The first RONA and Ace Canada Buying Show, presented by Lowe’s Canada, took place at Palais des congrès de Montréal from September 20 to 22 and brought together over 330 suppliers and 300 affiliate dealers and their respective teams for three days of presentations, meetings, and business opportunities. With over 2,000 participants, the Buying Show provided Lowe’s Canada suppliers from Quebec and all over Canada with a unique opportunity to present their new products, services and exclusive offers to RONA and Ace Canada dealers across the country. This was the first Show that brought dealers and suppliers from both banners to the same event, enabling suppliers to present their products and services to a larger group of dealers, and dealers to discover new suppliers and diversify their offerings.

"We are delighted with how successful the Buying Show was this year. It was fresh and new and showed just how strong our network is," said Alain Brisebois, Executive Vice President, Affiliate Dealers and Operations Central Services at Lowe’s Canada. "We’ve clearly proven that affiliate dealers are key to our growth. That’s why we’re making major investments to help them thrive. Our dealers enjoy privileges that directly influence their ability to compete on the market, including direct access to exclusive brands, better household appliance offerings, huge buying power, a national marketing program, dedicated traders for wood products and materials, an extensive supply network, a forward-looking omnichannel strategy, and unparalleled market intelligence."

The suppliers at the Buying Show took great care in selecting products that would meet dealers’ specific needs - and it paid off. Dealers were able to explore the extensive seasonal products section, the numerous booths dedicated to appliances (a booming segment for an increasing number of stores), and a booth on e-commerce, another key element in the differentiation strategy for many dealers.

On the evening of September 21, Lowe’s Canada honoured numerous dealers at a prestigious gala hosted by Grégory Charles and attended by close to 1,700 people. Prizes were awarded to dealers for their efforts to ensure the long-term viability of their company. "It’s important for us to highlight and celebrate the outstanding achievements of our dealers. These exceptional men and women are dedicated to the success of their businesses and take pride in offering unparalleled service to their customers. This gala is for them," added Mr. Brisebois.

 

The following dealers were honoured at the gala:

25 Years:Boisvert Turcotte Ltée, Malartic (Malartic, QC)

Quincaillerie 2000 Inc. (Saint-Apollinaire, QC)

Quincaillerie de la Promenade (Verdun, QC)

Quincaillerie Parc & Bernard (Montréal, QC)

Quincaillerie St-Sacrement Inc. (Québec City, QC)

30 Years:Dufour Laurian (Sacré-Cœur-Saguenay, QC)

Quincaillerie de l’Ascension (L’Ascension-de-Notre-Seigneur, QC)

35 Years:Matériaux Luc Doucet Inc. (Normandin, QC)

40 Years:Ferlac Inc. (Saint-Félicien, QC)

45 Years:Centre de rénovation Réal Riopel inc. (Entrelacs, QC)

RONA Ferronnerie St-Janvier Inc. (Mirabel, QC)

 

50 Years:Ferronerie A. Leduc inc. (Longueuil, QC)

Major & Major inc. (Montréal, QC)

Quincaillerie Beaubien (Montréal, QC)

Quincaillerie Rousseau inc. (Saint-Lambert, QC)

Starrak inc. (New Richmond, QC)

55 Years:Quincaillerie Guy Racine (Laval, QC)

65 Years:J. Anctil ltée (Saint-Denis-de-Brompton, QC)

25 Years:Ace Hardware Beaverlodge (Beaverlodge, AB)

Ace Hardware Fort St. James (Fort St. James, BC)

Marczak’s Ace Hardware (Lac La Biche, AB)

Port Hardy Ace Hardware (Port Hardy, BC)

Ace Hardware Manning (Manning, AB)

Ace Hardware Oyen (Oyen, AB)

Ace Hardware St. Walburg (St. Walburg, SK)

Michaud & Levesque Hardware (Sturgeon Falls, ON)

A few suppliers were also honoured:

"Building Materials and Forest Products" Supplier of the Year: Leadvision International

"Hardware" Supplier of the Year: Moen

Based in Boucherville, Quebec, Lowe’s Canadian business, together with its wholly owned subsidiary, RONA Inc., operates or services more than 600 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 25,000 employees in addition to nearly 5,000 employees in the stores of RONA’s independent affiliate dealers. For more information, visit Lowes.ca.