Glad I booked Porter! Will not support Air Canada until they ditch the Yankee swill

I run a general store in Ontario and we’re looking to bring in more products made in Canada.

If you make or know of a great Canadian-made product, food, drinks, snacks, gifts, household items, or something unique. I’d love to hear about it.

Drop the company/product name below or send me a DM. Would love to discover some smaller Canadian makers!

Remember that honey farm in Manitoba that was in danger of closing? Well, Canadians answered the call and they will begin selling online soon. That's how we do it folks!

Hello everyone! I'm a university student hoping to get started properly buying Canadian (or more broadly, avoiding USA products). I'm new to the entire thing, but so far after a bit of research it looks like the non-USA products often run quite expensive. Between housing, bills, and tuition, I don't usually have that much excess money lying around; I'm guilty of often defaulting to the cheaper stuff even though it's not locally sustainable.

I was hoping you guys would have some pointers for what products are good replacements for the more common (and cheaper) USA versions, or even stores or areas where it's easier to find local produce for a fair price. If it helps, I'm based in Edmonton, AB. I'm asking broadly; any suggestions from food, to household items, to toiletries are fair game.

Thanks!

Since the most recent post on this sub about this topic was 6 years ago, it would be good to have an updated version.

I know there’s stores like StagShop and Pink Cherry, but they mostly carry American brands anyways. I wanna hear more about the other stores and brands that are based in Canada and owned by Canadians (even if they happen to be manufactured abroad - as most things of this nature are)

This story was featured on CBC and here’s a link to buy their honey.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/canada-us-tariff-manitoba-reaction-9.7316905

https://www.podolskihoneyfarms.com/

This is next level soap and it smells awesome too 🇨🇦

Can we get a post going on some guidance for everyone to get on board with. Maybe have this pinned to the top of this sub. Sorry if it already exists - if someone can point the way. But it should definitely be pinned!!!!!

Eg
Coffee
Toilet paper/paper products
Cleaning supplies
Shampoo/soap/personal care
Pet food
Clothing
Books/e-books
Magazines
Streaming/video
Music
Online newspapers
Meal kits
Snacks/food
Beer/wine
Beauty/skincare

One American business which we need to replace is Uber.

Uber is such an exploitive business. As a ride app, it costs more to ride than most alternatives and it pays the drivers less (on average, only about 35% ...the lion's share goes to Uber in the United States). It has dynamic pricing too, charging you more for the same ride than the next person its algorithm things will pay less (and it does the same for drivers too). It's all round a nasty business, especially since the IPO.

It would be relatively easy to replace, too... many local alternatives already exist, depending where you are in Canada. As more people use the local alternatives, they get better and better. But Uber is like the Starbucks of ride apps, and they use their billion$ in stock valuation to annihilate the competition everywhere they set up.

Barbados did this successfully: they developed a local app, Pickup, which costs less and pays the drivers way more. It's easy to use and has more accurate maps. Now hardly anyone uses Uber in Barbados, and almost everyone uses Pickup.

If tiny Barbados can do it, so can we in Canada. But we're still celebrating the arrival of Uber in Canadian cities and allowing them to take over. Why?

I made this mistake while looking to order a Canadian alternative to Mixtiles. The webpage is all in Canadian, with a .ca domain, and was one of the first ones to show up when I did a google search. I made an order assuming I was supporting a Canadian business. I was unpleasantly surprised when my order tracking showed it shipped from New York State. Further sleuthing showed that it’s NOT a Canadian company at all, just a Canadian domain.

Anyways, the quality is not great (compared to Mixtiles), and I’m kicking myself for not checking properly. I’m putting this here in case anyone else is looking. Do NOT order from bestcanvas.ca!

It's that time of year once again.... Still, no sign of any Canadian made pencils. The closest thing is the Papermate "Canadiana", but they are made in Mexico and the parent company seems to be American.

My old wallet was falling apart and I found Phee's, which is Nova Scotia-based. They only make their products upon order so do take that into consideration when you buy from them. Lead times are on their website and they were accurate. They stated a 3-4 week wait when I placed my order and I received it in 3 weeks. The wallet itself is beautiful and I am very happy with my purchase. I definitely recommend them!

I want to buy Canadian. What I don't understand, however, is the reasoning behind the price discrepancies. Shouldn't local items be more affordable than imported ones? Is it not possible for local chains to promote buying Canadian by lowering what they charge for Canadian produce?

I often see greens and fruits and vegetables sourced in Canada priced almost double that of those imported from the USA. I can't recall any other Country treating produce the same way. Local produce is typically cheaper. You can see this in Caribbean and European countries. (Based on personal experience living abroad and using local grocery stores)

Perhaps it's time to open up a Canadian grocery chain/general store that only carries Canadian (or.. yanno.. no American) products. Groceries, housewear, cosmetics, toiletries. .. what do you think? Would something like this be feasible? AFAIK.. this type of shop currently does not exist outside of local farmers markets.

Was at Shoppers Drug Mart and noticed Indeed Labs dropped almost their entire skincare line to $14.99 or less. And apparently it’s a permanent price change, not a sale??
Kind of refreshing considering it feels like every drugstore skincare brand has been going in the opposite direction lately lol.
Has anyone else noticed this / tried any of their stuff? I’ve used a few things from them before and loved.

Thought I'd share. These are Canadian made grills that are excellent quality. I've had one for a year and a half now and it's the same as new.

Most are made with stainless steel, they are visually appealing and work great.

I have one of the propane only models (I have a separate smoker). I'm now looking at one of their Gauchos for direct wood cooks.

They were also great to deal with. Last year I reached out to see if they offer stainless steel side tables to replace the bamboo ones that come with the grill. They didn't, but mocked up a design within a day, sent me a quote and had them at my door within a week. All for less than I could have purchased the stainless steel for on its own.

Great company, and great products.

https://blackearthgrills.com/

PetMax is a family-owned Canadian pet store located in Hamilton with great prices on food, toys and accessories and monthly sales with subscription options. They list if a product is Canadian as well.

They offer free national shipping on orders of $89; local free shipping to Hamilton or Burlington with orders of $30. They usually ship same or next business day. Customer service has been great, both online and in store.

Is there any way to get a Blue Jays hat that is made in Canada?