There’s another thing that Rona will be building in English Canada starting this month besides houses: a television fan base.

My Rona Home, hosted by CMT’s Elissa Lansdell, premieres Oct. 4 on Citytv. Filmed in Calgary and consisting of 10 hour-long episodes, the show features two families racing against the clock to see who can best design, construct and decorate a brand new home.

‘The show is a way to not only get exposure for the brand, but also to do tremendous product placement,’ explains Pierre L’Heureux, VP branding and sponsorship at Rona. ‘For us it’s a 360 degree approach, but also a call to action.’

Viewers will follow the families as they are matched with experts to complete their rooms, ultimately resulting in one of the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) houses seen on TV.

Produced by Montreal-based Zone3, My Rona Home has run for seven years in Quebec, where it has garnered over a million viewers weekly and multiple French Gemini Awards. Rogers and Citytv have been plugging the English Canadian version across their various properties, while Rona conducts in-store promotions to attract viewers.

‘It’s certainly a very high-profile vehicle for the brand here in Quebec, so we hope that it’s going to do the same in English Canada,’ says L’Heureux.