Hardlines Acquires Outstanding Retailer Awards
TORONTO, June 3, 2013 — Canada’s premier awards program for home improvement dealers has a new home. The Outstanding Retailer Awards (ORAs) are now owned and managed by Hardlines Inc. Hardlines, which publishes the quarterly hardware/home improvement trade magazine Hardlines Home Improvement Quarterly (HHIQ) and the weekly e-newsletter HARDLINES, has purchased the awards from Hardware Merchandising. The annual ORAs began in 1992 to recognize excellence in merchandising and retail performance. The ORA ceremony has been held during the Hardlines Conference for the past decade. This spring,...
Read MoreSPANCAN Announces New Board of Directors
May 27, 2013 (Ajax, ON) – Spancan Corporation is pleased to announce the following changes to its Board of Directors: President: Tim Urquhart, TIM-BR MART Group VP & Treasurer: Andrew Battagliotti, ILDC Director: Stew Valcour, Kent – ILDC Director: Ron Healey, Federated Co-op Director: René Labrecque, La Coop fédérée Spancan is a hardlines buying group with members across Canada: Independent Lumber Dealers Co-operative, TIM-BR MART Group/Chalifour Canada, Federated Co-operatives Ltd. and La Coop fédérée Ltée. Formed in 1999, the group has grown to become the...
Read MoreRetail Trade, March 2013, published May 22
Retail sales in March 2013 were $39.5 billion, unchanged from February and up 1.1% from March 2012. Excluding sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers and by gasoline stations, retail sales were up by 0.8% from March 2012. After removing the effects of price changes, particularly lower gasoline prices, retail sales in volume terms were up 0.7% from February. Increases in month-over-month sales were reported in 6 of 11 sectors representing 47% of total retail sales. Total retail sales for the first three months of 2013 were $118.3 billion, up 1.1% over the same period last year. Sales in...
Read MoreBuilding Permits, March 2013, published May 6
Municipalities issued $6.5 billion worth of building permits in March, up 8.6% from February but 6.7% lower than in March 2012. The only three provinces to report a growth in permits over a year earlier were Alberta (+38.2%), Prince Edward Island (+36.2%) and Saskatchewan (+22.6%) Double-digit annualized decreases over March 2012 occurred in six provinces. Newfoundland and Labrador suffered the largest loss (-64.8%) followed by New Brunswick (-53.2%) and Manitoba (-37.2%). Quebec experienced a 17.4% decline while Ontario’s loss was 16.2%. Builders took out residential building permits...
Read MoreLabour Force Survey, April 2013, published May 10
Employment in April was up 0.1% from March. The unemployment rate remained at 7.2% in April. Construction employment was unchanged from March, while manufacturing employment increased 1.2% from a month earlier. In April, employment stood at 17.7 million, up 0.9% from April 2012. Full-time employment grew by 36,000 from March, while part-time employment decreased by 23,600 from the previous month. Full-time employment was up by 183,900 from April 2012, while part-time decreased by 21,500 over the same period. Employment over the past year grew in seven provinces, led by Saskatchewan...
Read MoreConsumer Price Index, April, 2013, published May 17, (2002=100)
The Consumer Price Index rose by 0.4% in April compared with April 2012 following a 1.0% increase in March. Gasoline prices decreased 6.0% from April 2012, after falling 0.3% in March. The decrease in April was the largest year-over-year decline in gasoline prices since October 2009. Excluding gasoline, the CPI was up 0.8% over a year earlier, following a 1.1% annualized increase in March. Overall, energy prices fell 1.9% between April 2012 and April 2013, following a 0.3% increase in March. Excluding energy, the Consumer Price Index rose 0.7% in April after gaining 1.1% in March. Food...
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