Second new Lowe’s model opens today in B.C.
Boucherville, QC, 2017-Oct-06 — /EPR Retail News/ — Lowe’s Canada opened today (October 5, 2017) its second store under the new model of Lowe’s stores in Canada which offers an enhanced shopping experience. The store, located at 850 Langford Parkway, was converted from the former RONA Home and Garden. It was designed by taking the best of Lowe’s and RONA’s offering to create the new model of Lowe’s stores. The first converted store was in Edmonton North, Alberta.
“As we are actively pursuing the evolution of Lowe’s Big Box in Canada, we are happy to offer the Langford community a new shopping experience by taking the best of what both Lowe’s and RONA banners have to offer to create a new Lowe’s Big Box model,” says Guy Beaumier, Interim Executive Vice President, Lowe’s Canada Big Box Retail. “We spared no efforts in order to provide our customers enhanced offers in product, pricing, services and financing, including new features for our Contractor clientele.”
The store underwent an extensive 16-week physical transformation from the former RONA which involved construction, departmental sequencing of new racking and re-merchandising, branding and IT conversion, as well as a significant investment in our people with extensive training that is focused on new product knowledge and customer service
New Retail Experience
The new Langford Lowe’s will offer an enhanced retail experience including:
- A wider assortment of Seasonal products such as Patio, Holiday and Halloween including the latest fashion trends
- The introduction of entirely new product categories including Appliances, Lowe’s private labels, and top brands such as John Deere, Husqvarna, and Cub Cadet.
- A broader selection of Fashion Plumbing products such as tubs, showers, toilets, vanities, sinks and faucets with the introduction of high profile brands such as Kohler and Grohe
- Floor displays featuring the latest fashions in wood flooring and tiles with larger displays allowing customers to better visualize their projects and better experience the texture of flooring products.
- Access to more than 100,000 products on www.lowes.ca.
Enhanced Contractor Experience
The new Langford location marks an enhanced shopping experience for Commercial customers, including:
- The introduction of the Contractor Rewards Program (i.e. loyalty and pricing program)
- Access to a drive through lumber yard where contractors can load their vehicles directly to save time, as well as have access to a broader lumber assortment.
- The Langford store is the second Lowe’s store in Canada to introduce charge accounts that will allow Commercial customers to make purchases at any RONA Corporate store in Western Canada, as well as in new model Lowe’s stores. Customers will receive only ‘one’ monthly invoice for all purchases made from these stores.
- Introduction of corporately owned and operated delivery truck to provide a more personalized level of service for deliveries to Contractors.
- Enhanced assortment in key contractor categories including lumber, building materials, millwork, tools, hardware, etc
The new Langford Lowe’s marks the company’s 58th store in Canada under the Lowe’s banner and the banner’s second Lowe’s location in the Victoria market. The store represents a local investment in excess of $7.8 million and created 30 new jobs – in total the store employs 135 permanent positions with an additional 30 seasonal roles.
The store offers about 40,000 products in-stock to meet customers’ home improvement needs, and features retail offering space totaling 140,036 square feet, including 73,349 square feet of retail sales space, an adjacent Garden Centre of 28,315 square feet, a covered lumberyard of 24,155 square feet, and an additional outdoor drive thru lumberyard of 14,217 square feet.
Today, local dignitaries and Lowe’s executives joined employees from the store to celebrate the grand opening through an official board cutting ceremony and community grant presentation. Lowe’s donated $5,000 to Habitat for Humanity Victoria to support the Central Saanich Project beginning this Fall.
Grand Opening Events
Grand opening activities for the new store will continue throughout Monday where customers can enjoy free sessions, giveaways and contests including:
- Children’s Workshop for families on Saturday, October 7th at 10:00 a.m.
- Interactive autograph signing and Q&A session with HGTV’s Bryan Baeumler on Saturday, October 7th from 10am-12pm.
- Giveaways including: Rayovac 6V Floating Flashlight + Rayovac Ready AA 8-Pack Batteries (first 75 customers only on Thursday); Sylvania A19 LED 60-Watt Light Bulb (first 1,000 customers Friday only); free Lowe’s $25 gift card (first 200 customers Saturday only) and a Bosch 32 pc. Screwdriver Bit Set (first 200 customers Sunday only).
- Customers can also enter to win 1 of 4 Grand Prizes.
- Contractor exclusive VIP event on Monday, October 9th from 12:00-2:00 p.m. There will be a draw to win 1 of 3 $250 Lowe’s gift cards and Contractors can fill out a ballot to win 1 of 4 Tool prizes. To register, Contractors can call the store at (250) 478-6680 and ask to speak with the Contractor Specialist to request an invite.
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 more than 2,370 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., 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.
For more information, please contact:
Valérie Gonzalo
Media Relations
Lowe’s Canada – RONA
Tel 514.626.6976
media@rona.ca
Source: Lowe’s Companies, Inc.