Corporation is one of Canada’s largest integrated distributors of plumbing, waterworks, industrial and HVAC products for the construction industry. For more than a century, their brand has been a fixture in North America’s plumbing supply landscape. Founded in 1906 in London, Ontario as Empire Manufacturing, the company has evolved from a single-location operation into the largest plumbing wholesaler in Canada, with a coast-to-coast presence and a network numbering in the hundreds of locations. Today, Emco operates under a decentralized model that treats each location as a Profit Centre (PC) – an entrepreneurial business within the broader organization – backed by national buying power, strong supplier partnerships, and shared best practices. Within that framework, Emco’s operation in Stratford, Ontario stands out for their market specialization, their revitalized culture, and a showroom that reflects the character of the communities they serve. “No two Emco PCs are the same,” Joshua Morrison, profit centre manager. “Each PC is responsible for being profitable and owning their market, and they have the freedom to do what they need to do in order to be successful in their market. That’s going to look different depending on the market. The principles are the same, our partners are the same, but who we’re targeting and how we’re going about that is a little different.” For example, some PCs might heavily focus on commercial customers. At the Stratford location, however, they focus heavily on the residential sector, as there is not as much commercial activity compared to other locations, and there are a lot of people settling in the region, and there’s FEBRUARY 2026
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