RONA Announces its Strategic Priorities
December 06 2012 - 8:00AM
Marketwired
RONA inc. (TSX:RON)(TSX:RON.PR.A), the largest distributor and
retailer of hardware, home renovation and gardening products in
Canada, today announced its strategic priorities under the
leadership of Acting President and Chief Executive Officer,
Dominique Boies. RONA's management team, with the support of the
Board of Directors, will immediately focus its efforts and
resources on three strategic priorities: leveraging the strengths
of the Corporation's core businesses, growing key customer segments
through a more compelling value proposition, and unlocking the
profit potential of a simplified business model.
Using the same rigour and disciplined approach introduced a year
ago with the three financial priorities, the strategic priorities
will further refine RONA's business model and enable the
Corporation to accelerate value creation for its stakeholders. The
three strategic priorities are described below.
Leveraging the strengths of our core businesses
-- Assessment of all business units based on the following criteria:
-- Core competencies;
-- Market position and competitive advantage;
-- Contribution to EBITDA and return; and
-- Scalability.
-- Dispose of non-core assets and redeploy capital to further leverage core
assets.
Growing key customer segments through a more compelling value
proposition
-- Establish and deliver a clearer value proposition for key customer
segments: in-store, distribution services offered to our dealers, and
online;
-- Adapt all touch points including stores and distribution network to
deliver improved positioning; and
-- Deliver on the basics in a measurable way before adding new
features/innovations.
Unlocking the profit potential of a simplified business
model
-- Realign the critical operational functions of our retail and
distribution businesses: national vs. regional/local structure for
marketing, merchandising, operations, supply chain and information
technology;
-- Optimize administrative/support functions, standardize processes in both
sectors and build on them through the development of a culture of
constant improvement; and
-- Improve retail EBITDA margin in line with industry standards.
"RONA, through its dedicated dealer-owners and employees, has
built a very strong and valuable Corporation over the past 73
years," said Dominique Boies, Acting President and Chief Executive
Officer. "RONA has grown through a series of strategic acquisitions
to expand its footprint, consolidated the market to introduce scale
and developed various stores formats to support its leading
position in Canada. This strategy allowed us to transform RONA into
the leading domestic hardware, home renovation and gardening
products retailer."
"RONA's nationwide growth did not come without a certain level
of complexity. The focus on our three strategic priorities will
enable us to simplify our business model, reconnect to our roots as
one of Canada's best distributors, clarify the value proposition
for our retail and professional customers and therefore enable us
to maximize the value of our core businesses. Our strategic
priorities are perfectly aligned with our three financial
priorities and underscore our efforts to compete in today's
marketplace and improve our operational and financial results",
added Mr. Boies.
Similar to the practice adopted for the disclosure of its
financial priorities, RONA will provide quarterly updates on
specific initiatives and precise key performance indicators for
each of the three strategic priorities. RONA's Acting President and
Chief Executive Officer will also meet with investors and
stakeholders in coming weeks to discuss the Corporation's strategic
and financial priorities.
ABOUT RONA
RONA is the largest Canadian distributor and retailer of
hardware, home renovation and gardening products. The Corporation
operates a network of over 800 corporate, franchise and affiliate
retail stores of various sizes and formats under different banners,
and a network of 14 hardware and construction materials
distribution centres. RONA is also a leader in the specialized
plumbing and HVAC market, primarily serving commercial and
professional customers with a network of close to 60 sales outlets
and four distribution centres across the country. With close to
30,000 employees, the RONA store network generates consolidated
sales of $4.8 billion. For more information, please visit
www.rona.ca.
Contacts: Media Valerie Lamarre - Senior Advisor Communications
and Public Affairs RONA inc. 514-599-5900, ext.
5271valerie.lamarre@rona.ca Financial Community Stephane Milot -
Vice President Finance and Investor Relations RONA inc.
514-599-5951stephane.milot@rona.ca