The Canada Alternative - May 2008

By Santo Torcivia

Where can you find a market where housing starts are down slightly, existing home sales are up, and the commercial market is as strong as the U.S.? This market is not far away either. If you want to get there, just head north across the border to Canada. There is no sub-prime mortgage scandal, the economy in Canada is humming happily away, and they just enacted a tax cut to keep it that way.

Canada’s new home construction and existing home sales are only about 15% of that in the U.S. each year but things are steady and booming, especially in the oil-rich areas of western Canada. 

Be aware that Canada, like the U.S., has a big orange bear that rules the flooring roost there. The Home Depot is the number one flooring outlet in Canada and home centers, in general, are more powerful there than in the U.S. In Canada home centers are the top retail source for flooring. The rest of the retail market there is rather fragmented. Plus, Lowe’s just entered the market so even the home center part of the business will see dust flying for awhile too.

Canada is a hard surfaces flooring market, big on wood flooring and resilient flooring. Carpet rollgoods and tile (area rugs not included) are big but, as in the U.S., the market is shrinking. Ceramic tile and laminate flooring are still growing in the Canada market.

If you intend to do business in Canada, remember their currency is stronge r than the U.S. dollar, which is strange because up until recently the opposite was true. Also, they are bilingual like the U.S., except they speak French in Quebec and part of the Maritimes, instead of our Spanish, which is just about everywhere except North Dakota. 

Copyright 2008 Floor Focus