Lowe's Canada Announces Crowfoot (AB) And Kitchener (ON) RONA Stores Set To Convert To The Lowe's Brand At The End Of 2017
Boucherville, Quebec, July 24, 2017 – Lowe's Canada announced today that the RONA Home and Garden stores located respectively at 90 Crowfoot Way NW, Calgary, and 730 Ottawa Street South, Kitchener, will convert to the Lowe's banner. Both locations will undergo an extensive renovation and re-merchandising of the existing store which is expected to be completed at the end of 2017.
Starting on July 31, 2017 for Crowfoot and on August 14, 2017 for Kitchener, the stores will undergo an extensive 16-week physical transformation to the new model of Lowe's stores in Canada, which will involve construction, departmental sequencing of new racking, re-merchandising, branding and IT conversion. As well, Lowe's is investing in its people with extensive employee training focused on new product knowledge and customer service.
"The stores will remain open during the conversion and we are committed to minimizing any impact on customers so that we can continue to offer the best shopping experience possible during the store transformation," confirmed Guy Beaumier, Interim Executive Vice President, Lowe's Canada Big Box Retail.
Customers of the Crowfoot and Kitchener stores can look forward to an enhanced shopping experience including expanded assortment and access to well-known brands such as Kohler, John Deere and Whirlpool, as well as the introduction of new categories such as appliances. Lowe's also features established private label brands such as Kobalt and Allen & Roth, which offer great quality at affordable prices. In addition, Lowe’s has strong seasonal programs for its Patio and Holiday collections, top of the line installation programs across many categories, protection plans for products such as appliances, tools and outdoor power equipment, and a superior online program which includes Click & Collect for in-store pickup, local truck delivery and parcel shipping.
The new stores will also offer an enhanced shopping experience for Commercial customers including the introduction of the Contractor Rewards Program, access to a drive through lumber yard and charge accounts that will allow them to make purchases at any RONA Corporate store in Western Canada, as well as new model Lowe's stores with only 'one' monthly invoice for all purchases made from these stores. Enhanced assortment in key contractor categories include lumber, building materials, millwork, tools and hardware.
The new Crowfoot Lowe’s will feature 114,570 square feet of retail sales space, an adjacent Garden Centre with 17,540 square feet, an outdoor lumber yard with 48,129 square feet as well as a covered (drive-thru) lumber yard with 8,644 square feet. The store will employ more than 155 permanent jobs and approximately 45 seasonal positions, and is currently looking to hire an additional 40 permanent and seasonal employees.
As for the new Kitchener Lowe's, it will feature 93,064 square feet of retail sales space, an adjacent Garden Centre with 28,881 square feet, an outdoor lumber yard with 20,381 square feet and a covered (drive-thru) lumber yard with 3,895 square feet. The store will employ more than 135 permanent jobs and approximately 40 seasonal positions, and is currently looking to hire an additional 35 permanent and seasonal employees.
Interested candidates can visit www.lowes.ca/careers for more information and to apply.
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 2016 sales of $65.0 billion, Lowe’s and its related businesses operate or service 2,365 home improvement and hardware stores and employ over 290,000 people. Based in Boucherville, Quebec, Lowe's Canadian business, together with its wholly owned subsidiary, RONA inc., operate or service over 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.