Content about Boucherville

The unexpected departure of Robert Dutton, CEO of RONA for the last 20 years, has breathed new life into the possibility that Lowe’s will finally get its hands on Canada’s largest home improvement chain. Dutton stepped down on Nov.  9, two months after he and his board of directors fended off a takeover by Lowe’s. Dutton said he had new initiatives in store for the Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA, which put in a poor performance in its last quarter.

Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA, the Canadian hardware retailer and distributor, has unveiled its new website and mobile application.

The new Rona.ca site offers a more user-friendly interface, and helps inform and guide consumers in their renovation or decoration projects based on personal interests. It also allows shoppers to evaluate and comment on some 30,000 products online. 

Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA, the Canadian hardware retailer and distributor, saw a distribution sales increase of 8.7% in its second fiscal quarter of 2012, while retail and commercial sales rose 1.8%.

Beginning with the quarter, RONA changed the way it measures comparable-store sales. For the first time, the company is including distribution sales to affiliate dealers, and on that basis, same-store sales rose 1% in the second quarter.

Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA, the Canadian hardware retailer and distributor, saw a sales increase of 1.8% in the first quarter of 2012, as the company narrowed its net loss.

Consolidated same-store sales were down 0.8% for the company that is putting more of an emphasis on what it calls its “proximity” stores designed for convenience and service.

Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA, the largest Canadian distributor and retailer of hardware, renovation and gardening products, announced the appointment of Michelle Laberge as senior director of communications and public affairs. 

She will report to Claude Bernier executive VP marketing and customer innovations.

Laberge joins RONA from MSL Canada, a public relations agency where she was VP for its consumer division, representing clients such as Procter & Gamble, Indigo Chapters and Fujifilm

The one-two punch of bad weather and a weak economy took its toll on Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA's second-quarter performance. 

Canada's largest distributor and retailer of hardware, renovation and gardening products posted second-quarter sales of C$34.2 million, down 2.4%. Same-store sales declined 9.6%. Net income amounted to C$39.5 million, down from C$66.3 million in the second quarter of 2010.

Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA posted a first-quarter net loss of C$16.8 million, down C$19.8 million from the same period last year.

First-quarter revenues totaled C$918.2 million, down 4.0% from the year-ago period. Same-store sales were down 12.6%. The company cited a 6.2% decrease in Retail and Commercial segment revenues, offset by a 1.7% increase in Distribution segment revenues as the reason for the decrease.

Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA opened a new Reno-Depot store in Vaudreuil-Dorion. The 102,000-sq.-ft. store is part of the company's "new generation" of stores.

The store is the 17th to carry the Reno-Depot banner. At the center of the store is the Project Space, a consultation area where customers can meet with experienced advisers -- called Project Guides -- to discuss their renovation projects.

Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA announced its Board of Directors has adopted a new policy designed to facilitate continuous improvement in its governance and compensation practices as well as enhanced communication with stakeholders.

In accordance with the new policy, RONA now publishes an overview of its governance and compensation policies on the Company’s website www.rona.ca/content/governance_investorrelations and will proactively communicate to stakeholders any significant changes.