AMAZING CANADIAN COMPANIES

    I wanted to find out more things that are Canadian, things that we purchase daily. Things like gas, clothing, cleaning products etc. It is honestly so hard to stay focused when reading about all the things that are and aren’t Canadian, its almost like gossip, “Did you hear that Tim Hortons is owned by a Brazilian company? THE NERVE!”

    While researching for this blog I found some super awesome websites that I am now obsessed with. They all specialize in local, Canadian owned and made products, and each site offers an array of very different things. They’re basically farmers markets that you can go to without having to leave the house. The first one I found was Foodiepages.ca. They feature a collection of Craft food and drinks made in Canada by small independent makers. You can subscribe to monthly clubs, purchase gift boxes and you can shop individual items and vendors. If you want to feel really good about spending some money, check out LocalBoom.ca. Their online store presents the buyer with a collection of various products from skin and beauty to undies from Canadian and local brands. The best part about this company is that they actively donate back into communities across the country. Since their launch in October 2017 they have donated; $2750 to charities and organizations, 200 bars of soap to women’s shelters, 50 pairs of underwear to men’s shelters, and 85 lbs of animal food. If you need more convincing, they have amazing gift boxes (just bought one for my sister!) and offer free shipping for orders over $30. The last one I’ll be talking about is craftedcanada.ca. They have such an interesting array of products, and like the two companies above they are all Canadian crafted. Dedicated to showcasing Canadian products and vendors from across Canada you can be sure to find some fun items, like pickled fiddleheads, wild mushroom powder (never heard of this before but I immediately need it), fresh BC nettles, fresh wild mushrooms, syrup and coffee. This is the first time I’ve heard about companies like this, but I love this idea!

    Ok now to everyday products. Things that we purchase daily, weekly, or monthly. There are a lot of locally made clothing out there, however it can get expensive and there isn’t very much variety (please let me know if I’m wrong). If you are looking for shoes go to your local mall and you will find ALDO which is a Canadian company, they sell non-Canadian products, but you can feel good purchasing for them. I’ve been really enjoying Mark’s Work Wearhouse lately, and they are a Canadian company (yeah). They offer heavy duty work wear as well as casual wear like sweaters and jeans. If you like outside (who doesn’t) you’ll be happy to know that Mountain Equipment Co-Op is owned by “everyone who shops there”. Life long Memberships are $5.00, and I think that is quite reasonable. They are proud to call Canada their backyard and so am I.

    We all need gas for our vehicles, unless of course you have an electric car (BC is third, for Electric vehicle sales in 2018 at 2564, in Canada). I feel pretty good getting my gasoline from Petro-Canada, which is owned by Suncor. Not only do they give back to Canada by sponsoring Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Athletes, they deliver fuel directly to our Canadian farmers and you can be sure to find a Petro Canada in the middle of nowhere, because “the middle of nowhere isn’t nowhere to the people that live there”. Any homeowners out there? If you are you probably visit Home Hardware at least once a month. Which is great since they are the last remaining Canadian owned major hardware store chain. Rona was purchased by American Giant Lowe’s back in 2016.

    The last company today is Reinhart Foods. They are the oldest company I’ve come across so far. Founded in 1910, this Canadian family owned company produces vinegar, pickles, cleaning products, and raisins and dates. John Reinhart purchased the land that the company is still located on in 1910, they produced apple products from locally grown apples. They and expanded their products from that time.

• ·         Reinhart’s Light Cider
• ·         Allen’s Vinegar
• ·         Reinhart’s Apple Cider Vinegar
• ·         Allen’s Cleaning Vinegar
• ·         Dalton’s Coconut
• ·         Dalton’s Maraschino Cherries
• ·         Dalton’s Glace Fruit
• ·         Dalton’s Mincemeat
• ·         Jaffa’s Raisins
• ·         Jaffa’s Dates

Well that was a mouth full. I hope you enjoyed this blog, I really did have a lot of fun writing it. If I missed a company or product that you can’t live without and is Canadian comment below.

* Most of the information on this blog is directly from the websites of each company. As well as madeinca.ca*

-Alyson Whittle UA

Social Media Marketing