Content about Quebec

Boucherville, Quebec-based RONA has entered into an agreement with two of its largest shareholders, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and Invesco Canada, providing for, among other things, changes to its board of directors.

Robert Chevrier, FCA, chairman and director of UniSelect and, until today, chairman and director of Richelieu Hardware, joins RONA’s board as executive chairman, effective immediately. He replaces Robert Paré, who will continue to serve as a board member.

Home Depot Canada held its annual "Meet the Buyer" day in Toronto on Nov. 7, an event that brought 22 small and medium manufacturers from Quebec and Ontario face-to-face with the retailer’s merchants.  Now in its third year, Meet the Buyer is a partnership between The Home Depot Canada, the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Innovation, and the Quebec Ministry of Economic Development, Innovation and Export Trade.

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.

While Lowe’s offer sheet said it would protect Canadian jobs – or even expand them – if it were to acquire Quebec-based RONA, the Canadian Teamsters aren’t so sure.

The Teamsters Union in Canada has come out against a Lowe’s takeover play for RONA, which the Teamsters describe as “a Québec jewel in the hardware and renovation industry.”

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.

Canadian retailer Rona will close 10 of its warehouse-sized stores by the end of the year, shifting its focus to the opening of 25 smaller-format units, the company announced on Feb. 24.

The new focus comes on the heels of a C$151 million loss posted for the company’s fourth quarter, which ended Dec. 25, 2011. This compares with a profit of C$20 million in the same period a year ago.

Net sales for the fourth quarter increased 2.6% to C$1.17 billion. Same-store sales were down 2.3% in the quarter.

In an effort to add new Canadian-made products to its stores, Home Depot Canada will hold a “Meet the Buyer” event on Nov. 24 in Kanata, Ontario. Small and medium-sized Ontario and Quebec-based manufacturers with an innovative home improvement product or technology are invited to apply. There will be no charge to the vendor, who can pitch their product to a buyer from Home Depot and also showcase their item in a tradeshow-style event attended by members of Home Depot’s merchandising team.

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.

According to a report by CBS News, a number of Canadian consumers are coming into the United States to purchase pesticides, herbicides and other garden chemicals no longer sold in Canada because of that country’s strict regulations. Others are simply ordering products over the Internet from other countries.

Royal Group, a manufacturer of decking, trim, pipe and other building materials, has announced the grand opening of a new distribution center in Terrebonne, Quebec. The new DC, called Produits de Bâtiment Résidentiel, will cater to the residential market, providing building products for new construction and remodeling projects.

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.