WORLD HEADQUARTERS, TORONTO — Industry trends and intelligence will be just one part of the Incredible Hardlines Conference Series, September 8-9. A special workshop on leadership in sales and personal management will kick off the event.

Donald Cooper delivers unique and powerful insights into how to redefine, refocus and reenergize your business to increase market share and profitability in the face of ever-stronger competition…and ever-faster change.

Cooper spent 18 years at Cooper Canada, the family business, which became the world’s leading manufacturer of hockey equipment and the largest sporting goods company in Canada. In 1981, He developed Alive and Well, a retail concept that won him seven Awards of Excellence for marketing and service innovation, including the Retail Council of Canada‘s Innovative Retailer of the Year.

Drawing on his experience as a world-class manufacturer, retailer and tireless researcher, Donald Cooper now devotes his time to helping companies redefine and reinvent their business. We’re very, very excited to have him participate in the Hardlines Conference Series.

(For more information on this incredible session, click here)

FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Do it Best Corp. ended its 2004 fiscal year by returning a record-setting $107.5 million rebate to its members. With gross sales of $2.82 billion, Do it Best recorded a 16.3% sales increase for the fiscal year, the company’s largest increase in more than 25 years. Bob Taylor, president and CEO of Do it Best, attributed the $377 million sales increase to low interest rates, a strong housing market, and the desire of customers to enhance their primary investments.

TROY, Mich. — Kmart Holding Corp. earned $155 million in the second quarter ended July 28, compared with a loss of $5 million in the same period last year. . .However, quarterly sales fell 15.3% to $4.79 billion. Same-store sales dropped 14.9%.

Joe Scarlett, chief officer of Tractor Supply, will explain the power of the farm and hardware business that has contributed to his company’s explosive growth. Jim Inglis, a former vice-president at Home Depot whose background includes Carpet One and Dekor, will give his insider’s take on the industry. Guillermo Aguero, general manager of Sodimac in Chile, will tell the story of his company’s successful battle against the arrival of Home Depot, a battle that resulted in Home Depot’s withdrawal from that market! And Jos Wintermans, president and CEO of Sodisco-Howden Group, will detail the future of this national hardware distributor.

The latest addition to the line-up of personalities participating in the Hardlines Conference Series is Red Green, star of television’s popular “The Red Green Show.” Green will offer valuable tips on using hardware — and duct tape — at the Hardlines Gala Dinner on September 8, 2004. The Dinner is just one of the events during the two-day Conference Series, being held in Toronto September 8-9, 2004. Home Depot, Rona, BMR, TSC, TruServ Canada, and many more have all booked for this incredible event.

For more info, click here or call Nancy at 416-489-3396.

BOUCHERVILLE, Que. — Rona inc. posted second-quarter net earnings of $53.7 million, an increase of 99.1% over the same period a year, and the best quarter in Rona’s history. The company’s consolidated sales topped $1 billion for the first time, a 53% increase over the same quarter a year earlier. Same-store sales were up 9.2%…

TORONTO — Target is reportedly vying for Hudson’s Bay Corp., the Canadian mass merchant and department store retailer. Target is possibly in talks with U.S. industrialist Jerry Zucker, HBC’s largest shareholder, to buy his 18.1% stake in the company. About half of 300-plus Zellers stores would be converted to Target outlets, while some Bay locations could potentially be changed over, as well.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Wal-Mart Stores reported record sales and earnings for the second quarter ended July 31. Net sales were $69.7 billion, an increase of 11.3%, compared with the same period last year. Income from continuing operations for the quarter was $2.7 billion, an increase of 16.1% from $2.3 billion. Net sales for the six months ended July 31, 2004, were $134.5 billion, an increase of 12.7%.

TROY, Mich. — Kmart has announced it will not sell quite as many stores to Home Depot as previously stated. The original deal called for Home Depot to pick up as many as 24 Kmart outlets, but now that number is down to 19. In addition, Kmart will slash 200 jobs at head office. The revised agreement has Kmart selling at least 13 stores — for $173 million in cash — and up to 19 stores for $288.5 million. Kmart said originally that it would sell up to 24 stores for a maximum of $365 million.

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — Wal-Mart Canada has managed to thwart the union again, following a vote by workers in a store in Thompson, Man., to reject being unionized by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union. The vote result was 67-44 against unionization.

VANCOUVER — West Fraser Timber Co. is nearing the end of its due diligence review of Weldwood of Canada. It intends to proceed with the acquisition from International Paper, although the deal remains subject to regulatory approvals and conditions. Total distribution of the receipts will be 5,852,000, at a price of $47 each, representing the right to receive one common share of West Fraser upon closing of the Weldwood acquisition, for gross proceeds of $275,044,000.

The new housing market remained red hot in June as housing prices rose at their fastest pace in more than 14 years. New housing prices were up 6.2% year-over-year, compared with June 2003, reports Stats Canada. This was the biggest 12-month gain since February 1990 when prices advanced 7.1%. On a month-over-month basis, housing prices were up 0.7% from May.

Home Depot said in a prepared statement that the vote rejecting unionization “not only represents a vote of confidence from our associates, but also confirms The Home Depot’s reputation as an employer of choice.” One of the main points of contention that led to the vote was the fact that workers said they were paying too much for their health insurance.

The same union has had better luck in Canada, as it attempts to organize the world’s largest retailer. The Quebec Labour Relations Board has accredited the UFCW to represent workers at a Wal-Mart store in Saguenay, Que. Wal-Mart says it’s not sure if it will appeal the ruling. The store, in this city about 150 miles north of Quebec City, has some 180 employees. Workers at another Wal-Mart store, in Brossard, Que., have also asked the Labour Relations Board for permission to join the union.

Add to that the effects of a drop in business from TIM-BR Mart Ontario, a major buying group customer for Sodisco-Howden.

TIM-BR Mart Ontario is a partner in Quincaillerie Matreco Hardware, along with Groupe BMR in Quebec and the AWARD buying group in Atlantic Canada. However, despite the drop in Ontario, where trucks began delivering early this year, shipments to Atlantic customers are reported to be holding their own.

Sodisco-Howden has historically restricted its LBM supply to Quebec. But Groupe BMR’s foray into hardlines distribution has prompted Sodisco-Howden to counter by offering building materials distribution to customers in the Maritimes.

The move, says Shannon, is paying off.

Lumber and building materials are shipped to Atlantic customers from Sodisco-Howden’s Rivière-du-loupe LBM distribution center. The service was introduced at the end of March 2004, and has proven especially popular with contractor-oriented dealers.

The corporation’s BMC West division operates 60 lumberyards whose six-month sales increased 39.9% to $636.3 million. Their operating income grew 91% to $40.6 million.

The Park Royal, Calgary North Hills, and Gerrard Square store in Toronto will all be “urban neighborhood” stores, slightly smaller than a typical Home Depot store, with assortments tailored to a more transient, upscale, apartment dwelling customer.

This will bring the total of Home Depot stores in Canada to 115.

MLS sales will increase to 457,000 units in 2004, up 5.1% from last year’s pace. Moderate increases in mortgage rates in 2005, along with higher house prices, will cause existing home sales to edge lower to reach 433,100 units, while growth in the average price of existing homes will slow to 4.6% in 2005, compared with 9.2% this year.

Spending on renovations is expected to rise 9.1% in 2004 to reach $36.3 billion. this pace will continue in 2005, reaching $38.5 billion, 6.0% higher than 2004.

Included in the sale are the Boise Cascade Corp. headquarters building here, and substantially all of the assets of Boise Building Solutions, which produces plywood, lumber, particleboard, and engineered wood products for independent wholesalers and dealers, and through its own wholesale building materials distribution outlets. Boise manufactures wood products at 22 facilities in the United States, Canada, and Brazil. Boise’s 27 building materials distribution facilities in the U.S. sell a wide range of building materials to retail lumber dealers, home centers specializing in the do-it-yourself market, and industrial customers. Boise Building Solutions’ first half 2004 sales totaled $1.9 billion.

The new company will own Boise Paper Solutions, a manufacturer of office papers, value-added and recycled papers. This division operates five pulp and paper mills, two paper converting facilities, six paper distribution centers, and five corrugated container plants in the United States. Boise also owns or controls about 2.3 million acres of timberland in the United States, 35,000 acres of eucalyptus plantation land in Brazil, and a 16,000-acre cottonwood fiber farm near Wallula, Wash.

After this deal is consummated, Boise Office Solutions — what’s left of Boise Cascade — will become known as OfficeMax Corp., the office products company that Boise acquired for $1.15 billion last year.

ST-ANTONIN, Que. — Matériaux à Bas Prix ltée (Bargain Building Materials) has signed on a new authorized dealer, L’Entrepôt du Bricoleur, an independent in Val-d-Or, Que. The grand opening is this Wednesday, August 11.

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — A new packaging company has been created as a division of Mumby and Associates. DPP Manufacturing Inc. grew out of Mumby’s own product packaging facilities as a stand-alone packaging company. DPP is headed up by its president, Steve Bedford, formerly with Rona Ontario. The company specializes in co-packaging, bonus packs and quarter-pallet displays, all of which can be shipped directly to the retail client. (To contact Steve, call: 905-542-2722)

FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Following up on its previously announced support of Habitat for Humanity International as its cause of choice, Do it Best Corp. announced last week its first corporate-driven “home build,” near its headquarters here in Fort Wayne. The dealer-owned distributor has contributed nearly $200,000 so far, in the form of donated product from displays at the company’s buying markets.

BOCA RATON, Fla. — U.S. Plastic Lumber, a manufacturer of composite lumber and decking products, has filed for protection from creditors under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. The company also sought debtor-in-possession financing so that it could continue operating while it reorganizes its business. The company has retained a New York-based turnaround firm, Triax Capital Advisers, to direct its reorganization. By contrast, one of U.S. Plastic’s primary competitors, Trex Co., has reported that its revenue for the six months ended June 30 rose 24.1% to $159.7 million. In June, Trex began selling its decking products in Home Depot stores in selected markets.

ISSAQUAH, Wash. — Costco Wholesale Corp. had July net sales of $3.72 billion, an increase of 12% from $3.32 billion in July 2003. For the first 48 weeks of its 2004 fiscal year ended August 1, Costco reported net sales of $43.51 billion, up 14% from $38.27 billion from the same period in the prior fiscal year.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Sales at Wal-Mart were up 10.9% in July, to $20.61 billion, from $18.59 billion a year earlier. Year-to-date sales were $135.07 billion, an increase of 12.1% over $120.52 billion in the prior year. Same-store sales were up 3.2%.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — At Sears, Roebuck and Co., total store revenues were $1.84 billion for July, down 4.0% from the same month in 2003. same-store sales decreased 2.6% in July. The only segments to report any sales growth were consumer electronics, lawn, garden and fitness equipment; home fashions and household goods.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Wal-Mart is leaving pharmacies open round the clock in five of its stores in Arkansas and Texas, in an effort to increase its share of the drug dispensing market. The company has more than 3,000 retail pharmacies in the U.S.

Tim Valters has been appointed president of Selkirk Canada Corp. He will be responsible for commercial and industrial products in the Canadian market. He was formerly vice-president and general manager of Selkirk Canada … Bob Emmell has been appointed director of sales at Selkirk. He was most recently national sales manager … John Vukanovich has been promoted to the role of director of marketing at Selkirk Canada. He previously held the position of national marketing manager. (888-735-5475)

DUNCAN, B.C. — Doman Industries and Western Forest Products Inc. have announced that the restructuring of Doman is now complete, with assets reorganized under the new company, Western Forest. Doman struggled under bankruptcy protection for the past 20 months, but its stock has been delisted as of July 27, with Western Forest becoming the successor business to Doman.

BURNABY, B.C. — Taiga Forest Products Ltd. had sales for the three months ended June 30, 2004 of $384.4 million, up from $258.4 million in 2003. Earnings for the three months were $5.8 million, compared with $0.6 million in the same period last year.

RICHARDSON, Tex. — Selkirk Canada, a division of Selkirk Americas LP, has bought up Energy Vent Ltd., a manufacturer of chimney and venting products. The company will be renamed Energy Vent Corp. and operate as a separate legal entity owned and operated by Selkirk Canada. John Rollo, majority shareholder of Energy Vent, will stay on, while Dawn Bruce, sales manager of Energy Vent, will also remain, now reporting to Selkirk Canada’s director of sales, Bob Emmell.

BOISE, Idaho — Boise Cascade Corp. has sold off all its forestry assets, the backbone of a giant paper and timber business, to focus on office products distribution. The purchaser is a private investment group led by Thomas Stephens, a former president of MacMillan Bloedel. The selling price is US$3.2 billion and includes 22 wood products plants in Canada, the United States and Brazil, 27 wholesale distribution centers in the U.S. and stakes in more than 900,000 hectares of timber. The deal is expected to close by November. Last year, Boise Cascade bought the 70-store OfficeMax chain for US$1.2 billion.

Now in its ninth year, the Hardlines Conference Series is an executive-level gathering of North America’s top retailers and vendors. Besides case studies from retail’s front lines, the event features speakers who provide insights into the latest trends shaping the industry today. In fact, we’ve just signed Ira Kalish, global director with Deloitte Research‘s Los Angeles office. He’ll give his amazing overview of the emerging markets, the next wave of consolidation, the changing consumer, and the international threats to national brands.

For more info, click here or call Nancy at 416-489-3396.

Home Depot’s attempts to bring this concept to another city have been stalled, however, by community opposition. The retailer paid US$17 million to buy that plot in Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighborhood, where it initially intended to a build 93,000-sq.ft., two-story home center, 190 units of residential housing, 5,000 sq.ft. in ancillary retail space, and a day-care center, all on a 101,000-sq.ft. parcel of land. But even after scaling back those plans to accommodate a smaller store, the city’s council rejected Home Depot’s proposal in early July. In fact, council went even further, by limiting construction in the neighborhood — and on that land — to 10,000 sq.ft., except for supermarkets and drug stores, which can be 30,000 sq.ft.

A second urban neighborhood store slated to open in West Vancouver in September is still on schedule, says company spokesman Nick Cowling.

The move is seen as a way to head off the insurgence of specialty distributors, especially in tools, plumbing and electrical, he adds. Sodisco-Howden currently offers about 55,000 SKUs through its warehouses in Victoriaville, Que., London, Ont., and Langley, B.C. However, it faces competition. On some specialty lines and industrial products, a number of smaller distributors, such as Task Tools, Globe Electric and King Tool, cater to more specialized needs. From a regional standpoint, many distributors, such as Western Hardware in British Columbia or Union Hardware in the Greater Toronto Area, offer fill-in lines for geographically specific markets.

Even as it seeks to beef up core assortments, Sodisco-Howden’s strategy does not run contrary to an existing mandate to reduce the overall number of vendors. “There wil be fewer of them,” says Wintermans. “But opportunity remains for existing suppliers.”

The Canadian division is reportedly one of the top performing units of the company. Rationalization north of the border must contend with a number of facilities, consisting of a B&D facility in Brockville, Ont., its head offices in Richmond Hill, Ont., and the Pentair offices and warehouse in Guelph, Ont., which have more available space than B&D’s current digs north of Toronto.

In 2003, Pentair’s Tool Group generated $82 million in operating income on $1.08 billion in sales. B&D’s chairman Nolan Archibald said in a prepared statement that the acquisition will “expand our product lines where we have relatively low market share, including woodworking equipment, compressors, pressure washers and nailers. In addition, it will give us a stronger presence throughout our distribution network, particularly in the industrial/construction channel.”

Archibald emphasized as well how the addition of Porter Cable and Delta would bolster B&D’s DeWalt professional tool assortment. Analysts estimate that this deal could double B&D’s sales to professional customers.

Last fall, B&D paid $275 million to buy Masco‘s Baldwin Hardware and Weiser Lock businesses. The tool giant is also in the final stages of a major restructuring effort that is moving around 75% of its production to three countries, Mexico, Czech Republic and China. Barbara Lucas, B&D’s senior vp-public affairs, told Hardlines that Pentair manufactures its tools in the U.S., Germany and China, and that B&D would determine where its products would be produced after its acquisition is completed sometime this fall.

It has been rumored for most of this year that Pentair was looking to sell its tool division, as it diversifies into other businesses. In February, Pentair purchased Wisconsin Energy Corp., and became a global force in water treatment and transportation. Pentair got into the tool business in 1981 when it acquired Porter-Cable’s assets of struggling Rockwell International. It bought Delta Machinery three years later, DeVilbiss in 1999 and Oldham in 2002.

Now the Home Centre format is being updated with a “next generation” concept that features a larger footprint — the Prince Albert store is 52,000 sq.ft. — and even more big box elements. Those elements are drawn mainly from Rona’s Regional stores, which are typically 65,000-90,000 sq.ft. in size. However, the store will feature additional boutiques, including flooring and a new moulding ideas center that will be up toward the front of the store, along with other décor departments, rather than at the back with building materials.

“Now it will be really an easy way to shop and finalize decoration projects,” says Rona’s communications director, Sylvain Morissette.

He notes that this larger Home Centre format will be integral to Rona’s expansion plans, suitable for other centers like Prince Albert, which is the third-largest city in Saskatchewan and a destination for a number of communities in the northern part of the province. “That size of store enables us to fulfill at least 100 cities in Canada,” Morissette says. Fort McMurray, Alta., will be the next location for the next generation Home Centre, with one or two more likely to be announced before year’s end.

Big Horn was formerly a Sexton member, but made the switch to Irly when new owners came on board.

With distribution in place, and an entire division selling hardlines outside the group under the Western Hardware division, Garry Anderson, the new general manager of the group, along with Brad Dixon, who is in charge of dealer development, wants Irly members to get more involved in existing programs, while recruiting new members. The group is well positioned as a regional supplier, says Anderson, thanks to its own distribution center right in Surrey, which carries an extensive line of hardware and building supplies.

OAK BROOK, Ill. — Ace Hardware Corp., which has had its own private-label paint manufacturing since 1984, has produced 150 million gallons of paint over the past 20 years. With two manufacturing plants in the Chicago area, the Ace Paint division is the 12th largest paint manufacturer in the United States, with an annual production capacity of 20 million gallons.

MONTREAL — Workers are attempting to organize at two Wal-Mart stores in Quebec. The United Food and Commercial Workers union submitted applications to the province’s Labour Board for union accreditation at the store in Brossard, near Longueuil. Saguenay, north of Quebec City, was the first. Another store has made a similar application in Moose Jaw, Sask.

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — Door maker Masonite International Corp. had a second-quarter sales increase of 23.5%, to US$564.6 million from US$457 million. Net earnings increased 32% on a boost in sales, the company reports. It earned US$36.2 million in the three-month period ended June 30, up from earnings of $27.3 million a year earlier.

ATLANTA — An overhaul of Home Depot‘s website last fall has helped boost online sales by double digits. According to com.Score Networks, Home Depot had 6.5 million visitors to its web site in May, a 58.5% increase over the same month a year ago. Last year, Home Depot hired Shelley Nandkeolyaras as its vp-interactive marketing and e-business, and completely revamped its site, including decreasing the number of items offered to 12,000 (from 50,000 when it launched its site in 2000 and 20,000 when it was made available nationally) and, more recently, adding a garden club and wedding and gift registry.

VANCOUVER — West Fraser Timber Co. reported earnings of $67 million on sales of $607 million in the second quarter of 2004. That compares with a loss of $5 million on sales of $484 million in 2Q 2003. For the first half of 2004, earnings were $93 million on sales of $1.15 billion, up from $6 million on sales of $970 million for the same period a year earlier.

MONTREAL — First-quarter net sales for bath products maker Maax reached US$136.1 million, up 7.6% from US$126.5 million in the first quarter of the previous fiscal year. This growth of 7.6% is due to an 11.2% increase in net sales of bathroom products, although it was partially offset by a 8.5% decrease in net sales of spas, after Maax decided to pull these products from home improvement centers in the United States.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Sears, Roebuck and Co. had weaker quarterly profit due to poor spring clothing sales. It earned $53 million in the second quarter, compared with $309 million during the same period a year earlier.

TORONTO — Sears Canada Inc. had 2Q revenues of $1.49 billion, up 1.3% from $1.47 billion for the same period last year. Net earnings for the quarter, excluding non-comparable items were $11.8 million, compared with $19.1 million. Net earnings, including non-comparable items, were $6.7 million, versus $13.0 million. Same-store sales increased 1.4%. Sales were particularly weak in air conditioners, patio furniture, outdoor grills and seasonal apparel, but stronger in major appliances, furniture and mattresses, electronics, and bed and bath. Total revenues for the 26-week period were $2.82 billion, up 2.5% from $2.75 billion. Same-store sales year-to-date increased 4.3%.

TOWSON, Md. — Black & Decker Corp. made big gains in its second quarter, with earnings rising by 61% and sales increasing 19%. Net income rose to $121.6 million from $75.7 million. Sales rose to $1.3 billion.

VANCOUVER — Canfor Corp. reported net income of $143.6 million for the second quarter of 2004, up from $32.0 million in the first quarter and a net loss of $1.1 million in the second quarter of 2003. Net income was $175.6 million year-to-date, compared with $39.1 million in the same period in 2003.

DUNCAN, B.C. — Doman Industries managed to narrow its losses in its second quarter, to a net loss of $23.5 million, compared with $39.2 million in the preceding quarter. However, it still marks a swing from net earnings of $19.5 million in the second quarter of 2003. The net loss for the first half of 2004 was $62.7 million, from a profit of $75.1 million in 2003. Contributing to the net loss for the first half of 2004 was an unrealized foreign exchange loss of $25.1 million on U.S. dollar debt. Financial restructuring costs for the six-month period totalled $8.3 million.

MONTREAL — Tembec Inc. posted a third-quarter loss, thanks to a weak Canadian dollar, more than offsetting higher profits from lumber and wood pulp. It lost $12.5 million, compared with a profit of $70.5 million in the year earlier period. Revenues rose to $1.03 billion from $808.9 million.

One of Sodisco-Howden’s key customers remains Tim-BR-Marts Ltd. in Western Canada.

“Our dealers are much happier now with how product is getting into their stores,” Urquhart says. And, he notes, there’s less concern surrounding the future of Sodisco-Howden. “The dealers’ only complaint is over out-of-stocks, but the fill rates have improved dramatically over the past year.”

However, even as Tim-BR-Marts strengthens ties with Sodisco-Howden, its affiliated groups, TIM-BR Mart Ontario, Quebec Groupe BMR and, in Atlantic Canada, AWARD, have established their own distribution network, QMH. AWARD Distribution Ltd. was set up by AWARD, in partnership with BMR under the QMH distribution deal, as an alternative source of supply for AWARD dealers. However, according to Wintermans, Sodisco-Howden’s year-to-date shipments to AWARD dealers are up, and any notion that ADL would replace Sodisco-Howden outright is premature, he suggests, adding that Sodisco-Howden maintains a strong relationship with the AWARD members and that both sides “are talking.”

The reason for that relationship, Wintermans says, is “service related.”

Meanwhile, QMH is shipping hardlines to TIM-BR Mart Ontario on a regular basis. According to Don Nash, QMH is the preferred hardware supplier, “the horse we’re backing,” at TIM-BR Mart Ontario. QMH is now shipping almost $1 million per month in product to Ontario, he notes.

Down east, ADL offers a limited selection of about 6,000 SKUs, versus some 55,000 from Sodisco-Howden, and the mix in the ADL warehouse is reportedly skewed to builders’ hardware.

“It’s in the dealers’ best interest for AWARD and Sodisco-Howden Group to have a strong relationship,” Wintermans concludes.

“As far as I’m concerned, Sodisco-Howden has turned the corner,” Urquhart says.

However, the company still faces some hurdles, including confusion and disgruntlement from some dealers, and an outstanding lawsuit . According to Barbara Wagner, TruServ’s treasurer, the “Kennedy Action,” which involves about 38 former dealers, is still pending and deals partially with stock redemption issues.

That stock redemption, which totals about $36 million, will be paid out to approximately 3,100 former dealers. Payments will be made in instalment notes representing five annual payments. These commence December 31, 2004, effectively making the term of the notes being issued 4.5 years, says Wagner.

Because the TruServ stock is not traded, a dealer can only cash out upon quitting the co-op — or in certain instances when closing one of a group of stores. However, dealers will face a loss on the value of the stock, and that value can only be determined upon leaving.

But the economy on the island has been relatively strong, and that, combined with high commodity prices, has resulted in two consecutive quarters of healthy increases.

Schurman, which has five stores and estimated sales of $34 million, is currently in negotiations to be taken over by J.D. Irving, which also owns Saint John-based Kent Building Supplies. The deal is expected to close on or around August 9.

Damman’s, once a member of the buying group TruServ Corp., filed for bankruptcy protection on January 12, although its business had been eroding for three years. In 2003, it reported a $1.8 million loss on $37.5 million in sales. During its reorganization period, it closed five stores and sold another two pieces of real estate to raise cash to pay off some of its debt.

It emerges from Chapter 11 with a new $8 million credit line from Boston-based LaSalle Retail Finance. As part of its reorganization plan, Damman’s will now receive its inventory from Ace’s distribution network, as opposed to having products it bought through Ace shipped directly to its stores by manufacturers.

Ownership of the post-bankruptcy Damman’s will not change. The Damman family will retain a 44% stake, with 56% owned by employees through a stock program. The company employs 257 workers.

Eight other defendants had previously pleaded guilty. The son could face five years in jail, and the mother four years. Prosecutors also are calling for the defendants to repay $2 million in cash they garnered from the scheme.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tractor Supply Co., the largest retail farm and ranch store chain in the United States, reported net income for the second quarter of $31.4 million, up from $27.4 million for the same period in 2003. Net sales increased 17.0% to $525.9 million, from $449.4 million. Same-store sales increased 10.0%, versus last year’s 1.2% gain. While gains were strong across all categories, same-store sales were especially strong in equine, animal and pet products. Net income for the first six months of fiscal 2004 was $35.2 million, compared with $27.5 million. Net sales increased 18.4% to $856.5 million and same-store sales increased 10.9%, versus last year’s 2.1% gain. During the first six months, Tractor Supply opened 25 new stores and relocated eight. (Tractor Supply’s chairman, Joe Scarlett, will be one of the featured speakers at our Hardlines Conference Series, September 8-9. Book now—Self-promotional Mike)

TORONTO — In what may be the first example of classical arts funding by a big box company, Home Depot Canada has taken a major sponsorship role in the funding and promotion of a new Shakespearean summer theatre. Called Shakespeare Works, it’s being mounted at the eponymously named Home Depot Theatre. The first season features “Romeo and Juliet.”

TORONTO — Sears Canada’s first free-standing, off-mall department store in Canada will also be the first full-line Sears store for the province of Prince Edward Island. The store will be located in the provincial capital of Charlottetown. It’s scheduled to open in the summer of 2005. Besides a standard array of private and national brand merchandise, the new 108,000-sq.ft. store will offer specialty services, provided to licensees, which include a portrait studio, travel office, hair salon, watch repairs, optical, keys and engraved gifts, greeting cards and alterations. In Prince Edward Island, Sears currently has 16 catalogue merchandise pick-up locations and two dealer stores.

CHICAGO — Grainger, the industrial distributor, reported record sales of $1.3 billion in the second quarter, up 7% versus the prior year’s second quarter. Net earnings were up 19% to $66.6 million, also a new quarterly high. Sales for the six months ended June 30 were $2.5 billion, up 7%. Net earnings increased 19% to $129 million, versus $108 million in 2003.

Sears, Roebuck and Co. is looking for a new president of its retail business, following months of disappointing sales at its namesake department stores and will take the search outside the company. The move comes after the retailer parted ways with Mark Cosby, president of the full-line stores, who left last week “to pursue unspecified opportunities.” His position is being eliminated. The new retail president position is broader than Cosby’s role, and will include responsibility for both the existing department stores and the new Sears Grand stores that the retailer is opening away from its traditional mall base. Sears expects to have about 70 off-mall stores by the end of next year, including 12-14 Sears Grand locations and a new, mid-sized format that was announced with Sears’ planned acquisition of up to 61 Kmart and Wal-Mart stores.

It’s the latest attempt by Home Depot to penetrate more urban, downtown areas. Another “urban” store, on the north shore of Vancouver, is set to open September 30 at the toney Park Royal power centre. That one weighs in at 50,000 sq.ft., plus 25,000 sq.ft. on a mezzanine. A similar, though larger, store will open in Toronto’s east end at Gerrard Square in December 2004, while an “urban” store in downtown Calgary is scheduled to open December 16.

Nick Cowling, PR manager for Home Depot Canada, says the company has gone to great lengths with the “urban” format to ensure that these stores will fit into the neighborhoods they serve. For example, the Park Royal store doesn’t look anything like a traditional Home Depot store, he says. The proposed Kitsilano store would have followed similar guidelines.

Local residents of the upscale Kitsilano neighborhood could not be assuaged, however. Hearings on the issue had to be carried over two nights, after so many retailers and residents came out to voice their opposition. In the end, councillors voted to limit the size of retail stores in the Kitsilano area to 10,000 sq.ft. — much too small for a Home Depot store.

Exceptions to the size rule are grocery stores and pharmacies, which can be up to about 30,000 sq.ft. Cowling points out that both these retail formats carry a lot of hardlines items, too.

Traffic was a big concern for many, although Home Depot did at least two traffic impact studies, says Cowling. In each case, traffic was expected to stay the same or even be reduced as shoppers would be able to cut about 15 minutes off their drive to an existing full-size Home Depot on Terminal Rd.

Home Depot owns the property in question, having paid $22 million for it. It has two tenants, who are in the midst of two-year leases — an IGA grocery store and a liquor store.

Both Chambers and Leete worked with Contractor Yards’ president Ben Phillips when the three worked for Pelican Cos., which merged with Builders FirstSource (then known as Stonegate Resources) in November 1998.

Phillips described Leete as his “sounding board” who will also lend his expertise in marketing and advertising to the company.

Strober, the Brooklyn, N.Y.-based pro dealer that is the 24^th-largest home improvement retailer in the U.S., acquired Contractor Yards from Lowe’s Cos. in November 2003, and completed that acquisition on February 2 of this year. That purchase brought Strober’s equivalent sales in 2003 to more than $860 million from 71 stores. Strober’s CEO, Fred Marino, said the Contractor Yards division would be a springboard for his company’s expansion in the Southeast.

Under Urquhart’s direction, Tim-BR-Mart’s ranks have grown by 11 since the beginning of this year, including the latest addition, TimberTown Building Centre Ltd., which alone represents five locations and an estimated $15 million in sales.

Tim-BR-Marts is also facing some reorganization of its own. By July 24, it will have relocated its head office from the scenic Granville Island location in the heart of Vancouver to Calgary, in a facility right by that city’s airport. Sales and marketing will move there first, while the accounting and IT functions, currently located in Winnipeg, will be brought in later this year.

The company has been battling anti-growth forces in Austin for several years. According to the Daily Texan, the City of Sunset Valley and a group called Save Our Springs Alliance sued Lowe’s in 2003 to try and block this store. The Austin City Council had voted 4-3 last December to exempt this store from certain ordinances so that the construction could proceed.

As Lowe’s gets bigger, its exposure to this kind of opposition has become more pronounced. In California, Lowe’s is awaiting a court ruling on whether it will be allowed to build a store in Colati, where a citizens group — bankrolled by Lowe’s rival Yardbirds — has been trying to block the construction of the 165,000-sq.ft. warehouse home center. In Bethlehem, Pa., a neighborhood group has filed an appeal with Commonwealth Court to stall a $32 million commercial development that would include a Lowe’s, a bank, a restaurant and an apartment complex. On June 7, a judge had denied this group’s case, which contends the city council had improperly rezoned this site. And in Longview, Wash., residents calling themselves Citizens for Better Planning have hired an attorney to fight Lowe’s plan to build a 163,000-sq.ft. store on 12 acres along Ocean Beach Highway.

Residents fear the store will cause traffic congestion on the already busy highway, devalue nearby homes and impinge on Lake Sacagawea Park, roughly a quarter mile away. Lowe’s representatives insist the impacts on the neighborhood would be minimal and challenge the notion that the development will affect the lake. The city’s Planning Commission is not expected to address whether to rezone the land until August.

In Framingham, Mass., Lowe’s plan to demolish Verizon New England‘s former headquarters and put a 156,000-sq.ft. store on that site has run into some snags that relate to zoning waivers Lowe’s has requested that could impact traffic congestion. Assessed at $12.9 million, the 9.5-acre site currently generates about $382,000 in tax revenue for the town.

Kingfisher opened an office earlier this year in Moscow and now Peter Partma has been appointed as country manager for Castorama in Russia. Partma, who is Swedish, joins Kingfisher from Ikea, where he served as country retail manager for Ikea Russia. There, he spent six years in charge of store operations and development.

According to Kingfisher, Russia shares many of the market characteristics which have helped drive success in Poland. The economic fundamentals of the country are positive, with strong GDP growth, even stronger retail market growth, declining inflation and a stable exchange rate.

Although Russia has 13 cities with more than 1 million inhabitants, the prosperity and stability needed to drive retail growth are centered mainly in Moscow. The population is also enjoying high disposable income due to low taxes, utility charges and housing costs. There is an enormous demand for home improvement products due to strong housing growth, while the housing stock has suffered from a lack of investment.

Kingfisher has 568 stores in nine countries in Europe and Asia, as well as a strategic alliance with Hornbach, Germany’s leading DIY warehouse retailer, which operates more than 110 stores in Europe.

SAGUENAY, Que. — A local Wal-Mart store will be the focus of an effort to unionize its workers for the second time in one year. The United Food and Commercial Workers Union has applied to the Quebec Labour Relations Board for the right to represent more than 100 workers at the outlet. An earlier accreditation vote was rejected on April 2 by a margin of eight votes, but additional employees have since signed their union cards, leading organizers to believe a majority vote will be in their favor next time.

SAINT-LAURENT, Que. — Richelieu Hardware Ltd. had sales of $81.3 million for the second quarter, up from $73.5 million for the corresponding period of the previous year. The increase came both from internal growth and acquisitions. Net earnings were $6.8 million, up 15% from $5.9 million for the same period in 2003. The company made two acquisitions in the United States during the quarter — Allied Hardware in New York and Allied Casework Supply based in Georgia and North Carolina.

MEXICO CITY — Three retailers in Mexico have convinced government regulators to approve a plan to institute a joint purchasing company that they hope will strengthen their negotiating power with suppliers. The move is an effort to enable the companies to better compete against Wal-Mart, which entered the country entered Mexico seven years ago. The three other national chains, Controladora Co- mercial Mexicana, Organización Soriana and Grupo Gigante, have formed the joint purchasing company, called Sinergia, to better compete.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Weyerhaeuser Co. has agreed to sell 304,000 acres of its timberland — including a popular state wildlife management area — to four companies for $404 million. Weyerhaeuser will hold onto an additional 18,000 acres it owns in Georgia, possibly for real estate development. After the deals are completed, Weyerhaeuser will own or manage about 6.5 million acres throughout the United States.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL — Sears, Roebuck and Co. saw total sales for the five weeks ended July 3 fall 4.4% to $2.55 billion. The retailer experienced a 3.1% decline in same-store sales in June, a casualty of unusually cool weather that affected air conditioner sales. Sears also said it expected third-quarter same-store sales to fall slightly from the year-earlier period.

For ex-dealers wishing to cash out, the stock investments will be redeemed on the basis of 25% in cash, with the remainder being released on a deferred stock redemption basis, with the first instalment payable in cash in December 2004. As of May 29, 2004, the deferred stock redemption liability totaled $36 million, of which approximately $8 million is payable in cash and the remainder is payable in the form of the instalment note.

During the period since March 1999, no stock was issued to new members joining the co-op, either. However, earlier in the year, TruServ resumed issuing stock to new members, as well. The resumption of stock issuance to new members followed the Securities and Exchange Commission’s declaration, effective April 30, that TruServ could once again issue its class A stock to new members.

TruServ’s wholesale sales in 2003 reached $2 billion, while sales at retail by all its 6,100 independent members topped an estimated $11 billion.

Paul Hylbert, Lanoga’s president and CEO, told Hardlines that his company — which in early 2003 acquired from Wickes 31 yards and four component plants in Wisconsin and Michigan — has agreed to purchase another 27 Wickes yards and component plants in Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. Hylbert said that Bradco is the lead bidder for 12 sites in the Northeastern U.S., and that Hope will purchase another 11 yards in the southern U.S. and in Colorado. Smaller companies are expected to bid on the remaining seven Wickes properties.

The sales are subject to bankruptcy court approval and to an auction, where other interested parties can bid for these properties. If all goes as planned, the bidding process will conclude in late July.

Hylbert pointed out that the liquidation of the 59 yards and plants is expected to fetch at least $129 million, which compares favorably to their aggregate $121 million book value. “That only goes to show that Wickes’ problems were never its locations,” said Hylbert, “but the focus of their management.”

Lanoga is the 10^th-largest home improvement retailer/distributor in the U.S. based on its sales in 2003. Bradco ranked 16^th, and Hope 21^st, on Home Channel News‘ Top 500 listing for that year.

Lowe’s has made a big commitment to smaller concept stores, and up to 40% of the 140 new store openings this year are expected to be smaller sized outlets.

But one retailer is bucking the trend. Canadian Tire Corp. has had some initial, positive results with large stores, and the latest 90,000-sq.ft. outlet in Kingston has been a dramatic success, says Mark Foote, president of Canadian Tire Retail. The stores represent the company’s newest retail format, 20/20, which reduces storage space in favor of more retail space, with added emphasis on products that appeal to the entire family, including women.

In an exclusive interview with Hardlines, Foote revealed his enthusiasm for the larger formats. In fact, he added, another store, weighing in at more than 100,000 sq.ft., is currently being developed. “The bigger stores are definitely working for us,” he says.

At Home Depot, the challenge is to reinvent the stock big box footprint to widen its market penetration. In Canada, Home Depot’s key competitor is Rona, which has mastered operating stores in a variety of formats, from local hardware stores to full-sized big boxes. In the U.S., Home Depot’s attempts to grow its contractor business find it toe-to-toe with a number of strong building center chains, which drive a lot of product out of relatively few square feet of retail space.

“The move to smaller stores is not as aggressive in the U.S., but the company is using smaller stores for fill-in markets,” says Nick Cowling, PR manager at Home Depot’s Canadian division. ” They’ll put them in where they already have a heavy concentration of stores or where there is less population. For example, Home Depot’s been trying to get a store into Martha’s Vineyard, and if it’s going to happen, they’d have to put in smaller store,” says Cowling.

Home Depot in Canada has also begun building smaller versions of the chain’s traditional store, including a 70,000-sq.ft. one in Grande Prairie, Alta., the retailer’s smallest store to date. The previously announced inner city location at Toronto’s Gerrard Square will be an ‘urban” format, the second such store for Canada.

Sears’ spokesman Ted McDougal told Hardlines that this is the first time “in close to a generation” that his company is planning to expand at such an accelerated pace. “We’ve been stuck at 870 [full-line department] stores for more than two decades, but next year alone we’ll open 70 stores and increase our footprint 10%. That’s really unprecedented for us.”

The retailer will take possession of four of the stores it is acquiring this year, 55 next year, and two in 2006. Three of the four Kmarts it brings on board this year will be converted to the company’s Sears Grand format, which includes apparel, home appliances, home electronics, home improvement and home fashions, plus consumables and transactional items, including a pharmacy in certain locations. Sears expects to open a total of seven Grand outlets in 2004, and between 12 and 14 in 2005.

North of the border, Sears Canada Inc. is developing an off-mall strategy of its own. These outlets will be specialty stores that focus on home décor and accessories. Six locations have been announced so far, all in Southern Ontario. Sears Canada plans to open 30 new-format stores by the end of 2005, located primarily in power centers and high-traffic strip malls.

The website offers catalogues in both English and French.

He already had a committee in place to develop and ensure protocols, and last week he shared some of the progress Hbc has made. Speaking at the United Nations Global Compact Leaders Summit here, Heller shared the results of his successful effort to engage international retail executives on the issue of ethical sourcing. He urged the 400-plus executives attending the summit to seek solutions to social issues within their industries through involvement in the Global Compact.

“After two years of work, the global retail community is on the verge of coming together to make substantial improvements in the programs that monitor compliance to labor and human rights in our supply chains,” Heller told the group.

The challenge was to engage companies at the CEO level. In the retail sector, Hbc leveraged its profile in the international retail community and the reputation of the UN, to engage other retail CEOs. This led to a dialogue on the need for an aligned industry approach to enhance the practices of individual companies through cooperation and information sharing.

Heller offered some concrete results at the Summit. “Independently, major retailers around the world have adopted almost identical auditing programs to verify that suppliers are complying with virtually common codes of conduct that are based on ILO principles,” he said. These have resulted in a proliferation of third party compliance auditing firms, which audit complaints from manufacturers.

“Three objectives are at the core of our initiative: a common vendor code of conduct; a common standard for auditing on which we can rely; and, a common, accurate data base we can share,” Heller added. He has been speaking personally with more than 70 other CEOs from around the world to ensure the initiatives move forward.

Now, the industry is only months away from realizing two programs: a North American program led by the National Retail Federation in Washington, and a European program led by the Business Social Compliance Initiative, based in Brussels.

TORONTO — Canadian Tire Financial Services and BMO Bank of Montreal have partnered to launch a credit card for business customers. The new card, called Canadian Tire Commercial Link MasterCard, is designed for businesses that require a credit card to pay for their purchases. It will be available everywhere MasterCard is accepted, including Canadian Tire stores and gas bars. The new commercial card will replace the current Canadian Tire Business Class Commercial Card as of July 28, 2004. More than 50,000 people are active Canadian Tire business customers.

SHERBROOKE, Que. — Touch Industries moved into a new headquarters and distribution center here recently. The company invested $2.5 million in the 25,000-sq.ft. building in Sherbrooke’s industrial park.

KITCHENER, Ont. — Rona Inc. opened its 64th big-box store last week, a $20 million-plus investment that will operate under the Rona Home & Garden banner. The store features 120,000 sq.ft. of retail space, including a 4,000-sq.ft. greenhouse and 31,000-sq.ft. garden center. A Home Depot will open in Kitchener at the end of August.

In recent years, more and more retail groups are choosing to use the Conference as a site for tying in meetings of their own, as more than 200 managers and senior executives from both the retail and vendor sides of the industry gather to hear the latest industry intelligence, plus attend sessions by some of the top home improvement executives from around the world.

The networking time takes on a greater dimension with the inclusion, for the second year running, of a Gala Reception and Dinner on the evening of September 8. Commitments for tables at the Gala have come in from the likes of Home Depot, Rona, Sodisco-Howden Group and TSC Stores, guaranteeing that it will be a first-class forum for networking. In addition, comedian Red Green will be featured at the Gala, courtesy of 3M Canada.

(If you want more information on setting up meetings during the Conference, give us a call. We’ll provide special rates on rooms — and the coffee’s on us. Call 416-489-3396 for more info.—Michael)

According to Jim Inglis, a former Home Depot vice-president who now consults with some of the leading retail groups around the world, Home Depot’s first chance to enter China came a decade ago when it helped establish the first western-style home center chain, called Home Way.

“Home Way was modeled after Home Depot, and Home Depot was instrumental in the development of the stores,” says Inglis. “They had a chance to move in then, and it would have been a tremendous opportunity.”

Inglis was well known for at that time for being a strong supporter of Asian expansion. But during his time there, any intentions to expand into the Orient never got beyond a letter of intent to move forward. “Now they’re going in at a late date and at a much higher cost.”

Over the past 10 years, competition has heated up. Home Way is owned by parent company Home World, which has 30 hypermarkets and eight home centers throughout China. Orient Home, another Chinese operation that is privately held, owns multiple outlets in Northern China, while Home Mart is owned in part by the Shanghai government. Other retailers, all from the Europe Union, have targeted China for growth. OBI in Germany and U.K.-based B&Q both own about a dozen stores each there.

(Jim Inglis will be a featured speaker at the Hardlines Conference Series, September 8-9, 2004 in Toronto. For more info, contact…xx)

“This is a test to see how these systems work,” Nobers told Hardlines. He added that 84 Lumber was looking to expand this concept to other markets, but couldn’t say where or when.

This move makes sense, as 84 Lumber continues to expand its store operations and geographic coverage. By the end of this year, the 470-unit company expects to have more than 500 stores opened. Nobers said 84 Lumber is projecting its sales for this year at $3.4 billion, which, if realized, would represent a 36% increase over 2003 revenue of $2.5 billion.

Independent dealers, as represented by the dozen or so buying groups to which most independents belong, grew their market share by 9% in 2003, almost double the increase made by big boxes in Canada.

The first sign of a reverse trend was in 2002, when the rate of big box expansion appeared to start slowing. At the same time, independent dealers in LBM buying groups began to show growth that exceeded the overall growth of the industry for the first time in recent years.

(The growth of big boxes vs. independents appears in the latest issue of Hardlines Quarterly Report, which features a special report on buying groups in Canada. This is an amazing report, with everything you need to know on the size and growth of the buying groups.—Michael)

The retailer continues to support its associates who are engaged in the war by equalizing and extending pay and benefits while they are called to active duty.

Nardelli and his company’s support of the Bush Administration, which links the war in Iraq to its larger anti-terrorist crusade, is equally unambiguous. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported recently that, in the month of May, Home Depot employees were, aggregately, the largest source of contributions to the Republican National Committee. Thirty-six employees kicked in more than $250,000. That same month, the newspaper reported, Nardelli held a fundraiser at his home in the Atlanta suburb of Buckhead, attended by President George W. Bush and several leading area business executives. The event raised $3.2 million, $25,000 of which Nardelli himself donated.

United, one of five divisions of Lanoga Corp., is a chain of 20 yards in 20 states. The store in Jackson ended up trying a new lighting system from Orion Energy Systems, based in Plymouth, Wisc., that replaced more than 200 fluorescent tubes with fixtures that cut energy consumption almost in half. The Orion lights used specially formed, highly reflective surface to “harvest” light that would ordinarily be wasted in a fixture, by directing it downward for greater illumination.

According to Dan Rudolf, manager of the United Building Center, payback on the retrofit is expected within two years. The Orion fixtures are warrantied to last 20 years, during which time they are calculated to save enough energy to equal 1,087 tons of carbon dioxide and four tons of sulphur dioxide, or the equivalent of saving 131,742 gallons of gasoline.

MELBOURNE — Mitre 10, the dealer-owned hardware banner, is focusing more on women shoppers, along with tradesmen, as it rolls out its new Mega big box format. The Mitre Mega rollout follows the lead of Mitre 10 in New Zealand, a similar dealer-owned group with a loose affiliation to the Australian group. In New Zealand, Mitre 10 is opening its third big box, in Hornby, the biggest yet, next month. It weighs in at 11,000 s.m. “We’ll have six in place by Christmas,” says Patrick Dobson, business manager for décor from the New Zealand group.

Bunnings has only recently entered the New Zealand market and recently opened a new store in Hamilton, a city about 65 miles south of Auckland. Mitre 10 is attempting a pre-emptive strike with its own dealer-owned Mega stores. But competition will really heat up between the two retailers when they start going head-to-head in the same markets. According to Greg Robertson, editor of New Zealand Hardware Journal, observers are waiting to see if Mitre 10 will have deep enough pockets to keep up with Bunnings. He believes Bunnings will count on competing Mitre 10 Mega owners being forced to blink first.

“The hope [by Bunnings] is that the competing Mega owner will have no option but to turn the store’s reins back to head office and therefore put off any other members who may be considering the Mega format,” Robertson told Hardlines.

“As the most extensive multi-channel retailer in the country, Sears is in virtually every market,” said Mark Cohen, chairman and CEO of Sears Canada in a prepared statement. “However, with the absence of new shopping mall growth, our new specialty format store strategy will bring our key product categories and décor solutions to a growing customer segment who shop in conveniently located power centers on a regular basis.”

Sears plans to open 30 new format stores, including one called Sears Wellness, by the end of 2005. They will be primarily located in power centers and high-traffic strip malls.

According to an e-mail statement it sent to the Associated Press and KSL news radio, as well a statement it posted on its website, ELF targeted Stock — the industry’s largest pro-oriented home improvement dealer — because it claimed that Stock had ignored warnings to fix forklifts that ELF asserted were emitting more pollution than diesel engines would. The initials “ELF” were painted on the side of Stock’s building.

The group also hinted at further attacks if its warnings weren’t heeded: “They are destroying the ozone and posing a serious health risk to nearby humans and living animals. If the consequences of early Monday morning [June 13] are what it takes to bring their negligence to the attention of the media and the people of the world, then it is well worth it and we will continue in our mission to stop large companies from destroying the environment.”

TORONTO — Canadian Tire Corp. is expanding its sourcing operations in the Far East with the installation of a new office in Shanghai. The office is in place and will be up and running by fall. The giant hard goods retailer already has offices in Hong Kong, Tapei and Seoul.

WINNIPEG, Man. — Sam’s Club, the member-owned warehouse club division of Wal-Mart, will open its first Canadian outlet outside of Ontario when it sets up shop on 13 acres at the Linden Ridge Shopping Centre, according to the Winnipeg Free Press. Wal-Mart Canada currently has six Sam’s Clubs in the Southern Ontario market.

LONDON — Tesco, the giant U.K. grocery retailer, has launched an online legal store. The do-it-yourself legal store will make basic legal services available, thanks to deregulation of legal services in the country. Tesco hopes to attract a million-plus unique visitors to the site in the first year at www.tesco.com/legalstore, where they will find a wide range of DIY law kits and everything from downloadable legal forms, many of them free, to a directory of solicitors.

COLOGNE, GERMANY — Innovative products from the garden furniture and garden structures segments will get special treatment at this year’s spoga+gafa trade show, September 5-7. Koelnmesse, which owns the show, will be cooperating with the trade journal markt in grün to stage the first-ever “Garden City” Innovation Forum. The Forum will give trade visitors from all over the world an overview of innovative products for this market. Exhibitors from the garden furniture and garden structures segments will be invited to participate. Some 2,450 suppliers from approximately 60 countries will present their products and services, covering all aspects of the garden, camping and equestrianism sectors at the show.

CITY OF INDUSTRY, Calif. — Ace Hardware Corp. has signed a deal to have Global ePoint Inc., a provider of digital video surveillance systems, supply, through its Perpetual Digital division, delivery of Digital Video Recorder (DVR) Surveillance Systems, with point-of-sale interface, to Ace.

WASHINGTON — The Associated General Contractors of America, the nation’s largest construction trade association, has called on Secretary of Commerce Donald Evans to temporarily lift tariffs imposed upon Mexican cement products. The request came in light of domestic price increases and reported shortages of cement in many parts of the country. Cement demand has increased more than 8% in the last six months as the U.S. economy has improved. Duties on Mexican cement, which have been set at $57 per ton, have exacerbated tight supplies in all or parts of 23 states, even as U.S. cement mills are operating at full capacity. Cement prices are expected to increase by as much as 15-20% over the next few months as domestic mills, according to a report from the Portland Cement Association.

Nardelli noted that systems and programs can be tested, and managed, in a market that contains only 100-plus stores. When the bugs get worked out, successful programs can make an easy transition south of the border.

In fact, the softer side of Home Depot was originated in Canada, by Canadian president Annette Verschuren and then-vice-president merchandising, Eric Peterson. Verschuren has since been made president of Home Depot’s Expo division, in addition to her Canadian duties.

“Annette has been at the forefront of looking at décor,” said Nardelli.

However, don’t expect Home Depot’s high-end décor format, Expo, to come to Canada anytime soon. Expansion of the division has stalled in the U.S. “But right now we’re getting great results implementing the décor model into some of our existing stores,” he added.

“One of the things Annette and her team are doing in Canada is working the store size to suit the market,” Nardelli said. Downscaled footprints, 15%-20% smaller than the traditional 135,000-sq.ft. store, have enabled the retailer to successfully penetrate markets that would not easily support a full-sized outlet.

At-home services represent a market that Home Depot has “only scratched the surface” of, said Nardelli. But new approaches are being tested north of the border. In the Vancouver market, on Canada’s West Coast, a landscape consulting service was introduced last month.

The new additions to the team will both focus on hardlines aimed at the building center dealers in the Ace network, reflecting the growth of that business by these dealers, and giving them a more complete one-stop shop. Amy Pellerito, LBM manager at Ace, to whom Herr and Johnston report, calls it “a fast growing and highly important segment of our business.”

Herr, who has three decades of industry experience, joins Ace from San Diego-based Maintenance Warehouse, an industrial/commercial distributor owned by Home Depot, where he held various sales positions over the past two years. Prior to that, Herr was a building materials trader for Ace and Builder Marts of America (BMA), and held sales and management positions with American/Thunderbird Moulding, a business development manager for BMA. (BMA and Ace have had a strategic purchasing alliance for several years.)

Johnson has spent 27 years in the business, including the last two as sales and marketing manager for Meranjil Landscaping Corp., a commercial and residential landscaper based in Chicago Heights, Ill. Johnson’s diverse resumé also includes stints with Georgia-Pacific‘s roofing division, building products merchandising manager for TruServ Corp., and senior merchandising manager/inventory control manager for the now-defunct Handy Andy Home Improvement Centers.

Western had previously entered into an agreement to purchase House of Tools in April 2002, but that deal fell through when the two sides couldn’t agree on the price. Acquisition talks resumed last December, he said, after House of Tools had made some internal shifts that included consolidation.

In early 2004, Western also acquired 13 of Woodworkers Warehouse‘s stores, after the Revere, Mass.-based retailer decided last December to close its doors and liquidate. Kiker says these stores — in New York, Vermont, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts — were profitable even when Woodworkers ran them. At one point last fall, Western showed interest in acquiring all of Woodworkers Warehouse. “What we were able to do eventually was cherry pick its best stores,” he says.

The acquired Woodworkers stores are now bannered as Western Tool Supply, and Kiker says their niche is far more contractor-focused (Western’s tagline is “The Contractor’s Choice”) than under Woodworkers, which targeted consumers at a time when big boxes like Home Depot and Lowe’s have come to dominate the retail tool market.

In 2003, Western, which still operates 35 stores in six western U.S. states, generated $38 million, and ranked 290^th among the 500 largest home improvement retailers in the United States, according to Home Channel News‘ annual Retailer Scoreboard. “And we’re still moving up,” says Kiker, though he declined to name companies Western might be eyeing for possible future acquisition.

Western operates stores in some big markets like San Francisco, Anaheim and Salt Lake City, but its main focus is secondary communities such as Augusta, Maine, or Klamath Falls, Ore.

From Los Angeles, Ira Kalish of Deloitte Research will give us a real global perspective, one that will help all of us understand how to run our businesses better back here at home. China’s economy is surging ahead at almost 10%, and is fast becoming the next “gold rush” for retailers. And why do we care? Because the consumer trends and demographics that fuel that expansion is affecting your competitors — and your customers.

Meanwhile, closer to home, we’ve got one of the smartest — and most outspoken — independents in the country, Roy Perkins of the Rona Home Centre in Cornwall, Ont., to join us. A great example of smart retailing put into front-lines practice.

Jim Inglis, a former vice-president at Home Depot and a true veteran of big box retailing-, will come up from Atlanta to share his depth of experience. From South America comes Guillermo Aguero, the head of Sodimac, the company that held its ground when Home Depot came to town — then had to leave!

Day one of the Conference Series, our Retail Strategies Symposium, will feature a more educational bent, with an update on the size of the market, who the industry leaders are, who’s gaining market share and who’s losing. Peter Norman, of Clayton Research, is back by popular demand to make sense of the housing market, and how housing forecasts will have an impact on home improvement retailing.

Add in an incredible morning session by Donald Cooper (more about this next week!—Michael), insights from our favorite retail guru, Anthony Stokan, plus the incredible Outstanding Retailer Awards put on by Hardware Merchandising, and our amazing Gala Reception and Dinner, and you’re guaranteed two days of money making tips, profitable insights, and executive-level networking. For more info, click here or call us at: 416-489-3396.

The eBay team held a series of seminars — and their message was aimed at everyone from reps, dealers and distributors to “mom and pop operators who have excess inventory sitting on their shelves,” Serpico said.

He added that using eBay offers sellers instant access to an existing community of more than 40 million active buyers, who bought $24 billion in goods. “It’s a great opportunity to for a new and higher margin cost-recovery channel.”

Many manufacturers have issues with buybacks, said Serpico, and that’s why eBay is so convenient. “It’s a great way to reach more buyers, because we have those buyers already.”

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Worries about a slowdown in the U.S. housing market could have a serious impact on the performance — and share price — of Home Depot and Lowe’s. Executives of Lowe’s Cos. had to deflect investor concerns that rising interest rates will hurt the company’s fortunes. During a Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. investor conference last week, Robert Hull, CFO, and Larry Stone, senior vice-president of operations at Lowe’s, tried to reassure the audience that the industry will benefit from an aging populace that will rely more and more on Lowe’s for help on remodeling projects. In addition, the growing Hispanic population in the U.S. is proving a fertile market, Hull and Stone said.

ST-ANTONIN, Que. — Matériaux à Bas Prix ltée has signed its newest authorized dealer, Chic Metal Profil, a retailer in Saguenay. This ground-up dealer, open just over a month, is the first for Matériaux à Bas Prix ltée in the Saguenay region.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Towson, Md.-based Black & Decker is preparing to expand its distribution facilities here with the construction of a 350,000-sq.ft., multi-million-dollar hub in ProLogis Park West Pointe, a business park in the west end of the city. B&D acquired Baldwin and Weiser back in October, 2003 from Masco Corp., and the added lines account for the need for the new facility. Completion is expected by the fourth quarter.

AMSTERDAM — Dutch retailer Ahold, the world’s third biggest stores group, continues to battle red ink, as sales fell 11% to 15.4 billion euros in the first quarter, due to the strong euro and divestments, including selling its supermarkets in Brazil and Asia. Not counting these factors, the stores group’s sales grew roughly 1.3%. The company suffered a net loss of 405 million euros ($486.4 million), versus a profit of 84 million euros a year earlier. Ahold is still recovering from an audit scandal last year, when the group found a $1.46 billion hole in the accounts of its U.S. subsidiary, Foodservice.

TERRACE, B.C. — Workers at the Wal-Mart here are trying to get union representation, a move that could have dramatic impact on the Wal-Mart chain. The majority of staff have signed membership cards and applied to the Labour Relations Board of British Columbia for union representation with the United Food and Commercial Workers Canada.

Grainger, the North American distributor of facilities maintenance supplies, has named James A. Garman to the role of senior vice-president of human resources. In this position, Garman will be responsible for Grainger’s human resource policies, including benefits, compensation, organization effectiveness and staffing. Garman also will lead the company’s efforts to maintain effective employee relations across the entire company, which includes nearly 600 worldwide branches, 17 distribution centers and 15,000 employees.

Housing starts fell 0.7% in May, as homebuilders began construction on 1.967 million units a seasonally adjusted annual rate, from 1.98 million the previous month. It was the fourth decline in starts in the last five months, although the level of single-family starts, at 1.640 million, was the highest level since December.

Building permits, an indicator of confidence in future sales, jumped in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.077 million units, from a 2.006 million pace in April. Single-family permits rose to a 1.590 million pace, the highest on record.