Sure-Gro Inc. supplies a range of home and garden items, including the Vigoro brand to Home Depot in Canada. The company was founded in 1988.

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Sure-Gro Inc. is not content with being a leading supplier in the Canadian home and garden industry, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing Bob Falconi says. “[We want to] be a major player in the lawn and garden business not only in Canada, but in North America,” he says.

Based in Brantford, Ontario, the company supplies a wide range of home and garden items, including fertilizer, grass seed, landscape fabrics, and horticultural and pest control products. President and CEO John Hill founded the company in 1988.

Today, several major retailers in Canada sell Sure-Gro’s products, including Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Wal-Mart and Lowe’s. In addition, “we have a very strong distribution channel with the independents and nurseries,” Falconi adds. “[Our products are available] anywhere lawn and garden products are sold in Canada.”

A New ‘Vision’
In the past year, Sure-Gro has undergone a change in both name and ownership. Under the name Nu-Gro, the company once operated under the umbrella of Spectrum Brands, an Atlanta-based supplier of batteries, lawn and garden care products, specialty pet supplies, personal care items, insect control products and portable lighting.

The company took the Sure-Gro name when Clarke Inc. and RoyCap Merchant Banking Group acquired it in November 2007. Based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Clarke is the parent company of several transportation services firms, while RoyCap is a division of Royal Capital Management Corp., an investment company headquartered in Toronto.

In the transition, Sure-Gro has gained ownership that can invest more in its growth, Falconi says.

“The new acquisition is being driven by very entrepreneurial people who have a long-term vision of where they want to [go],” he says. “It’s just been excellent.”

Sure-Gro is also enjoying a positive reaction from the market, as well. “The trade really has welcomed the change of ownership,” he says. “We’ve had a great deal of support.” The major accounts as well as independents have embraced the change.

Focused on Growth
Before taking on his current role, Falconi was Spectrum Brands’ general manager for 10 years. “I’ve been in a lot of different businesses,” he says, noting that he is enjoying the opportunity to make Sure-Gro “a very viable force in the market.” Falconi’s career started with Kraft Foods. He then spent 20 years in the battery business with both Duracell and Pure Energy batteries before joining Spectrum Brands and now working at Sure-Gro.

“We’ve always felt this has been a very, very good business,” he says, adding that Sure-Gro plans to expand to the United States. Some of the company’s brands already are sold stateside.

At the recent hardware show in Las Vegas, Sure-Gro brands were the silver award winner for Green Innovation, and the company has had much interest from U.S. retailers since the show. Sure-Gro is now looking for major expansion into the United States.

This will involve Sure-Gro applying its current business model to the United States and searching for acquisition opportunities. However, the company has already made a major acquisition in its home country.

This April, Sure-Gro purchased all shares of Modugno-Hortibec Inc., a Canadian-owned fertilizer company whose products were also carried by Home Depot, Loblaws and Canadian Tire. “This company is absolutely the state-of-the-art producer of quality soil products in the Canadian market,” Falconi raves.

Modugno-Hortibec President and CEO Rene Modugno added in a statement that the acquisition would enhance his company’s presence in the growing soil mixtures and organic products business. “We look forward to combining the strengths of both businesses to deliver quality home and garden solutions to the marketplace,” he said.

Sure-Gro Goes Green
Sure-Gro is focused strongly on supplying environmentally safe products, according to Falconi.

“Probably over 80 percent of what we sell would be classified as ‘green products,’” he says, noting that these include its rechargeable alkaline batteries and ice melt products.

In 2009, Falconi says, Sure-Gro will bring several more green products to the market.

The company is launching the Perfectly Natural brand of rechargeable alkaline batteries in the highly competitive U.S. market this year.

However, the processes of getting the products developed and approved “are not overnight tasks,” he admits.

Becoming Stronger
Falconi says the plan for Sure-Gro is to have a prosperous financial future.

“We’re very entrepreneurial focused and quick to move,” he says.

“I see us continuing to expand our markets, expand our products and really [leveraging the] distribution platforms that we have.”