AXES UP
Members of southern Ontario’s aftermarket community unleashed their inner viking on a hot Saturday afternoon in July, as Treschak Enterprises raised $11,500 at its third annual Axes Up for the Fonthill Legion fundraiser. The afternoon of axe throwing, taken part in by a record 50 throwers this year, has become an annual tradition in the Fonthill community to show support for the local legion branch and raise money for its meals-on-wheels program. The idea for the fundraiser spawned in 2020 when Treschak Enterprises’ operations manager, Jamie Treschak saw his local legion in need of a new hood for their kitchen and that it would cost $10,000. “They were providing meals to our community directly, so we figured we could do something about this,” said Treschak. “By the next year, the legion had given out 18,000 meals, free of charge—so we ran the tournament again and raised $10,000.” Thus, the Axes Up fundraiser was born. This year’s event was sponsored by Sobeys and local craft brewery Kame and Kettle Beer Works, donated a keg from which all proceeds were donated to the legion’s meals-on-wheels program, as well as various other veteran-focused community outreach programs.
The afternoon of axe throwing—an annual event hosted by Teschak Enterprises—was taken part in by a record 50 throwers this year, has become an annual tradition in the Fonthill community to show support for the local legion branch and raise money for its meals-on-wheels program.
A PRICE FOR PORSCHE
The Volkswagen Group plans to publicly list Porsche via an initial public offering (IPO) later this year, with the decision set to finance the OEM’s future in electric vehicles. Porsche’s parent company flaunted the possibility of an IPO earlier this year. However, VW Chief Financial Officer Arno Antlitz recently suggested the luxury brand will go ahead with a listing in the fourth quarter as the unit has “proved resilient over the years to market disruptions,” including in recent supply-chain turmoil. “We are optimistic we can pursue [the Porsche IPO] in the fourth quarter,” Antlitz said at the Munich Reuters Automotive Europe conference. “Porsche would gain entrepreneurial freedom, we can expect a lot from them.”
A-OK
On July 7, Driven Brands announced its acquisition of the Florida-based K&K Glass, making the company’s fifth foray into the auto glass market. According to a press release from Driven Brands, K&K Glass boasts more than 100 mobile glass repair vans and 20 warehouses in the Florida area. “We are grateful that Driven Brands can continue our legacy and help both our employees and the business realize its full potential,” said the former owner of K&K Glass, Dan Knowlton. Driven Brands first entered the glass business in Canada with the acquisition of Uniban Canada in 2019 and now has over 350 locations across North America. “We remain highly acquisitive in this segment as we look to support the needs of our customers in this extremely fragmented industry,” said Michael Macaluso, president of Driven Brands. “It’s an exciting time to join our Driven Brands family and we are thrilled to now welcome K&K Glass.”
ON SECOND THOUGHT
The rug has been pulled out on what was supposed to be a $50 million EV battery enclosure production plant for the municipality of Chatham, Ont., as a news release from Magna International shows the company’s plans to cancel the project. The Chatham Daily News got a hold of a Magna news release on June 2, which stated that an adjustment of schedules at the company’s Formet plant in St. Thomas had increased its production capacity and could therefore make room for the work that was to be done at the new Chatham plant. Magna officials say it still plans to make use of the former Crown Metal Packaging plant the company originally planned to be a hub to produce battery enclosures for the Ford F-150 Lightning pickup truck. However, instead of fully converting the long-dormant industrial space, Magna says they will “leverage” the newly renovated building in Chatham to facilitate an overflow of work. The decision reportedly left Chatham-Kent’s mayor and city officials “very disappointed.”
