foam insulation, and another that specializes in ceilings. Holmes says TORBSA’s selling points are its “transparency” with members, and its reputation as a low-cost operator.
The buying group’s efforts to attract new dealers, says Holmes, have been enhanced by a three-year-old strategic partnership with Castle Building Centres Group. Within the umbrella group, Epic Alliance, the two groups jointly negotiate purchases and prices with suppliers.
TIM-BR MART Group recently created regional director of member services positions, with an eye towards fortifying its dealers’ confidence in its operations. “By realigning our team, we have placed experienced liaisons between our membership and Chalifour Canada, vendors and all internal resources,” said Bernie Owens, president of TIM-BR MART. “Members now have one point of contact, eliminating any confusion of who to talk to when in need of assistance.”
Owens said he remains committed to sustaining TIM-BR MART’s values and strengths, which he identified as “our national critical mass combined with our ability to act regionally.” The recent decision to combine Chalifour’s and TIM-BR MART’s buying shows into one event next year was made in response to dealer requests. And the launch in early 2014 of a new electronic catalogue, offering 30,000-plus SKUS, supports the buying group’s “customer-centric values,” said Owens, who added that future releases for this program would, among other things, streamline the order-entry process.
(For our full report on buying groups, check out the latest issue of our sister publication, Hardlines Home Improvement Quarterly, in the mail now to more than 11,500 dealers across the country! —Editor)
back to top
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
|
