Volume 13, Issue 2 Special Edition—June 2012 NORTHWEST STOVES LTD.

Volume 13, Issue 2—Special Edition—Wayne Rourke’s Hot Times September/October 2005

Special Edition—Wayne Rourke Retires

1977—Wayne Founds Northwest Stoves Inside this issue: Northwest Stoves 1 Accountant turns to fire During that first year, they Beginnings In the summer of 1975, Wayne built a dealer group of 15 or Rourke went on an Okanagan 16 dealers between Vancou- vacation, where he ran into his ver Island, the Sunshine childhood friend from Powell Coast and lower mainland Wayne Rourke 2 River, Bob Warman. Together, regions of British Columbia. Trivia they travelled to the IPE, Arm- In 1978, due in part to rising strong’s famous fair. Bob had freight costs from a relatively Message from 2 started Okanagan Fisher Stove remote location in Powell Tom Pugh Works in 1974 and was taking River, the decision was made Message from 2 the show on the road. While ments and buying the oxygen to move the operation to Ray Bonar Bob was enjoying numerous and acetylene for the welder. North Vancouver. Wayne “refreshments” at the show, Wayne would make deliver- says that shipping a stove Wayne was left in Fisher’s ies down to the old chicken from Manitoba to Vancouver Message from 2 booth to extol the virtues of coop where the stoves were was cheaper than shipping Bret Watson the stove to all who would welded together. one from Powell River to listen. It was then that his love About 18 months later, Paul Vancouver at the time. Message from 3 for wood burning began. Ziri decided to move on and This strategic move allowed Ralph MacDonald Some weeks later while driving Claudio visited his brother in for better service to the along Hwy 101 in Powell River, Australia, so Wayne bought company’s market area. The Northwest Stoves 4 Wayne picked up a hitchhiker, the business. It was 1977. 5000 square foot building Later Years who said he was on his way to Within a week, Wayne was one of three addresses Fisher Stoves. Wayne happily moved the business from the that Fisher Stove Northwest Stoves 4 proceeded to explain to him old chicken coop to the Works/Northwest Stoves Contact Information that he knew the product and boiler room of the old Pow- would occupy on Charlotte told him of his recent experi- ell River Post Office. The Road over the next 18 years. ence at the show. Imagine business was incorporated in The staff had grown to five Wayne’s surprise when his February of 1977 and its new employees when, in 1979, “He was a damn passenger turned out to be name was Fisher Stove with manufacturing being Claudio Querin, partner to Works Ltd. done in three locations good supplier, one Paul Ziri in Fisher Stove With Jim Osline welding and (North Vancouver, Powell with a good Works Canada. Wayne painting, grinding and River and Richmond), a business sense” At the time, Wayne was in his selling, they were off to the young Dan Kosovic was second year in the CGA pro- races. hired to do shipping and gram and working for a small The first dealer they set up receiving. - cont’d on page 3 - Ralph MacDonald accounting company. How- was Courtenay Lumber on ever, he also decided to take a Vancouver Island. The sec- on Wayne Rourke part-time job at Fisher Stove ond was AC Building Sup- Works. His duties included plies (which later became bookkeeping, placing advertise- Rona in Madeira Park, BC). Page 2 Hot Times Wayne Rourke Trivia—part 1 How much do you know about the Northwest Stoves’ retiring founder? Tom Pugh—Lloyd Pugh & Associates 1. What is Wayne’s favourite pastime when he’s not in the office? While I have many fond and he picked up ICC when While many would have 2. What are the names of his two thoughts and humorous sto- it was a small but promising treaded lightly with this sons? ries about working with venting line from Quebec in chimney upstart, he had the 3. What Mexican resort location Wayne over the past 20 years, 1991. daring to throw out a very did he drive his truck and I stand in awe of his ability to successful Projet product camper to on more than one pick “the next big thing” in the line and go “all in for ICC”. occasion? hearth industry. I don’t know His unparallel commitment 4. What product did Wayne mount on a utility trailer, hooked up to if he acquired this gift as a and belief in our future set a Fisher Stove with copper coils, Fisher licensee in the late the foundation for ICC’s which he hauled from place to 1970’s, but he was a Lopi li- success in BC and the rest place doing demos? censee when glass doors were of Canada. Wayne’s vision 5. What dealer did Wayne pur- the rage, he was the Kent Tile is what sets him apart from chase his camper from? Fire importer when they were all others in the hearth in- - more trivia on page 3. Answers on back page. Consumer Reports Top dustry and has earned him Choice, he jumped on Pacific the highest respect from all Energy stoves when they re- of his peers. Thank you for placed Kent as the “must making ICC so successful. “Wayne’s vision is have” wood stove product, - Tom Pugh what sets him apart from Wayne tests a Fisher Honey Bear all others in the hearth Ray Bonar—Vice President, industry.” Industrial Chimney Co. - Tom Pugh “I first met Wayne sometime in sage that Wayne had called. when you’re screwing up; but the late 70’s. The first business we This wouldn’t be unusual except he always does it in a construc- did together was when he sold me it is three hours earlier on the tive way and he never wastes some Fisher Stoves. Our relation- west coast. Wayne would make your time. When Wayne talks ship really picked up for good his eastern calls at 5am so he I listen. He understands what once Northwest Stoves became could start working when almost the manufacturer needs in their the first Canadian Excel distribu- most of us were still sleeping. business relationship much better than most distributors. tor in 1991. Wayne is a thoughtful, straight- I’ve always thought he was the For many years we did not have forward and honest communica- best distributor I’ve known at voice mail until Wayne convinced tor – a genuine no bullshit kind choosing good lines so naturally me that we needed it. Before that of guy. He’s not shy to tell you he chose ours. And we’re very I’d often arrive at the office when he thinks you need to around 8:30 and be handed a mes- change something or to tell you happy he did.

Wayne wishes Greg Stalman well upon his retirement in 2010. Now it is Greg’s turn to do the same. Bret Watson—President, Jotul North America

“When I was National Sales Man- HearthStone and at Jotul, he with Wayne on his business, ager for HearthStone, I met has made a conscious effort to what we could do better in Wayne at Toronto’s Wood/Gas burn our products in his home. manufacturing and about the Forum and quickly realized how industry overall. Wayne was “Wayne has always Along with Tex McLeod, Ray iconic he was throughout Canada. highly successful because he had inspired manufacturers Bonar, Tom Pugh, John Gulland At the time, we needed a distribu- the combined competency of and others, Wayne formed a to address quality concerns tor in Western Canada. It took finance and entrepreneurial formidable governing body for with his lack of PO’s for some time to convince him to spirit—a potent mix. Wayne has Canada in our industry— take on HearthStone. Fortunately always inspired manufacturers products that were sometimes formal and often for us, the decline of Water- to address quality concerns with not up to standard.” times informal. I cannot stress ford—the line he had at the his lack of PO’s for products enough the impact that this time—paved the way. that were not up to standard. - Bret Watson group has had in promoting our Before Wayne takes on a line, he industry not just in Canada, but When I look back, Wayne is one does a very careful review of the across all of North America. of the top 5 or 6 people who product. During my years at have been influential in my I always had good conversations hearth career.” Volume 13, Issue 2—Special Edition—Wayne Rourke’s Retirement Page 3

Northwest Stoves Early Years (from page 1) Wayne Rourke Trivia—Part 2 Continued from page 2 How much do you know about Fisher Stove Works actually sufficient heating rising, the over dinner at the Keg Restau- stopped manufacturing the company’s annual sales rose to rant, and Mike was hired. His the Northwest Stoves founder? stoves 6 months after the the $1 million mark in 1979. early role was shipping and move to North Vancouver. receiving, as well as being the 6. When is Wayne’s birthday? In 1980, the company decided outside sales rep for the entire The work was sub-contracted to take on Projet Chimney, 7. What is Wayne’s middle name? to Randy Gott of Gott Enter- province of BC. 8. What nickname was given to the represented at that time by long old, run down black pick up he prises who was located, con- 1982 was the year that North- time industry professional, drove around town? veniently, right next door on Shaun Mullan. Dan Kosovic likes west Stoves developed and Charlotte Road. 9. What association did Wayne to tell the story of the first Pro- manufactured a catalytic serve as President? One of Dan’s early jobs was jet truck’s arrival. Each and woodstove—the Northwest 10. What was Wayne’s first career to brick and stack each stove every piece had to be unloaded Model #1 Catalytic Wood- set to be before his interest in from the 3 different locations. by hand. Even with the driver’s stove. It was pretty ugly, but it wood stoves began in the early 70’s? Inventory was fairly easy to help, it took several hours to worked well. handle as there were only 5 unload. Shaun had great timing, 11. What highly time consuming - continued on page 4 project has Wayne undertaken skus. Truthfully, there were as he arrived when the job was over the past 2 years? more when you include nickel basically complete. - Answers on back page. and gold door options, but it But that truck marked the be- was nothing like the 5000 plus ginning of the company’s transi- items he handles today! No computers here either. Dan tion into wholesale distribution. was able to tell you exactly In 1982, during a sales call to what we had in the ware- Vaglio Fireplaces in Vancouver, house, at any given time. Wayne met Mike Harstone, who asked Wayne if he was With the oil crisis in full swing hiring. They had an “interview” and demand for more self- Line drawing of Model #1 Catalytic Wayne’s Family Ralph MacDonald—owner, Greg Stalman—Retired NWS R.E. MacDonald Stoves & Stone Employee & Co-owner Blaze Ind.

“I first met Wayne in 1978 “I first met Wayne in 1977, or misconceptions that were there. when I purchased different somewhere thereabouts, when Of course, there was the time he he came into Blaze Industries to types of product from him. took me to Blaine to help clean his scout out some product we Despite his youth and inexpe- sailboat. While I was doing that, he had. At the time, I was a part rience, Wayne obviously knew looked around for tools to com- the industry and ran a fair and owner and the BC Sales Man- plete the job. honest company. ager. I took him for a tour of Wayne is an industry legend. His Once, when my bookkeeper our plant. Wayne developed into a legacy and dedication will continue deserted me at year end, The thing that struck me right leader in the fireplace indus- even after his retirement.” try, promoting both the prod- Wayne spent several hours away about Wayne was his hon- ucts and the retailers. He of his own time helping me esty, fairness and loyalty to both dealers and staff. It’s not always would always help out wher- out, ensuring that things ran smoothly for me. All at no easy to display those traits, yet ever and whenever he could. Wayne had them as part of him cost to me. all the time. W a y n e Wayne introduced me to Many years later, I was lucky h e l p e d trade shows and showed me enough to be asked to work for the importance of attending make the Northwest Stoves. I witnessed firepl ace them. first hand his crusade to help i n d u s tr y He was a damn good supplier the industry’s fight regarding in British and one with a good business wood burning. Wayne jumped Columbia sense. Wayne was last on the in with both feet to help edu- what it is cate the government and the airplane, first on the making Wayne’s son James makes a tackle today. general public to eliminate any of money.” during a recent school rugby match Northwest Stoves Ltd. Northwest Stoves Later Years (from page 3)

Along with Fisher and the Northwest Model #1, Wayne also took on being a 5505 268th Street Lopi licensee and manufactured the stoves for Western Canada. On the dis- Langley, B.C. tribution side of the business, many other products were brought in including V4W 3W1 Flame and Co. Gas Logs, Kel Kem, Dampney, Forrest Paint, RSF, Energy Vent, Phone: (604)857-8816 Iso-Kaern Chimney and Portland Willamette doors and screens. The com- Toll Free:1-800-663-0462 pany was well on its way to becoming a full-service distributor. Fax:(604)857-8963 Because we were growing so quickly, the decision was made to move to spa- Toll Free Fax:1-800-667-6162 cious new digs in Langley in 1994. At the time several other brands were on board including ICC Chimney, Pacific Energy and Pacific Gas. The location Email: [email protected] was quite a bit larger than the Charlotte Road locale, leaving Wayne the op- tion of renting space to other companies if the need arose. However, the company continued to grow making the new warehouse more and more full A special thank you goes out after taking on Convair Coolers, Jotul, HearthStone & Simpson Dura-vent to Tom Pugh, Ray Bonar, Bret among others, until the time came in recent years when we had to find space Watson, Ralph MacDonald in other locations to store our ever increasing inventory levels. and Greg Stalman for their In 1996, Wayne added Todd Ayley to the shipping thoughtful contributions to department to replace John Oldfin, who left after a 10 this special edition of the year stint. In 2002, Wayne needed someone to help him with the books as Mabel Nielsen was going to Hot Times newsletter! move back to her native Denmark, so a man by the name of David Rosvold was recruited. We all know how that turned out. Other former long-time employees who had a significant impact on the life of Visit us on the web at Northwest Stoves include Dan Cook (marketing), Vancouver Gas’s Dawne northweststoves.ca! Pierce (AR & order desk), Grant Biech (shipping & IT), Greg Stalman (shipping and receiving) and the legendary Reid Harvey. In 2006, the company added Connee Ceresney, Chris Vecchies and Martin Mabbs. In 2008, Clinton Tod was brought in from Winnipeg to join the team. The following year saw Dawne Gleadhill added and in 2010, Gerry Moews, Kevin Faire and Scott Robar all became part of Wayne’s legacy.

Wayne Rourke Contact Us Trivia Answers From page 2 & 3

To leave a Voice Northwest Stoves Staff 1. Sailing Mail please phone 2. James (Jamie) and Gray- 604-856-8750 or 1- den (Grady) David Rosvold President ex. 31 888-663-8816, then 3. Cabo San Lucas enter the extension Mike Harstone Outside Sales 604-866-1966 of the person you are 4. A Hot Tub trying to reach and 5. Fireside Heating in Martin Mabbs Outside Sales 403-872-1113 you will be automati- Quesnel (former owner Scott Robar Outside Sales 250-558-6860 cally directed to that Roger St. Amand) person’s line. We will 6. September 20th, 1952 Clinton Tod In/Out Sales/Tech Supp 604-308-1202 or ex. 22 take your call 7. Robert promptly, or you can 8. Black Beauty Todd Ayley Sales & Warehouse Coordinator ex. 26 leave a voice mail for 9. HPBAC Connee Ceresney Cust. Service/Co-op/Warranty ex. 23 a quick call back. 10. Accountant Kevin Faire Shipping ex. 36 11. Home Renovation Dawne Gleadhill Accounts Receivable ex. 29 Dan Kosovic Purchasing/Tech. Support/Warranty ex. 27 Look for more fun Gerry Moews Returns/Shipping/Receiving ex. 30 Serving the Fireplace trivia in the next Industry For More Chris Vecchies Shipping/Receiving ex. 21 edition of “Hot Times” Than Thirty Years