Exporters’ ‘phones have started to ring’

More than three decades of exporting have taught Theo Wiering an important rule: A strong Canadian dollar means weak sales in markets outside the country.

“I’ve always said for years that as soon as the dollar goes past 85 cents [U.S.], we’re toast,” says Mr. Wiering, founder and owner of Canada’s Log People Inc., a log house builder in 100 Mile House, B.C., that packages and ships its homes as kits to customers in Canada, the United States, Japan and Europe. “Our costs – especially our fuel costs – are higher compared to similar businesses in the U.S., and it becomes very hard to compete.”

When the Canadian dollar slipped below 80 cents this year, Mr. Wiering reacted quickly, booking himself into two trade shows in the United States. He also took out full-page ads in Log Home Living, a Boulder, Colo.-based magazine for fans of wood homes. Read More…

Exporters’ ‘phones have started to ring’