100 years? No problem

St. James-Assiniboia

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/06/2025 (285 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

You just can’t keep a good business down.

And, in this case, no one has been able to keep this grassroots company down for what’s now 100 years, as of February 2025.

MacMor Industries is located at the very edge of the St. James Industrial area, at 1175 Sherwin Rd. Originally the first of its kind in Winnipeg, the “one-stop shop” supplies to the local construction, agriculture, forestry, mining, oil and gas, utility industries — and more — with everything from personal protective equipment, cables, janitorial supplies, power tools, and even more. Although it’s got a full warehouse on-site, it also works with a selection of suppliers, such as Milwawkee.

Even after 100 years in action and with 6,500 active customers — which are primarily businesses — to date, there are no plans on slowing down. Quite the opposite, actually.

“Companies need to evolve,” said Arthur Roy, president at MacMor. “And if you try selling the same thing over and over again, and that’s the only thing you’re going to do, you can’t grow.”

The biggest part of the business is that they can go in and fix problems, Roy said, and distribute specific products based on what customers need at that specific point in time.

“I want to know what you’re having problems with … because you can rely on us,” the Sage Creek resident said.

Because of this, it’s no stranger to keeping with the times — as 1925 was a long time ago.

“We always want to have new things that are that are launching on a yearly basis, new things, new product lines. There’s always something new,” he said, adding that the marketing team has also worked hard over the last year to get the MacMor social media presence underway.

Roy took over from his father and former president Jean-Marc Roy, who bought the company from the son of one of its original founders, Jack Morton — (MacMor is the combination of the last names Morton and Mackay) — in 1980. At 88, Jean-Marc remains a respected businessman, Roy said, with a strong work ethic.

Roy started working at MacMor when he was very young, his father being his mentor through it all, and has done every job at the company. He still enjoys it to this day, he said.

“It’s really cool to be part of something that’s turned 100 … like 1925, that’s a long time ago,” he said. “To think about the way that the business has changed and evolved, and knowing that we still have a very bright future ahead of us … we’re not an old dinosaur, we’re still a spring chicken. We’re very ambitious, and want to keep growing.”

And, with locations in Winkler, Brandon and Saskatchewan, as well as its owner company — the Quebec-based Ficodis — aiming to have it “lead the charge” into western Canada, it seems like there’s nowhere to look but upwards and onwards.

For more information, visit macmor.com or @macmor_industries on Instagram, Facebook or YouTube.