A division of Micromedia, svp Canada is a secondary research group specializing in ‘quick information services.’

To assist Home Store, svp would use a variety of sources including:

Journal articles: svp has access to more than 500 indexed Canadian journals and newspapers (about 100,000 articles per year.)

The articles represent industry-specific information, trends, demographic or target population commentaries, expert opinions, etc. Many large newspapers have run series stories on popular trends such as the diy industry.

Statistical and demographic information: Agencies such as Statistics Canada provide excellent census data such as regional population and dwelling counts; households, families and income; population by sex and age; marital status; labor force activity; unemployment rates and incidence of low income.

Also published by Statistics Canada is ‘Canadian Housing Starts and Completions.’

Specialty organizations and associations: Many industry-specific groups provide expert information through their publications or resource centres.

For example: Canada Mortgage & Housing, the Retail Council of Canada, and the Retail Wholesale Union could provide Home Store with valuable information toward expanding its business in Canada.

Government reports: Departments within the federal and provincial governments do studies and analysis on trends concerning business and economic growth.

Of interest to the decision-makers at Home Store would be the industry profiles published by Industry, Science and Technology Canada.

The federal department’s profile on the Canadian retail trade offers information on that industry’s structure and performance, strengths and weaknesses, evolving environment and competitiveness assessment.

Competitive information: Home Store will also want to know who its competition is in the various regions of Canada.

For example, Do-It Centres Stores have 60 stores in Canada as listed in a franchise directory published on a yearly basis.

All of the above-mentioned information is available through different formats – print, on-line and cd-rom. Some of the information sources checked by svp provided the following information:

Headline: ‘How-to clinics: in-store demonstrations and diy clinics are guaranteed traffic-builders during the cold winter months.’

Headline: ‘Handy is dandy: armed with wrenches, hammers, jacks and pumps, untraditional fixer-uppers save time, money and earn self-esteem by doing it themselves.’

Retail Trade Industry Profile: Industry, Science and Technology Canada

‘The specialty store segment of the [retail] industry (drugs, furniture, sporting goods, hardware, etc.) is performing very well in Canada, with the exception of clothing stores, which have shown a weak performance. Successful retailers have taken a strategic marketing stance, targetting a specific age or income level in an effort to differentiate themselves from their competitors.’

All the information sources previously mentioned are readily available through SVP Canada. The estimated cost for providing the information to Home Store would be about $450 (research time and out-of-pocket expenses.)

For more information, contact Laurie B. Ford, manager, demand information services, Micromedia, 20 Victoria St., Toronto, Ont., M5C 2N8. Tel: (416) 362-5211, toll-free 1-800-387-2689, fax (416) 362-6161.