Under a new name

The Hardware + Home Improvement Expo & Conference (H²X Canada) is due to be staged from 20 to 22 February 2005 in Toronto. The expectation is that 350 exhibitors and 5 500 trade visitors will attend the event. It is the successor to the Canadian Hardware & Building Show, which was held for the 100th time in 2004. The special programme of activities at the coming fair has been expanded and will now include the CEOs of Rona and Truserv Canada as speakers. Robert Dutton is scheduled to address an audience on 21 February and Bill Morrison on 22 February. Plans for the run-up to the fair feature a programme of seminars that starts on 19 February and is geared to participants from both the retail sector and manufacturing industry. The trade fair, which is to be held in conjunction with the Décor + Design Expo & Conference, is sponsored by the Canadian Hardware Housewares Manufacturers Association (CHHMA). Organiser of H²X is Messe Frankfurt (Germany). The Candian Retail Hardware Association (CRHA), which was previously responsible for organising the fair, announced in mid-November that it was discontinuing the work and winding up the association.