The Retail Council of Canada's Safety Group Program hits milestone with a $2.3 million rebate check The RCC's Safety Program has been extremely successful over the last 5 years and has returned to retailers nearly $8 million. In partnership with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), RCC designed the Safety Group Program to assist retailers in achieving their own health and safety objectives in an effort to reach the goal of zero injuries. If you'd like more information concerning ways to become involved in RCC's 2012 Safety Group Program, contact Matthew Hall, Senior Manager, Member Programs, at 888-373-8245 ext. 319, or via email at mhall@retailcouncil.org.

Canada's online business to reach $30.9 billion by 2015.

Early reports show Canadian retailers were flat in holiday sales as consumers focused on their finances rather than the urge to splurge. Canadian retailers did not discount to the degree their U.S. counterparts did and instead operated with reduced inventories to avoid the risk of being left with piles of unsold stock. (Source marketingmag.com)

Online sales for December were up 22% and transactions up 35% for online retailers for Pulse merchants. For the full season, transactions were up 37%, sales rose 25%, and average tickets declined 9%. Basically mirroring their U.S. counterparts. (Source chasepaymentech.com)

Prices may slightly improve in Canada but not by much Much has been written about how everything costs more in Canada by as much as 15% to 20% and while the government has held meetings, reduced some tariffs and says they're working on it the fact is there's not much they can do. With one retail industry futurist, Doug Stephens saying "Unfortunately, prices in general are not going to go down." Some of our commodities are going down a little in price," said Stephens. Clothing costs could also improve slightly in 2012. More competition in Canada's marketplace could also benefit consumers in the year ahead. (Source ctv.ca)

Montreal losses 18,000 retail jobs in the final three months of 2011 while Toronto gains 4,000 However both cities lost tens of thousands of jobs mostly in October and November and the jobs picture in the short term is not good. Which brings up a lot of questions about how well all these retailers pushing north will fair in a decreasing job market in Canada's two biggest cities. There's economic concern brewing up north. (Source montrealgazette.com)

Canada's largest grocer Loblaws takes a negative stand on the new whistleblower laws A footnote in plans to beef up enforcement of Canada’s securities laws has caught the attention of the country’s biggest grocer. Loblaw Cos. Ltd. and parent company George Weston Ltd. are urging the Ontario Securities Commission to “tread carefully” before implementing a program that would offer to pay a “bounty” to whistleblowers reporting on suspected misconduct at a company. Offering financial rewards may produce undesirable and even perverse consequences including the proliferation of frivolous claims or the condoning of undesirable conduct by certain employees so that others may blow the whistle,” the grocery chain’s senior vice-president and general counsel Robert A. Balcom wrote in a two-page letter to the OSC. (Source financialpost.com)

Canada's $6 billion gift card industry reports about $1 billion is never cashed. Unfortunately for retailers they don't get to count the gift card as income until it is used, so they do face accounting issues. However, companies in the United States are allowed to count unused gift-card money as income once they can reasonably assume the card won't be redeemed. In Canada, thanks to legislation, giftcard expiration is banned for individual retailers. That doesn't do anything for the consumer who has lost the little piece of plastic. In the U.S., unlike Canada, gift cards can expire after five years. (Source montrealgazette.com)

Target is building it's third distribution center in Canada in Calgary. This 1.3 million sq. ft. Dc sitting on 80 acres will be managed entirely by an outside logistics company, Eleven Points Logistics. They will manage all recruitment and hiring and will communicate those needs and plans with local communities in the coming months, says a Target spokesperson. (Source calgaryherald.com)

Quebec's largest drug store chain and major shareholder of Rite Aid, Jean Coutu sees a healthy 3rd Quarter With 400 stores in Quebec and in New Brunswick and the Ottawa are they posted a 2.8% increase in sales and are preparing for the increased American competition. The latest period included a $17.5-million gain on the sale of Rite Aid shares. Coutu has written off the value of its Rite Aid investment, centre the point of its unsuccessful U.S. expansion, though the shares it still holds are worth about $280 million in the market. It now reports for the Canadian business only. (Source canada.com)

Canadian Food Inspection Agency has laid 60 criminal charges against Brampton-based Maple Lodge Farms, Canada’s largest independent chicken processor, alleging violations of federal animal health regulations. Having been fined over the years for inhumane transportation of chickens, to the tune of thousands found dead after being transported due to excessive cold the CFIA now throws criminal charges at Maple Lodge Farms. (Source thestar.com)