Monthly Archives: December 2011

I’ve been enjoying my holidays with my family in anticipation for New Years. Thinking about goals and focus for 2012 (you can say my new year’s resolutions) I’ll dedicate more to family while Trail Blazer will be improving their budgeting process and increasing sales with extension poles & snow shovels. For anyone who doesn’t know, I am the President of Trail Blazer Products Limited, this Nova Scotia manufacturer was started 16 years ago when I was building the Take-Down Buck Saw (developed by my dad, Curtis Levangie) in my Halifax apartment. Today, Trail Blazer products are sold by over 20,000 retailers in over 40 countries. A growth I’m very proud of. Last year was a struggle - with the changes in the

I’d like to extend a Merry Christmas from our family “the Levangie’s … Curtis my dad, Joan my mom, Shawn me, Dawna my wife, Travis my son, Akayla my son’s girlfriend, Natalie my daughter, Victoria my youngest daughter & Rollie our American Stafford-shire Terrier / German Sheppard” … to yours!! Having Christmas Eve on a Saturday this year was absolutely great!!! Having the full day off worked allowed us to head to Ostrea Lake and pick up Akayla. I’m very happy, she was able to spend some time with us and enjoy one of our family traditions. On our way back to the house we made a detour and headed to the woods equipped with Trail Blazer Products so we

This week I focused most of my attention and time on financial requirements we need to prepare for our spring delivery requirements and our busiest time of the year. I participated in Minister Steele’s pre-budget tour with CME and I learned about a great product created by Nova Scotia ingenuity. I met with the Toronto-Dominion Bank twice this week to discuss the lower receivables & excess inventory we presently have from the decrease in consumer spending last spring of 2011. I also reached out to Maple Trade Finance, to see if they would cover some of the working capital tied up in our inventory, until we begin shipping again in January or February 2012 for next spring. I am pleased to advise you

The introduction of our Reverse D-handle Snow Shovels, Made in Nova Scotia, continued this week when an assortment was delivered and set-up at Annapolis, Chester & Greenwood Home Hardware. Our Reverse D-handle Snow Shovels are now available in twelve Home Hardware Stores and seven Co-op Country stores in Atlantic Canada. I received word from my partner & friend, Per Inge Sagmoen with S-Ski & Sport in Norway this week. They now have snow in Norway and their Christmas will be white (Merry Christmas Per Inge, to you and all your family). He also informed me that one of the leading leisure magazines in Norway will be testing snow shovels and our Reverse D-handle Snow Shovels will participate in the test, along with our

The introduction of our Reverse D-handle Snow Shovels/Pushers, Made in Nova Scotia, continued this week when an assortment was delivered & set-up at Payzant Home Hardware in Lower Sackville. Our Reverse D-handle Snow Shovels & Pushers are now available in over 15 Home Hardware Stores and Co-op Country stores in Atlantic Canada. This week we received our spring order (for the 5thyear in a row) from Húsasmidjan… 16 home improvement stores in Iceland, seven of which are associated with garden center Blómaval. Established in 1956 by Mr Snorri Halldórsson, born 1911 at Magnússkógar in the “Dalir” of Western Iceland… An active master builder who built many renowned buildings in Reykjavík such as the National theatre and the University cinema. Húsasmidjan has gone through changes since 1956 and is now one