The show goes on

Everyone had different expectations from the year 2020. It was a year that held so many possibilities before it arrived. But, things do not often go as planned. 2020 will primarily be remembered as the year that an unwelcome guest in our lives, COVID-19, wreaked havoc on the world. However, with the bad came a lot of good. As humans, we evolved, adjusted, innovated, learned to live life anew and kept moving forward.

For the Canadian equipment rental industry, 2020 was supposed to be a Canadian Rental Mart year but could not be. However, in the spirit of moving forward, organizers have decided that the show must go on. Canada’s big-ass rental show will be coming to everyone’s screens this year on March 24. 

For over 30 years the Rental Mart has been the country’s biggest expo of rental-ready equipment for construction, homeowner DIY, landscaping and event rental equipment. Each year, the show welcomes rental store owners to find the friends and fleet they need to make their businesses succeed. A big part of every event is the logistics involved in getting everyone together in one venue. Therefore, in the past, the attendees of the event have typically come in from the GTA. Since the show will be held online this year, the Rental Mart will be welcoming rental operators from coast-to-coast using the show’s virtual platform, Pheedloop.

As always, the 2021 Rental Mart promises to bring great value to equipment rental store owner/operators, distributors and even home renovation contractors. 

The virtual trade show will be bringing the latest equipment for the rental industry from top suppliers. All attendees will have the opportunity to roam the virtual halls of the “show floor” to network with friends, peers and suppliers. 

Welcome, contractors
The 2021 Rental Mart has presented a very special opportunity for us to not only connect you to your suppliers, but also to connect you to an even more important group: your customers. Last spring, Canadian Contractor magazine became part of the same publishing group as Canadian Rental Service, which gave us access to its circulation list of over 20,000 renovation and custom homebuilding contractors across the country. We thought it would be a great idea to give them a chance to see the new technology they can expect to find in their local rental store this year – and encourage them to think about renting the equipment for their next job. So this year, for the first time, the Rental Mart has been promoted to construction contractors and registration is open to them.

Cross-country conversation
In addition to the trade show, two interesting education sessions have been planned featuring industry experts. Adam Snook of Just Bins, Blake Menning of All Choice Rentals, Jeff Campbell of St Thomas Rent-All and Paul Van Staveren of Stayner Rental will come together for a Cross-Canada Rental Panel moderated by Canadian Rental Service editor, Patrick Flannery. The panel will talk about what’s going on in rental stores and on construction sites across the country. The discussion will touch on tech, markets, trends, threats, opportunities and more. The pandemic might come up.

Adam Snook

Blake Menning

Paul Van Staveren

Jeff Campbell

Here’s a little background on the panellists.
A serial entrepreneur, Adam Snook has been in, out and around the rental industry since 1998, first as a mechanic for RSC in Regina. After building a company providing water systems to grocery stores throughout Saskatchewan and Alberta, he bought a small rental store with partners in Wetskiwin, Alta., in 2006. From there he added companies, getting involved in waste disposal, fracking equipment, oil field services and vacuum excavation, to name just a few. Today, Adam is back in Regina and focused on his JustBins waste bin renting operation and writing his Hope Is Not A Plan column for Canadian Rental Service.

Born and raised in Drayton Valley, Alta., Blake Menning has been an active member in the oil and gas industry. Starting his career as a pipe fitter to the transition into different business development roles, Blake is committed to providing excellent customer service to all customers. Blake holds an MBA from Queen’s University and was elected class president in 2016. He currently sits on the board of directors for the Canadian Rental Association and is committed and focused on promoting ACR’s products and services and growing this local business.

Jeff Campbell is a 42-year veteran of the rental industry, taking over management of St. Thomas Rent-All in St. Thomas, Ont., from his father in 1988. He’s a passionate advocate for the Canadian rental industry, rising through the chairs in Ontario to become national president of the Canadian Rental Association in 2013. When Jeff is not in the store, he’s in his garage fixing up his beloved collection of antique cars.

Paul Van Staveren left banking in 1990 to open Stayner Rental in Stayner, Ont. Leveraging his education in agriculture mechanization at the University of Guelph, Paul and his family have grown the operation to fill a 30,000-square-foot, multi-building facility carrying a full array of equipment for construction, agriculture and landscaping uses. They’ve even designed their own ramps for their flatbed trucks.

Keynote Ken
Ken McDougall, president of Skyjack, will be presenting the keynote on what the events of 2020 have meant for the Canadian rental industry and how he sees the future for 2021 and beyond. McDougall will also present some key insights into new developments at Skyjack. 

McDougall has been working his way through leadership positions with leading global manufacturer Linamar (Skyjack’s parent company) for over three decades. With roots as a tool designer and manufacturing engineer, McDougall has seen a variety of roles within the company including leading the development of Linamar’s Asia-Pacific and Linamar’s Mexico operations, and as president of Skyjack throughout the mid-2000s. With a passion for process-driven development, McDougall returned as president at Skyjack in 2019. 

Wood you believe it
A special guest interview with Mike Wood from Ottawa Special Events will also be featured on the event platform. The pandemic has brought many changes, but few as radical as the transformation of Mike Wood, humble co-owner of Ottawa Special Events, into a champion of the rental industry and small business in the halls of power in Ottawa and Toronto.