Making independent retailers stronger

Mega Group's vision is to be the essential supplier of retail services that ensures the continued success of the Independent Home Goods retail channel.With over 600 members, Mega Group is Canada's largest group of independent furniture retailers. Entirely member owned, Mega Group is dedicated to providing its members programs that stimulate growth and promote success. As a member, you are able to tap into a wealth of expertise and experience through member meetings, the Countrywide, Multi Meubles, and Sleep Experience retail systems, and Promotional Networks, our newest offering for the independent retailer. Effective advertising programs and strong merchandising programs are also available. For those who wish to renovate and refresh their store interiors, the award winning Mega Design team create inviting environments that help induce sales. Finally, Mega has an exclusive relationship with the PROFIT systems, the leading POS software provider in North America.

Coupled with these and other services, Mega offers the traditional buying group benefits of volume rebates, credit card savings, extended warranty, gas purchase discounts, group insurance and more.

BUSINESS PROMOTION

Mega Group has a complete professional advertising team available for members.

In addition to providing promotional support to the retail system and promotion networks, the Advertising team produces numerous supplier sponsored advertising and flyer campaigns.

These innovative advertising materials are affordable and effective. Flyer campaigns are complete with price tags, in-store banners, newspaper advertising and radio advertising scripts. They make your message identifiable and stand out from advertising clutter.

These complete advertising packages save you time and provide professional promotional vehicles that will bring more customers to your store!

POS SYSTEM

Mega Group has formed an alliance to provide members with a business management and information system at exclusive pricing.

Profitsystems is the largest provider of software solutions to the retail furniture and appliance industry.

What you get:

• The latest version of "Profitwindows" software;
• Classroom training at a Profitsystems training facility at no additional charge;
• Upgrades and updates to software;
• Use of Profitsystems on-line Resource Centre;
• The best technical support in the industry;
• Exclusive Mega Group pricing.

Get started and use Profitsystems' 24 years of experience in the software industry to manage your profitability.

RENOVATION & DESIGN

Mega Group has the most experienced home furnishings design team in Canada!

Make the best first impressions on your customer through enticing design.

Keep the experience alive in your store through strategic use of lighting, flooring, color, sounds, quiet spaces, tasteful room groupings, dividers, accessories, customer service areas, offices and public spaces. Put all these together to make the customer only want to buy from you.

We pride ourselves in the success retail members have made with their business through renovation and strategic design to increase their sales and profits.

TRAINING

Mega Group has a number of training programs available to members that assist store owners and their staff in growing and improving their business!

We provide access to group training and performance group sessions as well as on-line training resources that gives retailers the tools to be competitive in today's market place. Tools such as:

• In-store sales training and Business Improvement lessons;
• Sales Management and Sales Training through our retail system program.

SYSTEMS, SOLUTIONS & NETWORKS

Countrywide
The Countrywide Retail System offers the opportunity to participate in a "structured and disciplined" retail program designed to create brand value through a common business base supported by all Partners.

In today's extremely competitive retail environment, it is very important that, as independent retailers, you join forces as effectively as possible to increase your efficiencies and competitiveness. The Countrywide System will bring you consumer focused merchandising, innovative store design, IT solutions and systems, a Sales Management system, and added value services in the areas of business improvement, advertising, and finance.

Sleep Experience
Sleep Experience is a profit generating and image-enhancing Retail Solution for the bedding category. It will take your bedding category to a higher level through the implementation of a researched retail design, a series of private label products and a full spectrum of sleep product offerings. It is designed to make your retail store the sleep expert in your community. The key elements of bedding retailing have been addressed by the Sleep Experience category solution, namely, Advertising, Management, Design and Merchandising. Discover how to make your bedding department the sleep destination!

Promotional Networks
Promotional Networks are groups of strategically similar Mega members that desire to align product mix by supplier and in some cases by product (container, private label, select models) that is supported by promotional programs (i.e., flyers, press ads, opportunity buys), that bring additional advantages to the retailer.

Product alignment could be formalized as a core assortment from a supplier, or it could be a mutual agreement by the cluster. Supplier programs can be integrated with the whole group to maximize leverage.

Mega members will also benefit from programs that are better tailored to your market, store and customer.

BrandSource
Today the independent retailer is dealing with more and more competition from big box stores. BrandSource provides the national brand recognition for independent retailers. With the marketing and national advertising of BrandSource independent retailers get heard above the "noise" made by large competitors. It also retains the member's uniqueness. Customers deal with the Neighborhood Expert, who not only offers competitive pricing, but also personalized service.

Another great advantage of BrandSource is the web site. It addresses the target customer: women between the ages of 25 - 45. We know the modern female consumer likes to do research on-line about products before leaving the home. The web site responds perfectly to their needs. You can also customize and have your own web site through BrandSource.

BrandSource provides the independent retailer with a network that is bigger than a store on its own. It retains the member's local identity as the "neighborhood expert" while giving national exposure in target shelter magazines and national TV advertising, things most independents cannot afford.

Retail web sites:
www.brandsource.ca
www.countrywidestores.com
www.multimeubles.com

Contact Information

Corporate Headquarters:
720 First Avenue North
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7K 6R9

Telephone: (306) 242-7366
Fax: (306) 242-5651

Retail Services Centre:
1070 Rue Lionel-Daunais, Suite 200
Boucherville, Québec J4B 8R6

Telephone: (450) 449-9007
Fax : (450) 449-9012

Merchandising:
2000 Argentia Road
Plaza 3, Suite 301
Mississauga, Ontario L5N 1V9

Telephone: (905) 286-4993
Fax: (905) 286-4992

President & Chief Executive Officer
Benoit Simard

Executive Vice President/Retail Operations
Michael Vancura

Executive Vice President/Chief Financial Officer
Kevin Leier

General Manager/Merchandising
Todd Smith

National Sales Manager
Peter Caddell