May 2, 2016 Volume xxii, #19

“There's only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that's your own self.”
— Aldous Huxley (English writer, novelist, philosopher, and grandson of the scientist Thomas Huxley, 1894-1963)

IN THIS ISSUE:

• Ace Canada opens new store in Alberta market

• Home Hardware’s new VP reinforces branding message at latest market

• Lee Valley’s “boutique” shop a prototype for tourist areas

• Contractor dealers count on new products to keep selection fresh

• PLUS: Ace opens in Sundre, Lowe’s to open 43rd store, Toolway open house, Geerlinks honoured, Allroc business up, Wendling wins lifetime achievement, Walmart charges for bags, Canfor up, Tractor Supply—and more!

Ace Canada opens new store in Alberta market

SUNDRE, Alta. — The Ace banner continues to gain traction across Canada with the opening of a new Ace Hardware store last week in Sundre, Alta. This latest store opened with the help of owners Tom and Marty Mennear and the store’s manager, Barkley Carrier.

Nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, north of Calgary, the store has been designed to reflect the needs of this community, offering everything from home maintenance needs to an extensive array of high-quality products in categories such as paint and lawn and garden.

The Ace banner, which is licensed in Canada by RONA inc. (and soon to be part of Lowe’s Canada, pending finalization of the takeover by the Competition Bureau), is proving a good fit for many dealers. Ace Canada has signed or converted 60 dealers in the past year. Another store is set to open later this month in Caledon, Ont.

Home Hardware’s new VP reinforces branding message at latest market

ST. JACOBS, Ont. — While new products and new vendors were the main draw at the latest Home Hardware Market, held recently at its head office distribution centre in St. Jacobs, Ont., the reinforcement of Home’s culture and values were reinforced, as well.

That included an overview of marketing initiatives to boost the Home Hardware brand, courtesy of Rob Wallace, marketing & public relations manager at Home Hardware Stores Limited. He noted that promotion and advertising, including TV ads featuring dealers themselves, help reinforce that Home Hardware dealer-owners are part of the fabric of Canadian life. The ads are an important part of the messaging, “to keep the Home Hardware brand front and centre with Canadian consumers.”
 
Also new for Home is its vice president of marketing and sales, Rick McNabb, who was introduced to the dealers at a rally on the second day of the show. McNabb joined the co-op effective March 7 of this year, after working at the food service company Cara Foods, most recently as COO of Harvey’s-Swiss Chalet.

“I’ve obviously got a lot to learn about this category, because it is different,” McNabb admitted. But, he added, he grew up in the home improvement business: his dad worked for Aikenhead’s Hardware, which was owned by the same group that owned Beaver Lumber, and he worked at Beaver during school. More recently, he helped out his brother, Gary McNabb, who owns the Home Hardware store in Gravenhurst, Ont.

Lee Valley’s “boutique” shop a prototype for tourist areas

OTTAWA — Lee Valley Tools has been stepping up expansion of its bricks-and-mortar sites, with a new store that just opened in Kelowna, B.C. (see our incredible April 11, 2016 edition for full story! ―your effervescent Editor.) However, the online specialty tool, garden supply, and lifestyle products retailer has another prototype in a small town a short drive from Ottawa—one that is quite different from the others in the chain.

L.G. Lee & Sons is a small traditional hardware store on the main street of Almonte, Ont., a small town in the Ottawa valley that is a popular destination for day trips from Ottawa. It is also near the home of Lee Valley Tools Founder Leonard Lee. He, and his sons Robin and James, restored the 115-year-old building, which had been a hardware store since the early 1900s. Today it serves to bring together Lee Valley’s most popular catalogue items in the setting of a traditional hardware store, complete with antique oak fixtures.

Robin Lee, president of the company, says the store reflects a broader range of products that Lee Valley Tools has developed over the years, which ranges from specialty woodworking tools to unique and retro gizmos and home accessories. He says this range of items is great for gifts and impulse purchases.

This “discovery” type of shopping would work well, he says, in destination towns such as Almonte and in tourist-oriented communities such as Niagara Falls, Ont., or Stratford, Ont., home to the Stratford Shakespeare Festival. “I’d love to have a store in Niagara Falls.”

Contractor dealers count on new products to keep selection fresh

SPECIAL REPORT — New products can be just the thing to help set your business apart from competitors, both online and in-store. Take Soo Mill & Lumber, a Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.-based dealer. The dealer has been scaling back the assortment at its two yards, whose departments now focus on featuring a commercial-grade and consumer-grade product per category.

But that doesn’t mean this dealer has shut the door on offering new items. It recently got back into stocking wire mesh and rebar. And a few months ago, it purchased two lifts 1x12 No. 4 pine board—sanded on three sides, 120 four- and eight-foot pieces per lift—to gauge demand from its pro customers. “Can we make money on it?” is what Soo Mill’s president Lynn Hollingsworth asks whenever a new product is put forward. The answer usually includes investigating whether a vendor or another dealer is selling the product cheaper online.

For Winnipeg-based Sexton Group, which buys for 300 members with 400 locations, “we’re looking for some kind of critical mass” in member purchases when considering something new, says Sexton president Steve Buckle.

Patrick Morin, a family-owned chain with 21 locations in Quebec, sees new products as a way to keep customers coming to its stores at a time when they’re inclined to shop online. Daniel Lampron, general manager, adds that new products help Patrick Morin stay in front of a new generation of shoppers.

Soo Mill and Patrick Morin belong to Independent Lumber Dealers Co-Operative (ILDC), and both Hollingsworth and Lampron say that before their stores take on anything new, they’ll ask other ILDC members, whose stores might already carry the product, about how it’s selling.

(This article is excerpted from the latest issue of our sister publication, Hardlines Home Improvement Quarterly magazine, which was mailed last month to more than 11,000 dealers across Canada. For you own copy, click here! ―Editor)

DID YOU KNOW…?

RETAILER NEWS

CORNWALL, Ont. — Lowe’s will open its 43rd store in Canada this week, in Cornwall, Ont. The grand opening ceremonies will take place Thursday, May 5; the mayor of Cornwall will be on hand, and so will Gregor Stuart, VP of supply chain and logistics for Lowe’s Canada. The company spent $16 million on the store, which will employ up to 140 people, plus seasonal workers. For contractors, a “VIP” event will be held May 9.

ST. JACOBS, Ont. ― Geerlinks Home Hardware of St. Thomas, Ont., has been recognized with Home Hardware’s Walter J. Hachborn Store of the Year Award for 2015. The award, now in its 19th year, was presented to dealer-owners Deborah and Craig Geerlinks and Adam MacLeod during Home Hardware’s recent Spring Market.

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — Walmart Canada has expanded its plastic bag-reduction initiative with the introduction of a five-cent plastic bag fee on all single-use plastic bags. The initiative began in British Columbia on February 9 and will expand to Walmart stores in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec in May. Dates for Atlantic Canada will be announced in the coming months.

CALGARY —The Construction Products Distribution business of Superior Plus Corp., which includes the Allroc buying group, is showing a turnaround in 2016. EBITDA for the first quarter reached $9.3 million, up from $4.8 million in the prior-year quarter. These results benefitted from a weaker Canadian dollar and continued strength in U.S. markets. Total gross profit for the CPD was up $8.3 million thanks to improved sales volumes, higher average selling prices, and the strong U.S. dollar.

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. — Tractor Supply Company reported first-quarter net sales of $1.47 billion, up 10.2% from the previous year. Same-store sales increased 4.9%. Net income increased 16.6% to $67.7 million. The company opened 36 new stores and closed three during the quarter.

SUPPLIER NEWS
VANCOUVER — Forest products company Canfor reported Q1 net income attributable to shareholders of $26.0 million, down from $29.3 million in the first quarter of 2015. Sales reached $1.07 billion, up from $930 million a year ago.

WOODBRIDGE, Ont. ― Toolway will hold its annual Open House event on September 29, with larger booths and expanded hospitality. Vendors are invited to rent one of the 10 x 10-foot booths and network with customers, who will get to take advantage of special deals on both hardware and outdoor products for immediate or spring shipping. For more info or to RSVP, email darlene@toolway.com.

CHICAGO — Grainger saw year-over-year profits fall significantly in the first quarter, even as total sales rose 3% to $2.5 billion compared to the same time last year. On a daily basis, sales in the quarter increased 1% versus the prior year. Net earnings for the quarter of $187 million were down 12% from $211 million in 2015. 

TAYLOR, Mich. — Masco Corporation, the home improvement and building products manufacturer, reported first-quarter net sales of $1.7 billion, up 4%. In local currency, North American sales increased 6% and international sales were up 2%. Operating profit rose to $234 million from $165 million in the previous-year quarter.

ST. PAUL, Minn. ― 3M’s quarterly earnings exceeded analysts’ expectations, boosted by reductions in expenses. Earnings edged up from $1.2 billion a year earlier to $1.27 billion. Revenues declined to $7.41 billion from $7.58 billion.

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
Lucie Bernier has joined Pro-Spec Agency, reflecting the growth of the Trois Rivières, Que.-based company with a larger team and expanded lines. She moves over from Agences Jean-Pierre Sylvain. (514-770-7732; lucie@pro-spec.co)

Louise Wendling, former country manager and chair of the board of Costco Wholesale Canada, is the 2016 recipient of the Retail Council of Canada’s Lifetime Achievement Award. The award recognizes a family or an individual in retail who has demonstrated outstanding business success and community service throughout their career and who has left an indelible mark on the industry. Wendling and Costco Wholesale Canada join a long line of recipients, including the founders of Roots Canada, Michael Budman and Don Green; Former Sobeys president & CEO Bill McEwan; and the Billes family, which founded Canadian Tire Corporation.

NOTED
The 2017 WRLA Buying Show Booth Renewal deadline is May 8, 2016. For more information, click here or contact ckelly@wrla.org if you’d like to exhibit.

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