Michael McLarney

Red Apple Stores has taken over four The Bargain! Shop locations and converted them to the Red Apple banner. The new stores are in Wynyard and Rosetown, Sask.; Oliver, B.C.; and Timmins, Ont. They will have grand openings on Aug. 23. Red Apple is a Mississauga, Ont.-based retail chain with 143 general merchandise stores, all located in smaller markets across the country.

PrimeSource Brands has acquired Cobra Anchors, the Montreal-based fastener maker. Cobra has over 1,000 SKUs of hollow-wall, universal, and masonry anchors. The transaction is PrimeSource’s fifth acquisition since partnering with investment firm Clearlake Capital Group in December 2020. Financial terms were not disclosed.

A RONA affiliate dealer has purchased an existing store in Charlottetown, representing the introduction of the RONA brand to the province of Prince Edward Island.

Talks with the Teamsters Union and two major railways, Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC), are deadlocked, and companies are concerned that supply chains will be logjammed.

Hardlines went south this week to attend the Independent Home Improvement Conference in Marco Island, Fla. The event was presented by the North American Hardware and Paint Association, in partnership with The Hardware Conference.

Last night the North American Hardware & Paint Association hosted its Young Retailer of the Year Awards. The event was held during the Independent Home Improvement Conference in Marco Island, Fla. Joel Pletch, of Walkerton Home Hardware in southwestern Ontario, was the Canadian recipient of the award. Under his guidance, the store saw big increases. These included a 426 percent growth in the store’s tool category and a 300 percent increase in overall store transactions—all from a store that’s only 3,300 square feet in size.

Last week’s Independent Home Improvement Conference played host to hardware and home improvement dealers from throughout North America. The gathering represented the union of two events, NHPA Independents Conference and The Hardware Conference, and was sponsored in part by Orgill, the U.S. hardware wholesaler.

The Home Depot is tackling the growing problem of organized retail crime, calling it “a large-scale, multi-jurisdictional operation where criminals steal merchandise from a retailer with the goal of re-selling the stolen goods.” The retailer has posted a video addressing the subject.

Ledvance has renewed its licensing partnership with the Osram brand for lamps in general lighting. In addition, the licensing partnership will be expanded to include luminaires in general lighting outside of China.

Home Hardware Stores Ltd. is hosting its annual Homecoming event for dealers and vendors, beginning yesterday and continuing to tomorrow at the Enercare Centre in downtown Toronto. The event has brought dealers together from across the country to learn about the latest products and services, and has also served as an opportunity to highlight Home Hardware’s 60th anniversary.