One of the first international do-it-yourself trade fairs in 2001 will be the Canadian Hardware & Building Materials Show, to be held in Toronto from 4 to 6 February
Alongside the typical DIY product offer, the ranges exhibited at Toronto will include related categories such as housewares, security products, gardening requisites and building or installation materials.
The Canadian Hardware & Building Materials Show is also achieving increasing significance for foreign exhibitors and visitors, though the chronological proximity to the Cologne Hardware Fair/DIY’TEC and the powerful Chicago Hardware Show does not exactly make it easy to reach a decision about either participating in or visiting either one or the other.
While it is true that Canada’s DIY industry is relatively restrained when it comes to the European markets, it plays a not inconsiderable role in the north American area. And the DIY superstore scene is only partially influenced by that of the United States, with which it can easily bear comparison. Of course that is especially valid for the business centres in Canada, including Toronto.
Economy
Canada is regarded as a country which is extremely receptive to imports, and, since the advent of NAFTA, has been developing into a gateway to north America and consequently to a market providing entry to the USA and Mexico. Economic growth for 2000 will be between 3 and 3.5 per cent, with inflation below two per cent; the unemployment figure is currently around 7.7 per cent and still falling.