As I’ve often heard said in our industry; it’s not enough to do a good job, you have to be seen doing a good job for it to really count. As a member-based association and advocate for the agri-retail sector, it’s part of CAAR’s role to share the news and stories of the good work being done by our members.

That is what we here at The Communicator specialize in with our content – telling the stories only we can tell, as they relate to the agri-retail industry in Canada, to advance and promote our members.

While our focus on the news and issues affecting agri-retailers is unchanged and will remain our guiding principle through 2018 and beyond, this issue of the magazine was perfectly timed to provide us – the staff and board members of CAAR – a chance to reflect on the past year, while also shifting our gaze forward and looking at what’s coming up for the association.

So with that in mind, we flipped the script and dedicated some pages to talk about what CAAR has accomplished, what we have planned, and perhaps most importantly, why every agri-retailer needs to be a part of this association.

It’s rare in my role as editor-in-chief to see my own words in print within our pages, beyond my musings in this note for each issue, so it was particularly exciting for me to be included alongside CAAR’s board chair, Martin Kiefer, and membership value committee chair, Stan Loewen, to share our thoughts on CAAR’s purpose, impact and future. Our conversation is shared within the Perspectives department and I encourage you to click here to give it a read.

In addition, we are pleased to introduce Mitch Rezansoff as CAAR’s new executive director. Mitch brings a fresh perspective and approach to CAAR’s leadership. Together, the CAAR team is excited to tackle the challenges our members need our support on. Click here to read The Communicator's profile on Mitch. I urge you to reach out to him directly at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to welcome him to the association and to share your thoughts on what your business needs and wants from CAAR.

I hope you enjoy reading more about what CAAR has been up to this past year and what we have planned for 2018. Perhaps you’ll learn a few new things about the association and the good work we do on behalf of our members. As always, our team appreciates your guidance and feedback, so I invite you to share your thoughts on this issue. I look forward to hearing from you!

Happy reading,

Lynda Nicol
Editor-in-chief