BOUCHERVILLE, QC, Dec. 12, 2016 /CNW/ - Lowe's Canada established itself as a market leader
in home improvement when it acquired RONA Inc. last May. Six months
later, the company would like to provide an overview of its plans
to drive growth and reaffirm its progress on the commitments made
to RONA's stakeholders including to:
- Maintain RONA's multiple retail banner strategy;
- Continue pursuing RONA's local and ethical procurement
strategy;
- Enhance distribution services to affiliate dealers;
- Establish the head office for Canadian operations in
Boucherville, Quebec;
- Retain the vast majority of RONA's employees at the time of
acquisition and keep in place key senior executives from RONA's
strong leadership team;
- Continue supporting Canadian communities through the charitable
and environmental initiatives of Lowe's Canada and RONA.
RONA: A strategic driver of growth for Lowe's
Lowe's
Canada now brings together
multiple banners. The company undertook an in-depth analysis aimed
at redefining the market segments for all its banners. This
exercise made it possible to better target the positioning of each
banner and build a profile of the consumers they seek. In order to
undertake this shift toward being more customer-centric, the
company has adopted a new structure comprised of four business
units: Big Box, Proximity, Pros and Contractors, and Affiliate
Dealers.
"We have adopted a new functional growth model, so that each
banner can have the ability to optimize its development," said
Lowe's Canada President and CEO, Sylvain
Prud'homme. "In this context, the RONA banner has clearly
been identified as a strategic driver of growth for Lowe's. We have
begun to reposition the RONA banner, with the goal of making the
banner the number one retailer in the proximity store market (small
and medium surfaces), which currently accounts for about 56 percent
of the home improvement market in Canada."
Specifically, the RONA banner repositioning focuses on creating
a new value proposition and a new store prototype. In 2017, RONA
will implement more growth projects in a single year than it has in
the last five years. These include the opening of four new
proximity stores, the overhaul of nine stores, the introduction of
large appliances at 47 stores, a thorough review of the product
selection in several categories, as well as the development of a
multichannel strategy (mobile, online, store) with frequent updates
to enable customers to make their choices when, where and how they
want.
Procurement policy that favours local suppliers
The
goal of Lowe's Canada is to offer
customers products that meet their needs in each province, at the
best price possible, while ensuring that they remain competitive in
markets across the country. The company deals with more than 3,000
suppliers. Lowe's Canada has
adopted a clear corporate policy aimed at favouring Canadian
suppliers and manufacturers that meet specific criteria: consumer
preferences and trends, quality, price and production capacity.
While continuing to provide Canadian consumers with products
that live up to their expectations, Lowe's Canada is proud to contribute to the growth of
many smaller manufacturers and intends to continue doing so. All
procurement-related decisions by Lowe's Canada and its banners, including RONA, are
made here in Canada.
Firm commitment to develop the network of affiliate
dealers
The intentions of Lowe's Canada with regard to the network of affiliate
dealers under the RONA and Ace banners have always been clear: the
goal is not only to maintain them but also to make them prosper.
The dynamic repositioning of the RONA banner allows affiliate
dealers to benefit from generous joint investment programs to
stimulate their projects for expansion, relocation and even
acquisition. Starting in 2017, new marketing programs will also
help them improve their competitiveness. Teams entirely dedicated
to affiliate dealers are at their service to guide them in their
growth projects and pursue recruitment efforts of new
affiliates.
Ace dealers, who have smaller stores and are mainly located in
the regions, are also a priority since Lowe's Canada is determined to strengthen its
presence in the renovation centre and hardware segments.
Head office in Boucherville,
jobs preserved and community involvement supported
From the
day of the formal closing of the acquisition on May 20, 2016, the company's head office has been
located in Boucherville. The vast
majority of jobs at RONA have been preserved. In addition, since
May 20, 13 new stores across our
network of banners have opened their doors, generating more than
1,100 new jobs. Finally, Lowe's Canada and its various banners maintain a
close involvement with – and a strong presence in – the various
communities they serve. In Quebec,
on the corporate level, Lowe's Canada has also committed to support, among
others, the Corporation des fêtes 2017 in Boucherville, the Hôpital Charles-LeMoyne
Foundation and the Foundation of Stars.
"As the year draws to a close, I am very pleased with the
progress we have made in this integration, and I would like to
sincerely thank all our employees, who form the new face of Lowe's
Canada, for their commitment
during this important transition period," Mr. Prud'homme
concluded.
About Lowe's Canada
Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:
LOW) is a FORTUNE® 50 home improvement company serving more than 17
million customers a week in the United
States, Canada and
Mexico. With fiscal year 2015
sales of $59.1 billion, Lowe's and
its related businesses operate or service more than 2,355 home
improvement and hardware stores and employ over 285,000 employees.
Based in Boucherville, Quebec,
Lowe's Canadian business, together with its wholly owned
subsidiary, RONA, inc., operates more than 535 corporate and
independent affiliate dealer stores in a number of complementary
formats under different banners. These include Lowe's, RONA,
Réno-Dépôt, Marcil, Dick's Lumber and Ace. In Canada, the companies have more than
24,000 employees, as well as more than 5,000 employees in the
stores of RONA's independent affiliate dealers. For more
information, visit Lowes.ca.
SOURCE Lowe's Canada