Rona to close 10 big-box stores

[canabiz]

http://www.montrealgazette.com/life/Rona+closing+stores/6200044/story.html

While I would like to support Canadian business as much as I can, I find Rona prices generally higher than HD or Lowe's and they don't carry as many brands/selections. The website is also not easy to navigate.

I hope this is a wake-up call for Rona especially with Target coming into the market.

[Cheap Cat]

I prefer Rona over Home Depot or Lowes. At least with the stuff I buy, I find Rona cheaper and I get better customer service.

[carmaster]

I guess Rona is moving to a Home Hardware type format.

[Beachdown]

I'm with canabiz on this one. I find Rona more expensive, messy and unorganized, with customer service on par with crappy tire and a terrible website. There's one across the street from my office and I'll drive the extra 10 minutes to get to HD.

[sandy_beach]

I agree with what others have already said. Rona is just mroe of a depressing store to go into... Always quiet/empty, overpriced stuff, very limited brand selection and stores are always at inconvenient locations.... Not to mention their horrible website.

No way they can compete with Lowes now in Canada...

[Red_Army]

+1 to all comments posted
The only thing Rona has going for them is their air miles promotions

[Babbelfish]

Agree with above. More expensive and lousy website and they wonder why they're closing*coughSearscough*. Prefer Home Hardware/Depot

[Dark Phoenix]

+1 to all comments posted
The only thing Rona has going for them is their air miles promotions

And the drive thru lumber yard. Throw it in the back of the truck and I am done.

[canabiz]

I wonder if any of the Rona stores in Ottawa will be affected. If so, there could be some good deals to be had (fingers crossed).

I know Lowe's is building a big store on Hunt Club which will be competing directly against the Rona on Merivale. Interesting to see.

[MrDisco]

sad to see a cdn company scaling back. unfortunately i have to agree with all the previous comments.

[Rockymountain]

Place is quiet, face is cold, price is high.

[Toukolou]

Very crappy website.

That being said, it's not as crappy as lowes.ca

The most insulting thing about Loews is their American site is actually very good.

It goes to show if they gave a s**t about their Canadian customers they would replicate it here, but they couldn't be bothered. I contacted them about this twice, they responded once by saying if I had questions I should call the store.

Thanks, but I thought we had evolved past the stone ages.

For this reason I make an effort not to shop at either stores.

[Frankie3s]

Ditto on the higher prices than everybody else. One time I wanted to buy 30 sheets of drywall (when it was on sale) and wanted to pay for it in advance and pick it up in a week when I could get a truck. They refused, went to home depot, got a price match and picked my drywall up a week later.

[googoo]

I've heard from a few builders that love Rona and say its' much better than HD, that being said Rona's selection for regular consumers is weak.

Brent

[Wingding]

I've heard from a few builders that love Rona and say its' much better than HD, that being said Rona's selection for regular consumers is weak.
Brent

Contractors love RONA because there are so few other customers they have an easy time getting served, getting their goods, and getting out the door.

[Wingding]

Very crappy website.

That being said, it's not as crappy as lowes.ca

The most insulting thing about Loews is their American site is actually very good.

It goes to show if they gave a s**t about their Canadian customers they would replicate it here, but they couldn't be bothered. I contacted them about this twice, they responded once by saying if I had questions I should call the store.

Thanks, but I thought we had evolved past the stone ages.

For this reason I make an effort not to shop at either stores.

Lowe's Canadian website does suck, but I'm a huge fan of their stores. Better selection and far better prices on many items than Home Depot. Home Depot's prices are to Lowes' what RONA's prices were to Home Depot's. It's kind of a progression up the food chain, and I've no problem giving my business to an American retailer if the Canadians can't measure up with competitive prices. I'll bet Lowe's ends up taking over some of that vacated RONA space.



.

[Ottomaddox]

CEO Robert Dutton told analysts Thursday that Rona won’t be building any more big-box stores anywhere until the economy turns around decisively and consumers fully regain their confidence.

On the face of it, this statement makes sense... but in reality, it takes a couple of years lead time to get a store up and running. When people starting buying, Rona won't be there because they are waiting...

Rona is doomed.

[boyoflondon]

Place is quiet, face is cold, price is high.

+1

I always find them way to expensive and only go there if I am close by the store.

[leafs86]

Rona on Argentia is closing down
Rona Heartland will be moving to a smaller building, got no idea where.

At the end of the day, management and the high ups have killed rona. Instead of going after Home Depot and Lowe's, they have admitted defeat and will going after Home Hardware's I guess. This company will need to be sold or will be irrelevant in Ontario in 24 months. I do know what other stores are closing down and Rona hasnt released a statement, but they told workers yesterday in Mississauga what was going on.

[cabbageroll]

In Wpg McDiarmid Lumber is by far the cheapest...Both Rona and Home Depot are a ripoff..Many go down to USA to buy their stuff at Menards, it is way cheaper, better quality lumber. Menards is packed with Manitoba trucks and trailers every weekend.

And now that Menards direct ships to Wpg and the increase in tax free to 800.00 for 48 hours. Rona and HD are going to lose a lot more business.

[sherman51]

I live in Etobicoke and near me is a crappy Rona at Dundas and Cawthra, another crappy one at Dundas and Royal York. If I want to go to a big Rona I need to go to Eglinton and Winston Churchill or the Stockyards whereas Home Depot and Lowes are 5 min away. I have hoped for a Rona nearby to compete with the others by sadly, it's not worth my time to head to the far away Rona to look for stuff.
Even took a buddy out last week to look at BBQ's and we went o Lowes and HD because Rona too far away, when I went on their website to see what type of Webers they have, they had a price and the Rona sku # but no model type fopr the Weber. In the end, my buddy won't bother with Rona for these reasons and will buy the BBQ at Lowes or HD.
Sad to see them go but they are the creators of their own demise.

[caltran]

I liked them when they were Revy.

Rona has waaay better wood than HD.

Contractors like Rona because they carry a lot more "builder" type stuff and they also get 10% off on a lot of things. The discount is usually stackable as well.

[smartie]

in general, Canadian companies can not compete with those global companies. I don't blame pemployer/employee there,but global companies have more purchasing power,therefore they can have more choice and cheaper price. Just look at those used to be great companies:Nortel, RIM,Rona,Loblaws

[smiloid]

Seconding Menards for Winnipegers. Rona & HD just can't compete. Until they at least attempt to match HD prices, I don't see them recovering from this downsizing any time soon. Agreed that their wood is better than HD, though usually a higher cost as well. For small items though they are always $1+ more than HD for the exact same item.

[Manatus]

Lowe's Canadian website does suck, but I'm a huge fan of their stores. Better selection and far better prices on many items than Home Depot. Home Depot's prices are to Lowes' what RONA's prices were to Home Depot's. It's kind of a progression up the food chain, and I've no problem giving my business to an American retailer if the Canadians can't measure up with competitive prices. I'll bet Lowe's ends up taking over some of that vacated RONA space.

I like Lowes's stores, the problem is that I have no idea of what they have in them. I'm not a handyman and I need to buy stuff from a home depot type store maybe once a year. I honestly really would love to deal with Lowes, but why would I drive all the way out there to buy a toilet when I have absolutely no idea what toilets they have in stock, so I have to drive there, write down all the ones I like and their prices, drive home, then do my research as to which ones are good and good value, and then drive back again... compounded by the fact that there are very few Lowes around, so for many people that's a lot of driving. I think if they had a decent website - even just inventory, forget about buying online - it would get them a lot of business.