May 9, 2016 Volume xxii, #19

"If you don't like the road you’re walking, start paving another one." — Dolly Parton (American singer-songwriter, actress, author, businesswoman, and humanitarian, known primarily for her work in country music, 1946-)

IN THIS ISSUE:

• Vegas attracts Canadians to National Hardware Show

• Sexton Group grows membership, introduces IT platform

• Lee Valley Tools, Quebec TIMBER MART dealer join Hardlines Conference

• Acquisitions lead to shifting Canadian market

• PLUS: new store and new hire at Castle, Home Hardware in P.E.I, Tembec results, Canuck wins Young Retailer Award, Stanley B&D, Newell, Bemis—and more!

Vegas attracts Canadians to National Hardware Show

LAS VEGAS — Retailers and vendors descended on the Las Vegas Convention Center for this year’s National Hardware Show and once again the show drew a solid representation from Canada.

Those companies included RONA, Home Depot Canada, Home Hardware, Spancan, Ace Canada, BMR, and Peavey Industries. By mid-morning on day one of the show, Robert Rizzi, merchandising manager for paint at Lowe’s Canada, was already finding a couple of things that were new and interesting. Though concerned that there wasn’t as much innovation evident as in years past, he was nevertheless confident of finding more new products before the show’s end.

Mike Daniels, the general manager at hardware buying group Spancan, was down at the show with some of the buyers from Spancan member companies, including Patrick Morin, Kent, and Federated Co-operatives. He explained that he was looking for new vendors that he and his group could meet with during the show to determine future opportunities.

RONA surprised many with a strong presence at the show; five merchants came down from the RONA buying team, and another five from RONA’s Reno-Depot buying team. And Lowe’s Rizzi was part of a team of 12 merchants from his company.

But the show is attracting more and more independents each year, as well. This year, a contingent of about a dozen Home Hardware dealers took time to attend the show. They were unanimous in extolling the benefits of the trip, saying it gave them lots of new ideas to pass along to Home’s own buyers.

Sexton Group grows membership, introduces IT platform

WINNIPEG ― Sexton Group has been adding new members, and has launched a new IT system to support that growing member base.

Calling the new platform state of the art, accounting manager Krista Venn says, “This is the culmination of three years of development and preparation. While change of this magnitude is challenging, we are happy with the launch.” Venn adds that the new IT platform combines technologies of both SAP and LBMX, to serve the members of the LBM buying group “for years to come.”

Ten new members have already joined Sexton during the first quarter of 2016, with more lined up to join in the coming months. “We are pleased that building supply dealers continue to see value in joining Sexton Group,” says Sexton President Steve Buckle. “We are particularly enthused by the addition of four dealers in Eastern Canada, where we are working hard to build our membership base.”

In early spring, Sexton Group invited more than 350 vendor representatives in Moncton, N.B., and Toronto to learn more about the group and its Eastern Canada-based members. “Local sales representation is very important to our membership and we want to encourage suppliers to visit our members and build the business together,” says Joe Collerone, director of marketing. “We are keeping in touch with these representatives through e-mail and social media.”

The vendor sales representative meeting made it clear that Sexton Group is ambitious for continued growth for both members and suppliers. To that end, the group is committed to keeping both sides well connected at the local level and sees fostering this connection as one of its key responsibilities.

Lee Valley Tools, Quebec TIMBER MART dealer join Hardlines Conference

WORLD HQ, Toronto — The relocation of the Hardlines Conference to Niagara Falls, Ont., for its 21st edition this year has been met with overwhelmingly positive response from dealers and vendors alike. And the addition of some important retailers to the speaker roster has only added to that excitement.

We recently interviewed Robin Lee, president of Lee Valley Tools, about the retailer’s aggressive expansion plans, with up to two stores a year planned for the coming years. Lee told us how these sites are designed to provide the same kind of expertise and customer care that appeals to the hardcore woodworkers, contractors, and hobby enthusiasts who shop online and in Lee Valley’s existing stores. The story was so compelling that we had to ask him to share it with our conference audience.

Nicolas Couture is part of the family in Richmond, Que., which owns four TIMBER MART stores. He is also part of a new generation of dealers that is facing concerns of its own, including slower market growth compared with the beginning of the century, tougher competition, a changing customer, and the rise of internet selling. His company is also being proactive in its expansion, as part of a trend that sees an increasing number of dealers grow by acquiring other stores in their markets.

Both these retailers will share their stories as part of the 21st Hardlines Conference. They join an already impressive lineup of speakers: Andrea Stairs, managing director of eBay Canada; Ron Beal, president of Orgill Inc.; Jay Heubner, president and general manager of Ace International; Ibrahim Ibrahim, retail futurist from the U.K.; Aron Gampel, vice president of Scotiabank Economics; and Dan Tratensek, vice president of publishing for the NRHA.

The 21st annual Hardlines Conference will be held at the Sheraton on the Falls Hotel in Niagara Falls, Ont., from October 18 to 19, 2016. It will play host to more than 175 dealers, managers, and executives in home improvement retailing in North America. For more information and to register, click here now.

Acquisitions lead to shifting Canadian market

SPECIAL REPORT — It’s been a big year for hardware distribution in Canada. With the announcement of Orgill’s acquisition of Chalifour Canada, and Lowe’s purchase of RONA (and with it, Ace Canada), everyone’s wondering what it means now that so many distribution roads lead back to the U.S.

Both Orgill and Lowe’s are positive about their recent acquisitions, while dealers and competitor distribution companies are much more cautious about weighing in.

When Orgill acquired Chalifour Canada and established Canadian headquarters at Chalifour’s former distribution centre in London, Ont., one industry member who was especially happy about the news was Castle Building Centres Group President Ken Jenkins. Castle has had a relationship with Orgill for a number of years and Jenkins believes that an increased Orgill presence here will only help his independent dealer members.

“As we’ve grown with Orgill, and we grew our volume with them, we knew it was only a matter of time before they were going to be here in Canada,” says Jenkins. “To say I’m excited and happy about the change would be an understatement.” 

He adds that it offers Castle dealers an edge over their competing banner chains, such as Home Hardware. “It gives us a leg up on our competition. We see this as a tipping point,” he says.

Establishing a footprint in Canada is part of Orgill’s plan to expand its offerings to Canadian customers, while meeting packaging and compliance laws. “The Orgill team has worked diligently to overcome the challenges raised by these requirements,” says Ron Beal, president of Orgill. “The goal has been and will continue to be to make the transition as seamless as possible for our customers.”

And then, while the industry was still buzzing about the Orgill announcement, Lowe’s Cos. made its second offer on RONA inc. (its first being a failed friendly takeover in 2012), which was accepted. Following the announcement late last year that TruServ Canada had completed its transition to Ace Canada, everyone was left wondering what would happen to RONA’s full-line Canadian distributor arm.

In an interview with HARDLINESin the days immediately following the announcement, Sylvain Prud’homme, president of Lowe’s Canada, made it clear that the intention heading into the transition was to keep RONA’s multiple separate banners, including Reno-Depot and Ace. “Independent dealers are important to our planned model,” Prud’homme said.

(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

ST. JACOBS, Ont. ― Home Hardware stores in Prince Edward Island welcomed designer Simon Chang last week to look for inspiration from the Maritime province’s landscape, as well as to meet with homeowners and offer decorating advice. Dealer-owners in Charlottetown, Tignish, Alberton, O’Leary, Summerside, Souris, and North Rustico showcased the island’s culture and colours.

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. ― Wolf Creek Building Supplies, a Castle dealer in Lacombe, Alta., has added another location, an existing operation in Sylvain Lake, Alta., about 25 km west of Red Deer. The Wolf Creek Group of Companies transitioned to Castle a few years ago; besides the two building centres, the group has a door and window showroom in Red Deer.

LONDON, Ont. — Tuckey Home Hardware celebrated its grand reopening this past weekend. The store was opened by owner Dave Tuckey’s grandfather in 1946 in London’s Wortley Village neighbourhood. The store has long been an important part of the community, which has a bustling, small-town feel. To celebrate the completion of the expansion project, which doubled the store’s footprint to 9,000 square feet, and to thank customers for their continued patronage, Tuckey Home Hardware hosted a three-day grand opening celebration.

SUPPLIER NEWS
MISSISSAUGA, Ont. ― Kate Campbell, celebrity contractor and popular television personality, is now official ambassador for the Stanley Black & Decker family of industry-leading brands. As brand ambassador, Campbell will be using Stanley Black & Decker branded products exclusively and represent the company at trade and consumer shows, in TV interviews and other media appearances, promotions, and charitable events. Joe Di Ilio, president of SBD Canada, says, “During the 10 years that Kate has been working in the trades, she has built a richly-deserved reputation for creativity and commitment to hard work and excellence.” 

MONTREAL ― Tembec reported consolidated sales of $380 million, up from $348 million a year ago. The forestry company generated net earnings of $27 million for the quarter, compared to a net loss of $40 million in 2015. The current results include a non-cash gain of $27 million related to the translation of U.S. dollar denominated debt.

ATLANTA ― Newell Brands posted $40.5 million in net income for the first quarter, with profits of $0.15 and adjusted earnings of $0.40 per share. Revenues of $1.31 billion for the quarter also topped analyst expectations of $1.29 billion. The company says it anticipates full-year earnings in the range of $2.75 to $2.90 per share.

NEENAH, Wis. — Bemis announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the medical device packaging operations of SteriPack Group, a manufacturer of sterile packaging solutions for medical device and pharmaceutical applications. The acquisition includes a facility in Ireland as well as packaging production assets in Malaysia and the United States.

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
The evening before the start of the National Hardware Show in Las Vegas last week, the North American Retail Hardware Association gave out its Young Retailer Awards. Dan Moulton, dealer-owner of Alliston Home Hardware Building Centre and Hanover Home Hardware Building Centre, in Alliston and Hanover, Ont., won in the multiple stores category.

Matthew Raetsen has joined Castle Building Centres Group as business development manager for Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Prior to joining Castle, Raetsen was with Ply Gem Canada, most recently as branch and brand manager of Mitten/Ply Gem. Over the next few months, he will be working closely with Castle’s Business Development Team Mentor Alan Schoemperlen. Also: Maryam Bashir has been promoted to Castle’s marketing communications department, working alongside Jennifer Mercieca and Susan Brook as Castle’s bilingual marketing co-ordinator. And Peggy Cuff has accepted the newly created role of executive administration manager, reporting directly to Castle President Ken Jenkins.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS
The total value of building permits fell 7% to $6.9 billion in March, marking the second decline in three months. The decrease, which followed a 15.3% gain in February, was largely the result of lower construction intentions for commercial buildings in Alberta, Ontario, and British Columbia. The value of residential permits rose 4.8% to $4.4 billion in March. Gains were posted in seven provinces, led by Ontario, British Columbia, and Nova Scotia. The largest decline in residential construction intentions was reported in Alberta. (StatCan)

CORRECTIONS
In a story about Home Hardware last week, we stated Rob Wallace’s title incorrectly. He is director, marketing.

We reported a wrong location for CanSave’s upcoming Buyer Expo. It will take place right at CanSave’s own headquarters and distribution centre in Barrie, Ont., on June 2. For more information, click here.

OVERHEARD…
“We take the approach that each local market is unique, with its own distinctive demographics, competitors, challenges, and opportunities. We focus on providing the tools and services to allow each individual dealer to take advantage of this uniqueness and precisely identify the merchandising and marketing strategies that work best for that specific market.” —Ron Beal, president of Orgill, on the establishment of a wholly-owned subsidiary, Orgill Canada.

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