Woodbine Building Supply was a hardware store on Toronto's east-end Danforth Avenue owned by Magno with his two brothers, Frank and Carlo, and started by their father years before. For several years the company had struggled to compete with a nearby Home Depot, and its owners had frequent disputes with local residents; it had been fined $11,800 for improper storage of materials. The brothers planned to move their store to a new location nearby, and construct a condominium development on the Danforth site. Weeks before the fire, the Magno brothers increased their insurance coverage on the store. A local demolition company quoted $145,000 to demolish the store and clear the lot, which was rejected by Woodbine Building Supply's owners.
