Year In Review 2009 A Roller Coaster Ride From Start To Finish
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January 2009
Top Story
AIA Calls on Provincial Governments for the Right to Repair
In letters to provincial premiers, Automotive Industries Association of Canada (AIA) president Marc Brazeau pressed for greater transparency and accessibility for the independent service and repair industry.
The letter outlined some important statistics: in 2006, employment in the aftermarket industry reached 410,700, representing 44.8% of the entire automotive industry; and total Canadian aftermarket retail sales reached $16.7 billion.
Headlines
Government Intervention Staves Off Automotive Sector Collapse; “Healthy And Strong” AIA Holds Annual General Meeting; Shell Recognized by Ontario Jobber; AkzoNobel Benevolence Program Marks 10-Year Milestone; Lord Corporation Names Canadians Among Top Representatives; Transit Warehouse Ushers in Green Facility; Motorcar Parts Of America Releases 2009 Fiscal Projection.
February 2009
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Team Effort Pulls Business from Fire
On the coldest night of December 16, a burning hotel fell on Great West Auto Electric in Assiniboia, Sask. only a few short months after Randy Wiebe, wife Leanne Tuntland-Wiebe, Sharon Walde, and managing partner Larry Reid purchased it.
Phones were temporarily re-routed to their Swift Current branch, nearly two hours away; by the Friday after the fire, the store had stock, a counter, and the phones were ringing. Within days the computer system was in and generating pick tickets.
Headlines
Uni-Select Ontario Celebrates Success; Bestbuy Distributors Marks Major Moves in 2008; Affinia Extends Raybestos Name to Chassis Line, Targets Moog; Business Benefits Rule at GAAS 2009; Permatex Marks a Century in Business; Health Canada Orders Recall of Johnsen’s Brake Parts Cleaner.
March 2009
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Canadian Right to Repair Bill Gets a Boost
The Right to Repair Bill gained momentum with growing support from federal politicians, an industry-driven grassroots campaign, and a real chance to go to a vote.
Kicking off the campaign for support in Ottawa, bill sponsor Brian Masse (NDP, Windsor West) hosted a news conference with Automotive Industries Association of Canada president Marc Brazeau, Retail Council of Canada vice-president of federal government relations Terrance Oakey, and several representatives of the automotive service provider community.
Headlines
Alberta Apprentice Award Winners Named; Quaker State Positioned as Brand for Durability; Canamotive Celebrates 25 Years; Evercoat Wins Supplier Honours From NAPA Canada And Sherwin-Williams; Spectra Premium Announces Agreement with Lordco Auto Parts.
April 2009
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Right to Repair Bill Debated in House of Commons
The Right to Repair Bill, Bill C-273, reached a major milestone in March, with debate on the bill taking place in the House of Commons.
Prior to the debate, a call for action in the form of a letter campaign resulted in all 308 members of Parliament receiving at least one of the 5,500 letters sent from all parts of the industry.
Headlines
Uni-Select Sales Up 32% in 2008; U.S. Study Reports Customers Pay More at Dealers; Vast Auto Names Spectra Premium Vendor of the Year; Wix Launches Online Media; Bestbuy Presents Honours.
May 2009
Top Story
CAA Expands Its Repair Operations in Ontario
The Canadian Automobile Association of South Central Ontario (CAASCO) expanded its repair operations across Southwestern Ontario with the opening of eight new service centre facilities.
The service centres are fully owned by CAASCO, as distinct from the network CAA Approved facilities. In addition to Toronto, additional service centres opened across Southwestern Ontario, located in Peterborough, Georgetown, Listowel, Kitchener, Stratford, Waterloo, and Milton.
Headlines
Lordco’s Big Fat Trade Show A Hit; General Motors to Retain ACDelco Business; Technical Training Focus of Lindertech North Event; SAE Takes Over Aftermarket Brake Testing Program; StrutTek Catalogue Now in Activant and Wrenchead; Bestbuy Adds Shareholder in Sudbury; Shad’s R&R Gets Set for 36th Year.
June 2009
Top Story
Car Dealers Get the News on Closures
In stark contrast to the handling of dealer closings in the U.S., where General Motors published the names of companies whose franchises weren’t to be renewed, General Motors of Canada announced that it would close 240 dealers by 2010, but left it up to dealers to break the news to their communities.
The announcement followed similar news from Chrysler in the U.S., which said it would drop 768 dealers from its network.
Headlines
Sudbury-Area Business Named Top Shop at Ontario NAPA Convention; Hamilton-Area Association Holds 40th Annual Golf Tourney; Barton Auto Parts Flying High at New Show Venue; Uni-Select Wins 2009 Polk Inventory Efficiency Award; Valvoline Canada Expands Representation in Western Canada; Chilton Introduces Online TSB Database; Green Earth Technologies Signs Distribution Deal; Permatex Launches New Consumer Website.
July 2009
Top Story
Provincial Brake Standards Act Read in Ontario Legislature
At a press conference at Queen’s Park, Guelph MPP Liz Sandals, alongside ABS Friction CEO Rick Jamieson, outlined Bill 181, an amendment to the Highway and Traffic Act that, if passed, would drastically change how aftermarket pads are manufactured, distributed, and sold in the province of Ontario.
The act is essentially a twofold proposal calling for minimum provincial standards for aftermarket replacement brake pads, and ensuring that any aftermarket brake pad sold in Ontario must be asbestos-free.
Headlines
AIA Members Vote For Change, New Bylaws Enacted; Shad’s Tops $3.5 Million Mark; Canadian Aftermarket Members Raise $9,000 for the Canadian Cancer Society; Continental Tire Launches New Innovative Marketing Support Program; BrakeQuip Appoints Distributor; Canadian Tire to Use Activant e-Catalogue; Trico Products Releases 2009 Application Guide.
August 2009
Top Story
Canadian Low-VOC Refinish Deadlines Finalized
The Canadian government has finalized the regulations on low-VOC refinish product usage, giving manufacturers till mid-2010 to stop manufacturing or importing non-compliant products for use in Canada and till December 2010 to stop selling them.
Though the regulation does not apply specifically to refinish shops, the implementation dates make December 18, 2010 the de facto deadline to convert to compliant technology, as this is the final date when shops would be able to purchase non-compliant product.
Headlines
Transit Warehouse Inc. Opens New Distribution Centre; Sources, St. Henri & Dorval Auto Parts Celebrate 25 Years in the Business; Ontario Service Provider Event Brings in $30K; CRP Industries Moves to Larger Corporate Headquarters; UView Acquires MotorVac Technologies.
September 2009
Top Story
Canadians Scrimping on Car Maintenance, Dealer Share Down
According to the J.D. Power and Associates 2009 Canadian Customer Commitment Study, average annual expenditures on vehicle maintenance and repair services declined by approximately 7% from 2008.
The study found that average annual spending on vehicle maintenance and repair services declined to $856 in 2009, from $920 in 2008. Furthermore, the proportion of customers who say they “go to the cheapest place I can find for service” increased to 23% from 17% in 2008.
Headlines
Evening at the Ballpark Successful Again; The Dick Hunt Memorial Hits 19 Years; Activant, R.L. Polk & Co. to Offer New Parts Demand Intelligence Solution for Aftermarket Manufacturers, Distributors; SAE International Authorized by IACET as CEU Provider for Engineering Professionals; Hella Expands Headlamp Coverage for Late Model European
Cars; New Holley Tech Service Hours.
October 2009
Top Story
Right To Repair Showdown In The Wings?
With the Right to Repair Bill going before the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology this month, and a voluntary agreement also being touted, we reported that a standoff may be developing.
Federal Industry Minister Tony Clement announced the Canadian Automotive Service Information Standard (CASIS) agreement between automakers and the aftermarket. Insiders said that efforts such as these constituted a deliberate attempt to scuttle the Right to Repair Bill.
Headlines
Uni-Select Makes Bid to Buy Outstanding Shares of U.S. Operation; Bestbuy Hits Quebec City for Buy & Sell; Denis Bellemore, Industry Force; Wells Introduces Searchable e-Catalogue CD.
November 2009
Top Story
AIA Agrees to Support Voluntary Right to Repair Agreement
The Automotive Industries Association in Canada opted in favour of developing a voluntary agreement between the aftermarket and automakers.
The decision came on the eve of the Right to Repair Bill going before committee, after the association received an interpretation guideline stating that “for clarity, independent shops will have identical Data Stream Information [as that] provided to the OEM’s authorized dealers.”
This communication removed the main sticking point preventing the AIA from agreeing to join the voluntary agreement process.
Headlines
AASA, Brake Manufacturers Council Announce Integration; Veyance Technologies Opens New Canadian Head Office; Wells Launches Web-Based Diagnostic Guide Covering ABS Trouble Codes; Beck/Arnley Adds New Foreign Nameplate Number.
December 2009
Top Story
Managing Consumer Expectations the Key to Building Customer Satisfaction
The Young Executive Society (YES) workshop was held to coincide with Aftermarket Day at Georgian College’s Canadian Automotive Institute in Barrie, Ont., which provides students with detailed insights into the aftermarket. Both are organized by the Automotive Industries Association of Canada.
All participants worked on assignments looking at ways to manage customer expectations and build customer satisfaction at the consumer level.
Headlines
Canadian Among Pair Named to APRA’s Distinguished Service Award; 2009 NAPA “Golf for a Cure” Charity Tournament; Techspan Industries Appoints R.B. Skelly Sales Ltd. as Sales Agency for B.C.; SAE International Releases Test Results for Low-GWP Refrigerant; OpenGate Capital to Acquire Gabriel North America Ride Control Business.
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