Johnson Controls announced that The Master Group was awarded distribution rights throughout Western Canada for YORK brand residential and commercial heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) products. Already the exclusive authorized distributor of the YORK line of residential and commercial rooftop products in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada, The Master Group will become a non-exclusive distributor of ducted systems products for Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.The agreement will take effect on February 13, 2019 and The Master Group will officially become the exclusive authorized YORK distributor in Canada for residential ducted systems and commercial rooftop products on May 13, 2019, for a multi-year contractual commitment. The agreement does not include YORK industrial products.
“The Master Group has been a trusted partner for nearly 50 years. Given the success they have had with the YORK brand in Eastern Canada and the high level of training and service that they provide to dealers, we are confident that they are the best company to grow the YORK brand in the Canadian market,” said Neil McDougall, vice president of Ducted Systems at Johnson Controls. “The Master Group’s commitment to redefining service for dealers and their considerable investments in Western Canada show that they are well-positioned to take on this expanded role.
“We are very grateful to the Johnson Controls leadership team for the confidence they have shown in us and for the opportunity to become a truly coast-to-coast distributor of YORK residential ducted systems and commercial rooftops,” said Louis St-Laurent, president and CEO of The Master Group. “The decentralized nature of our business means that we will be able to offer the same high-quality, localized service to dealers in Western Canada as we do elsewhere in the country.
Over the past year, The Master Group has invested heavily in the Western Canada HVAC market, notably through the acquisition of Davies Supplies Group, adding locations in Saskatoon (SK), Calgary and Lethbridge (AB). Additional expansions have included the opening of a branch in Winnipeg (MB), a distribution center and a training facility in Calgary as well as a new distribution center in Burnaby (BC). The company is also preparing to open several new locations in Burnaby, Langley, Victoria, Nanaimo and Kelowna (BC) as well as in Calgary and Edmonton (AB) among others.
“We are excited to have an opportunity to work with YORK dealers in Western Canada and become partners in business. Whether it’s through our new locations, distribution centers and time-saving services like online ordering, express pick-up and on-site delivery, or through opening new regional state-of-the-art training centers, we are always finding ways to better serve our customers,” said Dennis Larson, regional vice-president for Western Canada at The Master Group.“By obtaining the YORK distribution rights for the four provinces in Western Canada and investing in our operations west of Ontario, we are showing that we are committed to serving the Western Canadian market over the long term.”
