October 16, 2017 Volume xxiii, #39

“Desperation is sometimes as powerful an inspirer as genius.”
—Benjamin Disraeli (British politician, 1804-1881)

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With closure of Sears Canada, other retailers eye its hardlines categories

TORONTO — The pending closure of Sears Canada marks the death knell for yet another major retailer in this country, but it hardly comes as a surprise. The company has been ailing for a decade.

Now, the retailer has applied for court approval to liquidate all of its remaining 150 stores—down from a high of 225—with the court expected to hear the motion on October 13. It first entered bankruptcy protection back in June.

While efforts in recent years to reposition have drawn the retailer more and more into fashion and soft goods, Sears’s woes are nevertheless being watched carefully by hardware retailers. Both Home Depot and Lowe’s have been putting more emphasis than ever on their sales of heavy appliances, a category which Sears has been dominant in. Home Hardware Stores Ltd. has been enhancing offerings—and merchandising programs—to its dealers, as well, in an effort to capture more of the white goods market in smaller communities. Canadian Tire is reportedly interested in picking up Sears’s Kenmore appliance brand.

Other categories that could be up for grabs would include seasonal and outdoor living.

Pending court approval, Sears Canada expects to begin liquidation sales starting October 19. The sales will continue until late December or early January 2018. About 12,000 employees will lose their jobs over that time, including about 800 at head office that are expected to be let go over the coming week.

The retailer applied for bankruptcy protection on June 22 and began seeking proposals for the acquisition of the Canadian operation’s business or other assets, and the selloff of retail leases. At that time, it announced it would close 59 locations.

After failing to cobble together a comprehensive deal for the entire business, it made the move, based on the recommendation of advisors and the bankruptcy monitor, FTI Consulting, Inc., to wind down the company once and for all and close the remaining 131 locations: 74 Sears department stores, eight Sears Home stores, and 49 Hometown stores.

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Mike Daniels readies for retirement, leaves a 46-year legacy



AJAX, Ont. — Mike Daniels may have spent the past 18 years working in an unassuming commercial building northeast of Toronto, but the modest location belies his role as one of the single most powerful buyers in Canada.

Daniels is the general manager of Spancan, a buying group that brings ILDC, TIMBER MART, and Federated Co-operatives to the negotiating table with hardlines suppliers on behalf of more than 1,300 stores across the country.

Now, the next big deal Daniels has his eye on involves grandchildren and golf. He will retire at the end of 2017 and his replacement—unnamed as of press time—is slated to come on board October 31.  

Daniels began his career at Canadian Tire in 1971, working there for 16 years before moving over to Beaver Lumber, where he spent another six and a half years. When Home Depot acquired Aikenheads, Daniels was part of the merchandising team under then-president Stephen Bebis. Starting as a buyer, he was quickly promoted to divisional merchandise manager, overseeing all the buying for Canada. He worked there for almost five years before joining Spancan.

Amidst the sea of LBM buying groups in this industry, Spancan was rare for its focus on the hardware side of the business. Daniels says the group has been able to play an important role in helping independents to buy better, “and I’ve been pleased to be able to help them out over the years.” The smaller size of Spancan, and the intimacy of his dealings with the independent groups, was a nice departure from the corporate environment he’d spent his career in previously. “I’ve met so many good people—and successful entrepreneurs. It’s been a wonderful experience.”

And that attitude has been a two-way street. Vendors are overwhelmingly positive in their opinion of Daniels, who is renowned for his honesty and fairness in dealing with them.

He prepares for his exit from this industry with some observations about how it has evolved since he started out. “The business is changing so much, and what’s been going on in the last while is mind-boggling.” Daniels says suppliers have been getting an ever-increasing say in what is sold and how, including controlling margins, and negotiations in general have become much more complex and detailed. “The relationship between the buyer and the seller has changed. That relationship is not what it used to be. Lawyers and financial experts have replaced the handshake.”

Reflecting on these and other changes, including the rise of online retailing, Daniels warns that retailers must manage their own operations carefully. “Dealers have to catch up with [online], but they also have to catch up with their own businesses. It goes back to the basics in retail,” he adds. “These are the realities.”

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UFA’s farm and hardware stores strive for a “one-stop” experience

CALGARY ― With 35 Farm & Ranch Supply stores throughout Alberta, UFA is a major player in hardware retailing in Western Canada. But it faces tough competition in a market that has been, for the past couple of years, the country’s most beleaguered.

With Glenn Bingley, formerly of Home Depot Canada, in charge of the co-op’s hardware chain as COO of retail operations, he says his team is working on increasing same-store sales, rather than looking for new store locations. And a big area of growth has been seasonal. “We’re learning lots [in this category] and we’re starting to see that improved sales performance.”

Bingley says the changes have come right from the customers themselves. “We did a lot of focus groups last year. We met UFA members and asked them what they look for and how we can do better.”

The responses indicated a desire for more assortments that would make the Farm & Ranch Supply stores what Bingley calls a “one-stop shop.”  Not the extent of a big box, he points out, “But we have to meet the basic needs for repair and renovation.” That means everything from fence posts and livestock supplies to something as basic as the right lightbulb.

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Goodfellow has announced the promotion of Luc Dignard to the position of VP of LBM for Quebec. Dignard, who has been with the company for 23 years, will continue to report directly to Patrick Goodfellow while also working closely with National LBM VP Jeff Morrison.

Laurie Blackwood Pike, a fixture of the hardware industry in Atlantic Canada for more than half a century, was awarded the Gold Hammer Award recently. In a surprise ceremony at the nearby Aylward’s Home Hardware Building Centre in Placentia, Nfld., Pike was presented with the hammer, which is sponsored by Estwing. Besides being a retailer himself at one time, Pike has worked for Cochrane-Dunlop, Sodisco-Howden, Benjamin Moore, and most recently at Home Hardware as dealer development manager for Atlantic Canada. Family and friends were joined by individuals from the industry, including Roy Crawley, regional manager for Home Hardware Stores; Danny Aylward and Andy Edwards of Aylward’s Home Hardware Building Centre; and Dave Dingwell, a former colleague during the Cochrane-Dunlop days.

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